Metro Lex News

West Jessamine High School had the highest enrollment among Jessamine County schools, welcoming 1,315 students during the 2022-23 school year, according to the Kentucky Department of Education.

Of all the students welcomed in the 2022-23 school year, 51.6% of them were girls, and 48.4% were boys.

Data also showed that the majority of students were white, making up 83.4% of West Jessamine High School's total enrollment.

Among the 13 schools in Jessamine County, East Jessamine High School ranked second in enrollment numbers with 1,118 students, while West Jessamine Middle School welcomed 1,009 students and ranked third in the 2022-23 school year.

West Jessamine High School is part of Jessamine County School District, which roughly covers schools within Jessamine County and has a main office in Nicholasville.

In the previous school year, West Jessamine High School also had the highest number of students among Jessamine County schools.

Kentucky is in the midst of a statewide teacher shortage as turnover rates spiked to 10.9% in 2023, up from an 8.9% nine-year average. This issue is more prominent in schools with more low-income and minority students.

Data also shows that between 2019 and 2023, there was an increase of 260% in the number of available teaching posts in Kentucky schools. This often leads to larger class sizes, combining programs, and retaining staff despite potential negative impacts on teacher working conditions.

School name	City	Total School Enrollment
West Jessamine High School	Nicholasville	1,315
East Jessamine High School	Nicholasville	1,118
West Jessamine Middle School	Nicholasville	1,009
Jessamine Early Learning Village	Nicholasville	958
East Jessamine Middle School	Nicholasville	924
Rosenwald Dunbar Elementary School	Nicholasville	654
Brookside Elementary School	Nicholasville	631
Hattie C. Warner Elementary School	Nicholasville	627
Red Oak Elementary School	Nicholasville	608
Wilmore Elementary School	Wilmore	595
Nicholasville Elementary School	Nicholasville	492
The Providence School	Wilmore	231
Ashgrove Academy	Nicholasville	30