Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. District totals are aggregated directly from the schools reporting under this district in the source records. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, the data changelog, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.
Hays, Kansas - 7 schools
An equity score of 33/100 ranks Hays #203 of 252 districts in Kansas (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $15,400 per pupil, Hays ranks #140 of 286 Kansas districts by per-pupil spending (Kansas districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
Hays operates 7 public schools serving 3,425 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Kansas. The school portfolio breaks down into 3 elementary, 2 combined, 1 high, 1 middle schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Ellis County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $15,400 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the upper half of 286 Kansas districts by per-pupil spending. See how Kansas compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 32.3% local, 52.3% state, and 15.4% federal, a state-revenue-heavy mix that insulates the district somewhat from local property-tax volatility, though it ties funding to state budget cycles. The district's equity score is 33/100, ranked #203 of 252 in Kansas against a state average of 50, notably less even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 7 schools offering Advanced Placement (5 AP courses district-wide), a 355.2:1 student-counselor ratio, well above the ASCA benchmark though still under the roughly 408:1 national average, and 18.8% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 81.0% White, 11.8% Hispanic or Latino, 1.6% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Lincoln Elem, with a diversity index of 46.4/100.
Its largest campus is Hays High, enrolling 1,017 students (30% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Hays Virtual School, at 262 students, a 4x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
That dominant concentration means Hays-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the largest entity. Grade band: high. The share measures enrollment concentration only; it does not establish how the district allocates 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
Hays school enrollment ranges from 262 students (lowest) to 1,017 students (highest), a spread of 755 students. That relatively narrow ratio reflects an unusually homogeneous campus portfolio, most districts have a wider mix of school sizes. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
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.
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 Variation between sub-units within Hays is typically wider than the Hays-aggregate figure suggests.
This district scores below average on funding equity. High reliance on local revenue or lower spending may contribute.
Average demographic composition across 7 schools in Hays.
Source: NCES CCD School Membership 2024-25.
Average Simpson diversity index across Hays's schools, below the Kansas average of 39.4.
Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22.
| School | Enrollment |
|---|---|
| Hays High | 1,017 |
| Hays Middle School | 726 |
| Roosevelt Elem | 420 |
| Kathryn O'loughlin Mccarthy Elem | 371 |
| Woodrow Wilson Elem | 364 |
| Lincoln Elem | 274 |
| Hays Virtual School | 262 |
The Kansas districts closest to this one in total enrollment.
| District | Enrollment | Spending | Funding Mix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsburg | Similar size | Lower spending | Less locally funded |
| Leavenworth | Similar size | Similar spending | Less locally funded |
| Newton | Similar size | Similar spending | Similar funding mix |
| Valley Center Pub Sch | Similar size | Similar spending | Similar funding mix |
| Shawnee Heights | Similar size | Lower spending | Less locally funded |
Comparisons are relative to Hays's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data and the F-33 Finance Survey.
Top districts in the same state, compare side-by-side for enrollment, spending, and demographics.
Out-of-state peers matched by enrollment and by per-pupil expenditure, not the same-state lists above.
See how this district compares to others in enrollment, spending, demographics, and academic resources.
Compare vs Wichita →Hays has 7 schools, including 1 high, 1 middle, 3 elementary, 2 combined. Total enrollment is 3,425 students.
Hays spends $15,400 per student. The district has an equity score of 33/100, ranking #203 in Kansas.
Hays students are 81.0% White, 11.8% Hispanic or Latino, 1.6% African American, 1.0% Asian, averaged across 7 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
Hays has an equity score of 33/100, ranking #203 out of 252 districts in Kansas.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.