NCES CCD 2024-25 5 schools AZ

Best-Resourced Schools in Payson, AZ

5 public K-12 schools in Payson from NCES Common Core of Data: enrollment, grade span, demographics, and Civil Rights Data Collection statistics for every active campus.

5
Schools
2,145
Students
22.3/100
Avg Resource Index
15.6:1
Avg Student-Teacher Ratio

National city placement

Lean reported-resource profile

According to NCES CCD 2024-25, Payson has more public-school enrollment than 15% of the 4,487 US cities in this directory. Payson's average Resource Investment Index falls in the lower portion of the 4,487-city comparison set. The index is a resource snapshot, not an academic grade: it reflects the federal staffing, counselor, gifted-program, and attendance fields available for local campuses. The most useful next step is to open the individual schools below and identify which component is pulling each score down, because the same city average can hide very different campus-level constraints.

Secondary campuses occupy an unusually large share

2 of the 5 listed Payson schools are classified as high schools, a substantial share of the local portfolio. Advanced-course access, counseling, and graduation-stage staffing therefore have more weight in the city Resource Index average than they do in an elementary-heavy system.

A small portfolio contains radically different campus scales

Payson lists only 5 schools, yet reported enrollment runs from 1 to 733 students, a 733-fold range. In a portfolio this compact, the smallest record may be a specialized or nonstandard setting rather than a miniature version of the largest campus. That distinction affects how ratios and program fields should be read. Compare similarly configured grade levels first; combining the extremes into one city average conceals more than it explains.

City enrollment
Top 85%
School count
Top 99%
Resource Index average
2nd percentile
Teacher staffing
47th percentile

Payson High School accounts for 34.2% of all Payson public-school enrollment

That dominant concentration means Payson-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the largest entity. Grade level: High. The share measures enrollment concentration only; it does not establish how districts allocate programs, capital, or staff. Enrollment-weighted aggregates give this entity more weight than any smaller peer, while an unweighted entity average treats every record equally.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data NCES Common Core of Data

Payson school enrollment varies 733× across entities

Payson school enrollment ranges from 1 students (lowest) to 733 students (highest), a spread of 732 students. That ratio is an extreme outlier spread — among the widest gaps observed anywhere in this dataset. Per-school staffing and program breadth can differ sharply at opposite ends of that enrollment range, so the city average should not be treated as a typical campus.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data NCES Common Core of Data

Payson student-teacher ratio is 15.6:1 — near the typical range (US average ~15.7) — citywide staffing is neither unusually lean nor unusually crowded by this measure

student-teacher ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE classroom teachers against total enrollment, push-in specialists, English-language aides, special-education co-teachers, and counselors are not included in most reporting Variation between sub-units within Payson is typically wider than the Payson-aggregate figure suggests.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data, Public School Universe NCES Common Core of Data, Public School Universe

Most racially and ethnically mixed schools in Payson

Ranked by the Simpson student-body diversity index (0-100) from NCES race and ethnicity data, where higher means a more evenly mixed student body. It measures mix, not quality.

  1. 1 Julia Randall Elementary School 54.2/100
  2. 2 Rim Country Middle School 53.9/100
  3. 3 Payson High School 50.3/100
  4. 4 Payson Elementary School 47.2/100

What do families ask about schools in Payson?

Which Payson school has the highest Resource Investment Index?

Rim Country Middle School has the highest Resource Investment Index among the Payson schools in this federal-data comparison at 26/100. The index summarizes reported staffing, counseling, gifted-program, and attendance inputs; it is not an academic rating.

How many schools are in Payson, AZ?

Payson has 5 public schools with a total enrollment of 2,145 students. Average student-teacher ratio: 15.6:1.

Other Cities in Arizona

Side-by-side: Compare any two schools or districts in Arizona →

Data from NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 and Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22. The Resource Investment Index uses reported student-teacher ratio, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance; it is not an academic rating. Cities must include at least five schools to be listed. This public-data comparison is for informational purposes: verify current enrollment, attendance boundaries, and programs with the school district before acting. See the guide to understanding NCES data.