NCES CCD 2024-25 36 schools LA

Best-Resourced Schools in Lake Charles, LA

Compiled from official source data by .

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

PlainSchools home → About this data
36
Schools
18,761
Students
47/100
Avg Resource Index
14.8:1
Avg Student-Teacher Ratio

National city placement

Large, fragmented school market

According to NCES CCD 2024-25, Lake Charles has more public-school enrollment than 92% of the 4,487 US cities in this directory. Lake Charles is among the largest city school systems in this directory by enrollment, but its campuses are divided among 5 districts. That combination matters: citywide averages blend separate budgets, staffing policies, attendance boundaries, and program rules. For a family comparing schools here, the district column is as important as the city average; two nearby campuses may answer to different boards and draw on different F-33 funding pools.

Combined-grade campuses shape the local portfolio

22 of Lake Charles's 36 listed schools use NCES's combined or “other” grade-level classification. Citywide averages therefore blend campuses serving unusually broad or nonstandard grade spans with conventional elementary, middle, and high schools. Grade configuration is a first-order comparison here, not a minor label.

Campus spread matters more than the city mean

The 42-point gap between Grand Lake High School and Ray D. Molo Middle Magnet School shows the range hidden by Lake Charles's average Resource Investment Index. The city figure is useful for national placement, but families ultimately choose among campuses with different grade spans, enrollment, district affiliations, and reported support fields. Start with schools serving the relevant grade level, then compare the index components rather than assuming the city average describes any one classroom.

City enrollment
Top 8%
School count
Top 6%
Resource Index average
78th percentile
Teacher staffing
57th percentile

Lake Charles school enrollment varies 30× across entities

Lake Charles school enrollment ranges from 63 students (lowest) to 1,908 students (highest), a spread of 1,845 students. That ratio is among the widest observed and reflects extreme heterogeneity inside a single city, with small specialty programs listed alongside large comprehensive campuses. 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

Lake Charles reports 53.9% free-lunch eligibility

The reported share clears the 50% majority mark. Title I operates under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015), but its statutory allocation uses additional LEA-level counts and rules not represented by this average. This percentage is an economic-need context measure; it does not establish a Title I award, show dollars received, or describe how funds are distributed among campuses.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data

Lake Charles operates 5 school districts — among the most fragmented governance structures in the country

Each school district has independent budgeting, hiring, and service delivery authority. The fragmentation reflects historical patterns of inter-municipal boundary lines that pre-date modern city growth, students in different parts of the same city can attend different districts with different per-pupil spending, calendars, and graduation requirements. Per-region variation is largest in fragmented systems because each school district sets its own budget, contracts, and priorities without higher-level coordination above the regulatory floor.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data

Lake Charles student-teacher ratio is 14.8:1 — 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 Lake Charles is typically wider than the Lake Charles-aggregate figure suggests.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data, Public School Universe

# School Score
1. Grand Lake High School 64
2. Oak Park Elementary School 62
3. Lebleu Settlement Elementary School 58
4. S. J. Welsh Middle School 57
5. Dolby Elementary School 57
6. A. a. Nelson Elementary School 56
7. F. K. White Middle School 55
8. St. John Elementary School 54
9. Prien Lake Elementary School 52
10. Gillis Elementary School 51
11. Ralph F. Wilson Elementary School 51
12. Moss Bluff Middle School 50
13. Fairview Elementary School 50
14. Brentwood Elementary School 50
15. John J. Johnson Ii Elementary School 50
16. Lagrange High School 49
17. Grand Lake Elementary 49
18. Moss Bluff Elementary School 48
19. Washington/Marion Magnet High School 47
20. Combre-Fondel Elementary School 47
21. Sam Houston High School 46
22. Barbe Elementary School 46
23. T. H. Watkins Elementary School 46
24. Alfred M. Barbe High School 45
25. T. S. Cooley Elementary Magnet School 45
26. College Oaks Elementary School 45
27. Henry Heights Elementary School 44
28. Pearl Watson Elementary School 44
29. John F. Kennedy Elementary School 44
30. Oak Park Middle School 41
31. Jessie D. Clifton Elementary School 40
32. M. J. Kaufman Elementary School 36
33. Southwest Louisiana Charter Academy 35
34. Lake Charles Charter Academy 32
35. Lake Charles College Prep 24
36. Ray D. Molo Middle Magnet School 22

Most racially and ethnically mixed schools in Lake Charles

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 A. a. Nelson Elementary School 69.0/100
  2. 2 F. K. White Middle School 68.5/100
  3. 3 M. J. Kaufman Elementary School 65.1/100
  4. 4 S. J. Welsh Middle School 64.1/100
  5. 5 Alfred M. Barbe High School 64.0/100

What do families ask about schools in Lake Charles?

Which Lake Charles school has the highest Resource Investment Index? ▼

Grand Lake High School has the highest Resource Investment Index among the Lake Charles schools in this federal-data comparison at 64/100. The index summarizes reported staffing, counseling, gifted-program, and attendance inputs; it is not an academic rating.

How many schools are in Lake Charles, LA? ▼

Lake Charles has 36 public schools with a total enrollment of 18,761 students. 3 are charter schools. Average student-teacher ratio: 14.8:1.

Other Cities in Louisiana

Baton Rouge
101 schools
New Orleans
79 schools
Shreveport
54 schools
Monroe
34 schools
Lafayette
30 schools
Alexandria
25 schools

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

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.