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Columbus, Ohio - 117 schools
An equity score of 42/100 ranks Columbus City Schools District #456 of 806 districts in Ohio (state average 46). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $20,324 per pupil, Columbus City Schools District ranks #78 of 966 Ohio districts by per-pupil spending (Ohio districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
45,338
Total Enrollment
117
Schools
$20,324
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Columbus City Schools District operates 117 public schools serving 45,338 students, placing it among the largest districts in Ohio. The school portfolio breaks down into 69 combined, 18 high, 18 middle, 12 elementary schools, giving families in a major system a clear picture of grade-band coverage across a large portfolio before they move, rent, or enrol. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Franklin County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $20,324 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, among the top 97 of 966 Ohio districts by per-pupil spending. See how Ohio compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 61.4% local, 19.7% state, and 18.9% federal, a local-revenue-heavy mix that leaves the district more exposed to property-tax swings and local ballot measures than state-funded peers. The district's equity score is 42/100, ranked #456 of 806 in Ohio against a state average of 46, in line with the typical spread seen across the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 16 of 117 schools offering Advanced Placement (68 AP courses district-wide), a 377.7:1 student-counselor ratio, well above the ASCA benchmark though still under the roughly 408:1 national average, and 65.3% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 52.2% African American, 18.9% White, 18.1% Hispanic or Latino across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Gables Elementary School, with a diversity index of 75.8/100.
Its largest campus is Northland High School, enrolling 1,029 students (2% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is G. Tyree Learning School, at 7 students, a 147x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Columbus City Schools District school enrollment varies 147× across entities
Columbus City Schools District school enrollment ranges from 7 students (lowest) to 1,029 students (highest), a spread of 1,022 students. That ratio is an extreme outlier spread — among the widest gaps observed anywhere in this dataset. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Columbus City Schools District student-counselor ratio is 378:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Columbus City Schools District chronic absenteeism rate is 65.3% — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
Comparisons are relative to Columbus City Schools District's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data and the F-33 Finance Survey.
Nearby Districts in Ohio
Top districts in the same state, compare side-by-side for enrollment, spending, and demographics.
How many schools are in Columbus City Schools District?
Columbus City Schools District has 117 schools, including 18 high, 69 combined, 18 middle, 12 elementary. Total enrollment is 45,338 students.
How much does Columbus City Schools District spend per student?
Columbus City Schools District spends $20,324 per student. The district has an equity score of 42/100, ranking #456 in Ohio.
What is the demographic composition of Columbus City Schools District?
Columbus City Schools District students are 52.2% African American, 18.9% White, 18.1% Hispanic or Latino, 2.5% Asian, averaged across 117 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Columbus City Schools District?
Columbus City Schools District has an equity score of 42/100, ranking #456 out of 806 districts in Ohio.