Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

The Harlan Independent School District ranked among the best public school districts in Kentucky, according to a recent 2024 Niche.com report.

According to their website, Niche.com provides in-depth profiles of every school and college in the country, assisting millions of families and students in searching for the most compatible school.

A news release from Harlan Independent School District states Harlan Independent was ranked Kentucky’s 15th best public school district.

Superintendent C.D. Morton was happy with the report.

“I am so proud of our faculty, staff, and students, and we pride ourselves on being effective at what we do,” said Morton. “Our small school district, although growing rapidly, is a special place. The students are cared for and challenged to meet high expectations, and they rise to the occasion year after year. It is wonderful to see our schools and teachers recognized for achieving at such a high-level year in and year out.”

Morton pointed out the importance of recognizing the tremendous work staff members are doing for students.

“This type of achievement within our schools does not happen by accident,” he said. “We have a dedicated system of schools that are focused on the issue that matters the most, high-level academic student achievement. It all begins with effective teachers pushing students to achieve at the highest level. When you can do that from Sunshine Preschool through Harlan High these are the results you get. There is a tremendous source of pride that comes with this kind of honor. We are pleased to be recognized for the investments our school system is making into the school community of Harlan.”

The report shows Harlan Independent is also high on the list of best teachers in the state, ranking third in that category. The school is ranked as the fourth best place to teach among Kentucky’s 168 school districts. Overall, Harlan Independent received an A- grade on the Niche report.

The Harlan Independent School District additionally performed well on the national level.

The release states, “Based on data collected by Niche.com, teachers at Harlan Independent were ranked #217 out of 11,466 public school districts across the nation. This put the Green Dragon staff members among the top 2% in the country.”