Jackson Purchase News

Marshall County High School had the highest enrollment among Marshall County schools, welcoming 1,442 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, 52.8% of them were boys, and 47.2% were girls.

Data also showed that the majority of students were white, making up 96.7% of Marshall County High School's total enrollment.

Among the 10 schools in Marshall County, Benton Elementary School ranked second in enrollment numbers with 611 students, while North Marshall Middle School welcomed 596 students and ranked third in the 2022-23 school year.

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

In the previous school year, Marshall County High School also had the highest number of students among Marshall 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
Marshall County High School	Benton	1,442
Benton Elementary School	Benton	611
North Marshall Middle School	Calvert City	596
South Marshall Middle School	Benton	578
Central Elementary School	Benton	572
South Marshall Elementary School	Benton	365
Calvert City Elementary School	Calvert City	360
Sharpe Elementary School	Benton	358
Jonathan Elementary School	Benton	257
Purchase Youth Village	Benton	68