Best Public Schools in Cold Spring, KY

Cold Spring, Kentucky, has two elementary schools serving prekindergarten through grade 5 in Campbell County: Crossroads Elementary School and Donald E. Cline Elementary School. In the latest results, Cline averaged 70% across nine shared tests, compared with 44% at Crossroads and 44% statewide. The most important distinction for families is that Cline leads Crossroads in every shared published subject-grade result, by 15 to 41 percentage points.

Cline stands out at the top in achievement: it scored 85% in 3rd-grade reading compared with 44% at Crossroads, and its largest lead was 41 points in that subject. It also led by 29 points in 5th-grade editing and mechanics. Crossroads is lower in the local comparison, though its 3rd- and 4th-grade math results were 12 and 10 points above the state, respectively; its 5th-grade editing and mechanics score was 11 points below. SchoolDigger ranked Cline 25th of 684 schools, at the 96th percentile with five stars, and Crossroads 348th, at the 49th percentile with two stars.

Across the two years of comparable results, both schools improved by about 3 points on their shared tests, while the state average stayed at 44%; gains were not uniform, as editing and mechanics fell 7 points across the schools. Other differences offer context, not explanations: in 2024–2025, Crossroads had 587 students, a 14.5 student-teacher ratio, and 61% free/reduced lunch eligible; Cline had 398 students, a 16.3 ratio, and 34% free/reduced lunch eligible. In 2025–2026, chronic absenteeism was 19% at Crossroads and 12% at Cline, below the state’s 24% at both schools.