36 public K-12 schools in Arlington from NCES Common Core of Data: enrollment, grade span, demographics, and Civil Rights Data Collection statistics for every active campus.
36 public schools ranked by quality score. NCES CCD 2024-25 data.
The highest-ranked of Arlington's 36 public schools is Washington-Liberty High, scoring 55/100, against a city average of 60/100. Computed live across every Arlington campus reporting to NCES.
How the Arlington Public-School Landscape Breaks Down
Arlington, VA enrolls 27,950 students across 36 public schools reporting to the National Center for Education Statistics. The average student-teacher ratio across the city is 12.6:1, and the composite quality score, derived from student-teacher ratio, counselor access, gifted-program availability, and CRDC attendance data, averages 60/100. Schools must report at least five campuses in a city to appear in this listing, which is why very small towns may redirect to the broader county or state view.
The most-resourced campus in Arlington on this index is Washington-Liberty High, at 55/100 on the Resource Investment Index with 3,044 enrolled students. What the index does and doesn't measure; click any school below for its full component breakdown.
Arlington spans 1 district, each filing its own NCES F-33 return, per-pupil spending can vary between neighbouring campuses. Sort the table below by enrollment, level, or district; click any school for its full profile.
Arlington school enrollment varies 90× across entities
Arlington school enrollment ranges from 34 students (lowest) to 3,044 students (highest), a spread of 3,010 students. That ratio is an extreme outlier spread — among the widest gaps observed anywhere in this dataset. Per-school staffing, programme depth, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same city based on enrollment shape, a 200-student magnet runs a different operational model than a 2,000-student comprehensive high school.
Arlington operates only 1 school district — one of the single most consolidated governance structures in the country
Most Arlington school districts are a single unified district covering the whole city, a structural feature that simplifies inter-school comparison but concentrates policy authority, and the count here is near the floor observed nationally. Consolidation produces narrower variance because resources pool across a large population, but it can also mask intra-school district inequities — sub-school district differences within a single school district are not visible at this aggregation level. Consolidated systems typically rely more heavily on top-down funding formulas than on local revenue variability.
Arlington student-teacher ratio is 12.6:1 — low (typically associated with smaller schools or per-school staffing investment that often correlates with stronger per-student supports)
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 Lower values often correlate with smaller scale and population characteristics rather than higher resource budgets per se.
Most racially and ethnically mixed schools in Arlington
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.
The highest-ranked school in Arlington is Washington-Liberty High with a quality score of 55/100. There are 36 public schools in Arlington with 27,950 total students.
How many schools are in Arlington, VA? ▼
Arlington has 36 public schools with a total enrollment of 27,950 students. Average student-teacher ratio: 12.6:1.
Data from NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 and Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22. Quality scores based on student-teacher ratio,
counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance. Schools must have 5+ in the city to be listed.
Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD). Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.
Read our methodology, which explains how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
