Best Public Schools in Manchester, KY

Summary:

The city of Manchester, Kentucky is home to 8 schools serving students from elementary through high school, including 5 elementary schools, 1 middle school, 1 high school, and 1 alternative school. The schools in this district face significant challenges, with high rates of economic disadvantage and chronic absenteeism, but a few standout schools are leading the way in academic performance.

At the top of the district are Burning Springs Elementary and Manchester Elementary, both of which are ranked among the top 25 elementary schools in Kentucky and have received 5-star ratings from SchoolDigger. These schools boast impressive proficiency rates of 79-90% in core subjects. In contrast, the district's middle school and high school struggle more, with proficiency rates ranging from 30-60%.

Across the Clay County district, schools face significant challenges, including high rates of chronic absenteeism around 25% and a large percentage of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 70-92%. Per-student spending also varies widely, from $15,631 at Hacker Elementary to $45,865 at Clay County High School. Addressing these systemic issues will be crucial for improving overall student outcomes in the district.

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				KSA Mathematics (2025)							KSA Reading (2025)							KSA Science (2025)			KSA Writing (2025)			KSA Social Studies (2025)			KSA Editing and Mechanics (2025)			Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	KSA Mathematics 3rd Grade	KSA Mathematics 4th Grade	KSA Mathematics 5th Grade	KSA Mathematics 6th Grade	KSA Mathematics 7th Grade	KSA Mathematics 8th Grade	KSA Mathematics 10th Grade	KSA Reading 3rd Grade	KSA Reading 4th Grade	KSA Reading 5th Grade	KSA Reading 6th Grade	KSA Reading 7th Grade	KSA Reading 8th Grade	KSA Reading 10th Grade	KSA Science 4th Grade	KSA Science 7th Grade	KSA Science 11th Grade	KSA Writing 5th Grade	KSA Writing 8th Grade	KSA Writing 11th Grade	KSA Social Studies 5th Grade	KSA Social Studies 8th Grade	KSA Social Studies 11th Grade	KSA Editing and Mechanics 5th Grade	KSA Editing and Mechanics 8th Grade	KSA Editing and Mechanics 11th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures: Total	Personnel Spending from Federal Funds	Non-Personnel Spending from Federal Funds	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Personnel Spending from State and Local Funds	Non-Personnel from State and Local Funds	Sub-total Spending from State and Local Funds
Clay County Area Technology Center	Public	8-12	1097 North Hwy 11	Manchester	40962	Clay County	Kentucky Technical System	No	No	No	No	(606) 598-2194	0	0			0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Burning Springs Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	9847 N Hwy 421	Manchester	40962	Clay County	Clay County	No	No	No	Yes	(606) 598-3138	297	21	13.9	80.1%	288 (97.0%)	2 (0.7%)	4 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	97.5	2^nd of 685 public elementary schools	99.7%		96.5	4^th of 685 public elementary schools	99.4%	2		79.0	76.0	79.0					85.0	85.0					64.0			90.0			80.0			71.0			$15,972	$2,257	$228	$2,484	$9,108	$2,311	$11,419
Clay County High School	Public	9-12	415 Clay Co High Rd	Manchester	40962	Clay County	Clay County	No	No	No	No	(606) 598-3737	762	47	16.2	71.7%	732 (96.1%)	9 (1.2%)	10 (1.3%)	3 (0.4%)	2 (0.3%)	2 (0.3%)	4 (0.5%)	56.5	93^rd of 254 public high schools	63.4%		59.7	101^st of 290 public high schools	65.2%	8							43.0							56.0			19.0			52.0			39.0			40.0	$45,865	$2,091	$234	$2,325	$8,816	$3,166	$11,982
Goose Rock Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	364 Hwy 1524	Manchester	40962	Clay County	Clay County	No	No	No	Yes	(606) 598-3740	231	20	11.4	83.5%	219 (94.8%)	1 (0.4%)	8 (3.5%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.9%)	75.7	133^rd of 685 public elementary schools	80.6%		51.5	329^th of 685 public elementary schools	52.0%	196	56.0	61.0	41.0	59.0				62.0	61.0	59.0	82.0				48.0			66.0			53.0			44.0			$19,389	$3,163	$360	$3,521	$11,612	$2,173	$13,786
Hacker Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	84 Hooker Rd	Manchester	40962	Clay County	Clay County	No	No	No	Yes	(606) 598-3338	244	20	12.0	71.3%	240 (98.4%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.8%)	70.5	167^th of 685 public elementary schools	75.6%		69.4	172^nd of 685 public elementary schools	74.9%	5	38.0	50.0	41.0	54.0				62.0	62.0	66.0	79.0				26.0			79.0			52.0			76.0			$15,631	$2,925	$188	$3,114	$8,454	$2,160	$10,613
Manchester Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	1908 N Hwy 421	Manchester	40962	Clay County	Clay County	No	No	No	Yes	(606) 598-3444	409	29	14.0	71.9%	388 (94.9%)	12 (2.9%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	5 (1.2%)	92.2	24^th of 685 public elementary schools	96.5%		88.6	40^th of 685 public elementary schools	94.2%	16	65.0	84.0	55.0	69.0				71.0	77.0	88.0	76.0				60.0			81.0			52.0						$16,317	$2,196	$268	$2,464	$9,087	$2,094	$11,180
Paces Creek Elementary	Public	K-6	1983 S Hwy 421	Manchester	40962	Clay County	Clay County	No	No	No	Yes	(606) 598-6333	273	20	13.4	86.8%	256 (93.8%)	2 (0.7%)	6 (2.2%)	1 (0.4%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (2.6%)	69	181^st of 685 public elementary schools	73.6%		75.4	119^th of 685 public elementary schools	82.6%	62	60.0	49.0	39.0	71.0				71.0	49.0	64.0	46.0							58.0			65.0			49.0			$17,022	$2,641	$362	$3,003	$9,333	$2,410	$11,741
Clay County Middle School	Public	7-8	239 Richmond Rd	Manchester	40962	Clay County	Clay County	No	No	No	Yes	(606) 598-1810	387	32	12.0	69.5%	376 (97.2%)	3 (0.8%)	5 (1.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	54.4	135^th of 320 public middle schools	57.8%		36.4	206^th of 324 public middle schools	36.4%	71					42.0	41.0						61.0	50.0			25.0			56.0			35.0			54.0		$17,986	$2,559	$248	$2,808	$10,797	$2,288	$13,085
Horse Creek Learning Center	Public, Virtual, Alternative	3-12	239 Richmond Rd	Manchester	40962	Clay County	Clay County	No	No	Yes	No	(606) 598-1601	79	5	15.8	89.9%	77 (97.5%)	1 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.3%)								(n/a)														40.0					10.0			10.0				21.0

Cities Near Manchester

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
London	9.84 mi	16	25^th
Oneida	10.01 mi	2	134^th
Girdler	15.35 mi	1	205^th
Tyner	16.11 mi	1	137^th
Annville	16.38 mi	2

See the top KY Kentucky cities

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Kentucky Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.