Paces Creek Elementary, Manchester KY

Original Research by School Decision on Paces Creek Elementary

Paces Creek Elementary serves students from kindergarten through sixth grade in Manchester, Kentucky, a small rural town that is the seat of Clay County. The school is part of the Clay County district, which recently reorganized elementary boundaries and closed one of its smaller schools, a change that may affect where families in outlying areas send their children for primary grades. Manchester itself is a low-density, car-dependent community that has seen population decline in recent years, with high poverty rates and modest household incomes. A federal prison located in the town is one of the few notable employers beyond city government and public services.

The school enrollment is small for a kindergarten-through-sixth-grade program. A very high share of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, reflecting the economic circumstances of the area. The student body is overwhelmingly white, with small numbers of Hispanic and Black students and a handful of students of two or more races. The school did not report the share of students receiving special education services or those classified as English learners, so those details are not available here.

State assessment results for the most recent school year show a varied picture across subjects and grade levels. In reading, the share of students scoring proficient or above ranged from about half in fourth grade to well over two-thirds in third grade, with fifth grade at roughly two-thirds and sixth grade just under half. In math, performance ranged from about two-fifths in fifth grade to more than two-thirds in sixth grade, with third grade at roughly three-fifths and fourth grade at about half. These results suggest that some grade levels are performing solidly, while others show weaker attainment that a parent may want to look into further with the school. Science results for fourth grade were suppressed due to small group sizes, so no proficiency figure is available for that subject. In social studies, about two-thirds of fifth graders scored proficient or above.

Because the district is the only public school district in the county, there is no local comparison group to place Paces Creek’s performance against other nearby districts. The school does not serve high school grades, so no graduation rate is reported. Data on discipline incidents, attendance, and staffing were not included in the available information, leaving those aspects of the school environment uncharacterized here.

For a family considering Paces Creek Elementary, the school offers a traditional elementary program in a rural county-seat setting. The high share of students from low-income households is consistent with the community’s broader economic conditions and may inform the kinds of supports the school prioritizes. Academic proficiency varies by grade and subject, with some bright spots and other areas where results are weaker. The district’s recent consolidation and boundary changes mean that attendance zones for this school may have shifted, so families should verify current assignment if they live in outlying parts of the county.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 360%

School 60% · District 58% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median

Grade 449%

School 49% · District 66% · ▼ 17 pts below district

▲ 4 pts above state median

Grade 539%

School 39% · District 52% · ▼ 13 pts below district

▼ 3 pts below state median

Grade 671%

School 71% · District 69% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 29 pts above state median

English language arts

Grade 371%

School 71% · District 70% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 24 pts above state median

Grade 449%

School 49% · District 66% · ▼ 17 pts below district

▼ 1 pts below state median

Grade 564%

School 64% · District 71% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▲ 13 pts above state median

Grade 646%

School 46% · District 74% · ▼ 28 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median

Social studies

Grade 565%

School 65% · District 59% · ▲ 6 pts above district

▲ 27 pts above state median

This schoolClay County, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.