Alumni and Education Foundation

Welcome to the Ludlow Independent Schools Alumni Association and Ludlow Education Foundation.  

History of Ludlow Schools

For over 150 years, the Ludlow Independent School District has served the families of Ludlow.  Prior to the incorporation of the City of Ludlow with the city charter in 1864, the local school was run by the State of Kentucky with state school records indicating that the first school in Ludlow began in 1848 with 29 students.  The first school was housed on the first floor of a two-story building at the corner of Elm and Locust Street (current site of the Ludlow City Building).  The Christian Church worshippers held services on the second floor of the building with the ground floor room used as a school room maintained by the state.  Once the City of Ludlow was incorporated, the city was tasked with running the local school for the children of Ludlow. 

In 1870, the first school board took their seats following the election of 1869 and the erection of the first school-only building on Linden Street was completed.  By 1893, the growth of the city and inclusion of a high school created a need for a new school building.  In 1897, a new school building was opened at the corner of Adelia (now Adela) and Oak Streets.  An additional building was built in 1915 to house the 7th-12th grades.  This 1915 building is still in use today as part of the middle/high school.  By 1932, a new modern high school building was needed to house 7th-12th grades that included an auditorium and gymnasium.  This building was constructed on Elm Street and was originally named George Washington High School (now home to Ludlow High School’s 9th-12th grades). 

By 1957, the baby boom generation had swelled the population of the city and a modern elementary was built for grades 1st-6th.   The “new” Mary A. Goetz Elementary School was built on the corner of Adela and Oak Streets and replaced the 1897 school building, the original Mary A. Goetz Elementary, on the same site. 

Since that time, many renovations and additions have taken place, including a new high gymnasium added in 1970 adjacent to the elementary school on Oak Street.  In 2000, a new three-story middle school building was constructed on Adela Street to complete the Ludlow school campus.  Today, Ludlow Independent School District serves 850 students from preschool through 12th grade on this campus.