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# Kentucky’s school-staffing trends: Only five states have worse share of teachers in K-12
- URL: https://www.bluegrassinstitute.org/kentuckys-school-staffing-trends-only-five-states-have-worse-share-of-teachers-in-k-12/
- Published: 2025-05-13T09:53:00.000Z
- Updated: 2025-09-23T12:56:28.000Z
- Author: Paul Coomes
- Tags: Policy Brief, Education Freedom

“[Staffing Trends in Kentucky’s Public Schools](https://1fdf4a5b-1369-48e4-8e0f-7ad62dfd4c02.usrfiles.com/ugd/1fdf4a%5F640e6ec6c90d43529cbe45e2af28407c.pdf?ref=bluegrassinstitute.org)” is the second in a three-part series of Bluegrass Institute policy briefs examining public education spending in Kentucky. 

Written by economists Paul Coomes, Ph.D., and John Garen, Ph.D., the report highlights a surge in non-teacher staffing that’s most pronounced at the district level and a funding increase that continued after staffing levels plateaued.

Key findings include:

- Total school staffing in Kentucky’s K-12 education system grew 39% from 1990 to 2024, with non-teaching staff rising 57% compared to a 21% increase in teachers.
- District-level staff increased 62% since 1993, far outpacing the 15% growth in school-level teachers, while student attendance dropped nearly 3%.
- Despite a 10% decline in average daily attendance since 2013, per-pupil funding has soared an inflation-adjusted136% since 1990, increasing from $8,400 to $19,700, and has continued to rise even after non-teacher staffing plateaued in 2013.

The research also reveals that only five states have worse teaching-to-nonteaching ratios than Kentucky. Six of Kentucky’s seven neighboring states have a higher share of staff who are teachers. 

For example, 55% of all public-school staff in Missouri are teachers in the classroom – fifth best in the nation – compared to only 43.5% in Kentucky. 

The [first report](https://1fdf4a5b-1369-48e4-8e0f-7ad62dfd4c02.usrfiles.com/ugd/1fdf4a%5F5133c173b2cd4c1ca8625204f6aa48e2.pdf?ref=bluegrassinstitute.org) in the series analyzed Kentucky public teachers’ compensation.