Licking Today

There were 2,160 first grade students enrolled in Licking County schools in the 2023-24 school year, 8.4% less than the previous year, according to reports from the Ohio Department of Education & Workforce.

South Elementary School welcomed most of the first grade students in the county, registering 197 students.

Within Licking County schools, the highest student count was found in fifth grade, with the smallest class sizes seen in pre-kindergarten.

Statewide, Licking County ranked 13th in enrollment numbers, with a total of 27,545 students enrolled in the 2023-24 school year. It was also ranked 13th the year before.

In 2022, Ohio saw an average student-to-teacher ratio of approximately 1:15, which is an improvement for the state and is lower than the national average of 1:16.

Despite the apparent improvement, this positive trend is overshadowed by a general decline in public school enrollments, which was accelerated by the pandemic. This decline, aligned with the steady number of teachers in the state over the last 10 years, has led to low student-to-teacher ratios.

School name	# of 1st Grade Students Enrolled	% of Student Body	Total Enrollment
South Elementary School	197	25.5	774
Granville Elementary School	191	28.8	664
Licking Valley Elementary School	148	15.5	954
Hebron Elementary School	132	31.2	423
Etna Elementary School	128	25.1	509
Pataskala Elementary School	122	26.5	460
Johnstown Elementary School	114	22.6	504
Kirkersville Elementary School	113	23.5	480
Garfield Elementary School	108	30.3	357
Legend Elementary School	84	17.1	490
Northridge Elementary School	78	13.7	570
McGuffey Elementary School	77	17.5	441
Slate Ridge Elementary School	74	12.3	602
Taylor Road Elementary School	74	16.3	454
John Clem Elementary School	73	18.6	392
Hillview Elementary School	72	14.8	486
Carson Elementary School	69	17.5	395
Utica Elementary School	62	17.2	360
Summit Road Elementary School	60	15	401
Newton Elementary School	59	16.6	355
Cherry Valley Elementary School	45	11.6	388
Ben Franklin Elementary School	42	15.3	274
Par Excellence Academy	38	21	181
Utica High School	0	0	407
Licking Valley High School	0	0	562
Utica Middle School	0	0	320
Northridge High School	0	0	305
Licking Valley Middle School	0	0	484
Licking Heights Middle School	0	0	752
Licking Heights High School	0	0	1,368
Northridge Middle School	0	0	273
Watkins Intermediate School	0	0	770
Watkins Memorial High School	0	0	1,288
Watkins Middle School	0	0	1,071
Heath Middle School	0	0	371
Heath High School	0	0	471
Stevenson Elementary School	0	0	388
Licking Heights Central Intermediate School	0	0	833
Jackson Intermediate School	0	0	391
Lakewood Middle School	0	0	377
Lakewood High School	0	0	432
Johnstown High School	0	0	449
Johnstown Middle School	0	0	403
Granville Intermediate School	0	0	596
Heritage Middle School	0	0	390
Granville Middle School	0	0	429
Liberty Middle School	0	0	429
Granville High School	0	0	776
Newark Digital Academy	0	0	165
Wilson Middle School	0	0	355
Newark High School	0	0	1,340
Licking Heights North Elementary School	0	0	370