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School district · Kentucky · LEAID 2105640

Union County

Union County is in the smallest third by enrollment among comparable Kentucky districts (2,055 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort). Per-pupil spending, enrollment, and budget for Union County come from the NCES Common Core of Data F-33 finance survey (FY2023).

$54,375
Est. avg teacher salary

Below benchmark

$16,344
Per-pupil spending
2,055
Students enrolled
34th
Pct. in KY
$54,375

Union County is in the smallest third by enrollment among comparable Kentucky districts (2,055 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort). Estimated average teacher salary is $54,375, below the national average of $70,245, serving 2,055 students (NCES CCD F-33, FY2023).

  • Smaller enrollment scale: Union County is in the smallest third by enrollment among comparable Kentucky districts (2,055 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort).
  • 34th percentile for Kentucky
  • 24th percentile nationally
  • 28% of spending reaches instructional salaries
  • Kentucky ranks #40 of 49 on the salary estimate and #24 of 49 on enrollment in the same reliable-district pool.
  • Union County ranks #113 of 171 Kentucky districts by estimated teacher salary and #76 of 171 by per-pupil spending. Jefferson County pay #1 at $73,395 is not Newport Independent spending #1 at $28,225 per pupil
  • +22.6% estimated-basis panel FY2019→FY2023 (not applied to the FTE figure above)

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Instructional payroll mix vs Kentucky median

Among 171 Kentucky districts that break out F-33 program salary totals, Union County's instructional payroll puts 4.3% into vocational programs , 4.1 points above the state median of 0.2%. That heavier vocational share usually means career/technical programs claim more of the teacher-salary pool than at a typical Kentucky peer.

Program Union County KY median Gap
Regular program 80.0% 79.8% +0.2 pp
Special education 15.7% 16.6% -0.9 pp
Vocational programs 4.3% 0.2% +4.1 pp
Other programs 0.0% 1.5% -1.5 pp

Shares are of this district's reported F-33 teacher-salary program totals (Z35–Z38), compared with the median share across 171 in-state peers with a positive program sum. NCES LEAID 2105640 · FY2023.

LEAID 2105640 · NCES CCD F-33 FY2023

Union County F-33 compensation desk

SALARY-BELOW -4% vs state RANK-ST-LOW P34 in state RANK-NAT-LOW P24 national PPE-MID $16K/pupil ENR-SMALL 2,055 students INSTR-LOW 28% instr BASIS-FTE FTE-reported PHOTO-NEAR Near Gallatin FY-2023-LIGHT FY2023 book

FY2023: $54,375 estimated average teacher salary · P34 in Kentucky · P24 nationally · 28% instructional salary share. Nearest salary peer: Scott ($108est. salary).

Salary neighbourhood chart for Union County

Salary neighbourhood · Union County

Union County sits mid-pack among in-state peers; the chart brackets it between the top and bottom pay poles (NCES F-33 FY2023, not a full state reprint).

est. salary
Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey As of FY2023
Appropriate use & corrections
National salary distribution for Union County

Union County's estimated salary vs. every US district

NCES F-33 estimate, reliable-salary districts only

$54,375 24th percentile higher than 24% of 10,684 US districts

Show national distribution $30,000–$40,000: 155 US districts (1%). Below this entry. $40,000–$50,000: 1,360 US districts (13%). Below this entry. $50,000–$60,000: 2,382 US districts (22%). This entry sits in this band. $60,000–$70,000: 2,402 US districts (22%). Above this entry. $70,000–$80,000: 1,633 US districts (15%). Above this entry. $80,000–$90,000: 1,097 US districts (10%). Above this entry. $90,000–$100,000: 662 US districts (6%). Above this entry. $100,000–$110,000: 371 US districts (3%). Above this entry. $110,000–$120,000: 249 US districts (2%). Above this entry. $120,000–$130,000: 156 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $130,000–$140,000: 112 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $140,000–$150,000: 57 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $150,000–$160,000: 25 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $160,000–$170,000: 13 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $170,000–$180,000: 10 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $180,000–$190,000: 0 US districts (0%). Above this entry. Union County $30,000 $190,000 every reliable-salary US district, bucketed by value

Each bar is a $10K-wide band; taller bars hold more US districts. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 · FY2023

Union County in Kentucky's lower-third pay band

Same 171 districts with a usable salary and a comparable per-pupil figure (NCES F-33 FY2023)

est. avg salary

What this shows Union County ranks #113 of 171 Kentucky districts by estimated teacher salary and #76 of 171 by per-pupil spending. Jefferson County pay #1 at $73,395 is not Newport Independent spending #1 at $28,225 per pupil

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 As of FY2023

The same districts by per-pupil spending

Union County is marked; a high spending bar is not a high pay bar

per pupil

What this shows Newport Independent leads spending at $28,225 per pupil; Jefferson County leads pay.

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 As of FY2023

What stands out about Union County

  • Estimated teacher pay here rose +22.6% between FY2019 and FY2023, outpacing Kentucky's statewide +13.0% by 9.6 points, a growth rate faster than 88% of the 160 Kentucky districts with a comparable FY2019 baseline.
  • Enrolment fell from 2,221 to 2,055 students (7.5% down) across FY2019–FY2023 while the instructional salary pool per teacher went up. Districts on that path are usually holding staffing steady against a falling roll, which lifts the per-teacher figure without anyone getting a raise, so read this page's salary estimate alongside the enrolment line rather than on its own.

This pay stretches further than the headline figure suggests

Nominal district estimate
$54,374.505

The FY2023 salary estimate shown in the hero.

Kentucky price level
89.9 / 100

BEA all-items regional price parity; 100 is the U.S. average.

National-price equivalent
$60,490

+11% versus the nominal figure.

Prices in Kentucky run below the national average, so this salary has roughly the buying power of the national-price equivalent above. A district in a costlier state can advertise a larger nominal salary and still leave a teacher with less.

Regional price parity: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2023 all-items RPP by state. The adjustment applies a statewide index to a district figure, so it captures how Kentucky compares nationally, not how this district compares with others in its own state. Compare every state on this basis.

How this salary figure is calculated
Full NCES reading for Union County

What the Numbers Say About Union County

Union County is a small school district in Kentucky, serving 2,055 students at an estimated per-pupil spending of $16,344. Estimated average teacher salary, derived from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by teacher FTE, is $54,375, placing the district in the moderately funded tier of NCES F-33 respondents. NCES LEAID 2105640 references the FY2023 Common Core of Data Local Education Agency Finance Survey.

Relative to the Kentucky statewide average of $56,482, teacher pay in Union County runs slightly below the state benchmark, a 3.7% gap, and below the national instructional-salary estimate of $70,245 (22.6% differential). Among enrolling districts in Kentucky, it pays more than 34% of them. Kentucky itself ranks #40 of 49 nationally on average teacher compensation, which shapes the funding ceiling districts operate under.

On the budget side, Union County reports $33.6M in total expenditure against $43.9M in revenue, with instructional salaries accounting for 28% of spending, a compensation-to-budget ratio that signals how much of each tax dollar reaches classroom educators. Regular-program teacher salary outlay is $6.6M, special-education teacher pay is $1.3M.

How does Union County compare?

Estimated average teacher salary versus a peer district, the Kentucky average, and the national average. Pick any in-state district to compare.

Union County $54,375
Jefferson County $73,395
Kentucky avg $56,482
National avg $70,245

Union County pays -25.9% less than Jefferson County · per-pupil $16,344 vs $20,696

Derived from NCES F-33 teacher salary expenditure (Z35-Z38) and CCD Staff Universe teacher FTE (FY2023); a small minority use the documented fallback. Unreliable service entities are excluded.

Data-derived comparison paths

Find comparable Kentucky districts

On pay, Union County sits closest to Gallatin County; on per-pupil investment, its nearest match is Corbin Independent. These are not simply nearby districts: each group is selected from the same NCES FY2023 dataset using a matching salary or per-pupil-investment signal and a comparable enrollment range.

Closest on estimated pay
  1. Gallatin County
  2. Hazard Independent
  3. Floyd County
  4. Bellevue Independent
  5. Allen County
  6. Letcher County
  7. Estill County
  8. Pendleton County
  9. Trigg County
  10. Hart County
  11. Rockcastle County
Closest on per-pupil investment
  1. Corbin Independent
  2. Franklin County
  3. Cumberland County
  4. Casey County
  5. Shelby County
  6. Trimble County
  7. Floyd County
  8. Murray Independent
  9. Lincoln County
  10. Grayson County
  11. Marshall County

Similar estimated teacher pay

Similar per-pupil investment

Out-of-state districts near Union County's smaller enrollment

Two out-of-state peer sets for Union County: closest on enrollment (2,055 students here) and closest on estimated average teacher salary ($54,375 here). Rows stay link-disjoint so each axis is a distinct neighborhood.

Similar enrollment

Nearest other districts by NCES student count (floored at ≥200).

Similar estimated salary

Nearest other districts by F-33-derived average teacher salary, distinct from the enrollment row.

Enrollment and salaries from NCES CCD F-33; estimated teacher pay can diverge widely at the same student count because of state funding, cost of living, and local bargaining.

Revenue & Expenditure

$43.9M
Total Revenue
$33.6M
Total Expenditure
$9.4M
Instruction Salaries
28% of total spending

Instructional Salary by Program

$6.6M
Regular Program
$1.3M
Special Education
$0.4M
Vocational

The teacher salaries behind this page's average are the ones NCES reports for 3 programs in Union County: the regular program, special education and vocational programs. It reports no separate figure for other programs. Together they are 87% of everything the district spends on instructional salaries; the other 13% pays instructional aides, paraprofessionals, substitutes and other instructional staff who are not counted as teachers here.

Kentucky Teacher Pay Overview

The highest average among comparably sized Kentucky districts belongs to Jefferson County at $73,395. Union County places 107 of 161 comparably sized districts, squarely in the middle band the state average actually represents. Kansas and West Virginia are the states closest to Kentucky on BEA's price parity, which makes them the fair comparison; against a costlier state this salary goes further than its number suggests.

View all Kentucky districts →

Other Kentucky Districts

Smaller-district sample from 170 Kentucky peers; bar length shows pay magnitude within this enrollment band.

Russell Independent
$56,345
2,132 students
Bath County
$51,710
1,972 students
Trigg County
$54,936
1,964 students
Mayfield Independent
$58,074
1,947 students
Webster County
$51,464
2,168 students
Fleming County
$59,676
2,186 students

This is a sample of 6 from 170 Kentucky districts with enrollment and salary data reliable enough to compare in the NCES CCD F-33 survey.

Frequently Asked Questions about Union County
What is the average teacher salary in Union County?

The average teacher salary in Union County is $54,375 (NCES CCD FY2023), from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by the district's reported teacher headcount (NCES CCD Staff Universe Survey).

How does Union County teacher pay compare to the Kentucky average?

Union County pays 3.7% less than the Kentucky state average of $56,482. The district's average is $54,375.

How does Union County teacher pay compare to the national average?

Union County pays 22.6% below the national average of $70,245. The district average is $54,375.

What is the per-pupil spending in Union County?

Union County spends approximately $16,344 per student annually (NCES FY2023), covering instructional salaries, support services, and administration.

What percentage of Union County's budget goes to teacher salaries?

Instructional salaries account for 28% of Union County's total expenditure of $33.6M (NCES FY2023).

Next read for Union County
Disclaimer & data sources

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD). Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainTeacher

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Editorial standards & source notes

According to the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) F-33 Local Education Agency Finance Survey, PlainTeacher's figures are computed directly, no number is typed in by an editor. Union County's salary and finance figures are computed directly from its FY2023 F-33 submission, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Data current as of FY2023.