City: Louisville, KY

Category: Education

Telephone: (502) 485-3949

Address: 3332 Newburg Rd.

Description: With nearly 100,000 students in 90 elementary schools, 24 middle schools, and 21 high schools, the Jefferson County public school system is one of the largest in the country. There are also 20 other learning centers where alternative or special education programs are offered. With a fleet of more than 1,500 vehicles, it also operates one of the 10 largest transportation systems in the nation. The JCPS is administered by an elected seven-member board of education, responsible for administering an almost $900 million budget. It additionally selects and hires a superintendent to act as the chief executive. Of the more than 6,000 teachers, 83 percent hold a master’s degree or higher, and the average educator has 11.6 years of classroom experience. Given its large size and the number of poorer inner city neighborhoods included in its boundaries, a good percentage—more than 60 percent—of its students go on to college or other postsecondary schooling.For the past several years, Jefferson County parents have consistently given JCPS high marks. On a recent districtwide parent survey, 58 percent of respondents graded their child’s school with an A; 31 percent gave a grade of B. In addition, Jefferson County public schools receive their fair share of praise at the national level: four area schools were included on the U.S. News and World Report 2008 list of America’s Best High Schools, and three schools appeared on Newsweek magazine’s 2007 list of Best American High Schools.Because of its size, JCPS can offer a greater range of educational options than any other educational system in the area. From elementary to high school, there are dozens of options and magnet programs, including the Youth Performing Arts School. There are also career academies in a wide variety of subjects, something in which Jefferson County has been a leader.In recent years, Jefferson County Public Schools received national media attention when a Louisville mother filed a lawsuit on behalf of her son (Meredith v. Jefferson County Board of Education), whom she claimed was denied enrollment in a particular school because of his race. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against Meredith in October 2005, but in June 2006, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear the case, the first time the high court elected to rule on a school district’s use of a voluntary desegregation plan. The case was heard with a similar one from Seattle, Washington, and in June 2007, the Supreme Court handed down a verdict in favor of the plaintiffs, maintaining that the school districts in Louisville and Seattle violated constitutional guarantees of equal protection. The far-reaching ramifications of this decision have not been seen yet, but it is believed that hundreds of school districts across the nation might be affected by the outcome of the Louisville case.