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Hamlet, North Carolina - 15 schools
An equity score of 72/100 ranks Richmond County Schools #40 of 293 districts in North Carolina (state average 45). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $12,389 per pupil, Richmond County Schools ranks #115 of 322 North Carolina districts by per-pupil spending (North Carolina districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
6,678
Total Enrollment
15
Schools
$12,389
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, Middle
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Richmond County Schools operates 15 public schools serving 6,678 students, placing it among the smaller districts in North Carolina. The school portfolio breaks down into 7 combined, 4 middle, 3 high, 1 elementary schools, a compact enough portfolio that families can compare every campus directly 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 Richmond County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $12,389 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the upper half of 322 North Carolina districts by per-pupil spending. See how North Carolina compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 14.0% local, 63.2% state, and 22.8% 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 72/100, ranked #40 of 293 in North Carolina against a state average of 45, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 15 schools offering Advanced Placement (10 AP courses district-wide), a 346.3:1 student-counselor ratio, well above the ASCA benchmark though still under the roughly 408:1 national average, and 40.4% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 36.2% African American, 35.7% White, 15.9% Hispanic or Latino across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Ellerbe Middle, with a diversity index of 73.5/100.
Its largest campus is Richmond Senior High, enrolling 1,365 students (21% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Ashley Chapel Educational Center, at 59 students, a 23x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Richmond Senior High accounts for 20.4% of all Richmond County Schools student enrollment
That concentration means Richmond County Schools-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: high. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Richmond County Schools school enrollment varies 23× across entities
Richmond County Schools school enrollment ranges from 59 students (lowest) to 1,365 students (highest), a spread of 1,306 students. That spread is wider than typical and predicts noticeable gaps in service quality between the highest and lowest areas. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Richmond County Schools has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 98.8% of the population qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch
free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is the federal threshold for Title I funding allocations, established under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). Eligibility here is a supermajority of the population — well past the 75% concentration-grant threshold that unlocks extra funding on top of the basic Title I formula. Regions with eligibility this high typically draw a substantially larger federal funding share relative to their local tax base, which can either offset or reinforce existing gaps depending on allocation policy.
Richmond County Schools student-counselor ratio is 346:1 — near the typical range (US average ~408) — within the typical range for U.S. public districts
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 Variation between sub-units within Richmond County Schools is typically wider than the Richmond County Schools-aggregate figure suggests.
Richmond County Schools chronic absenteeism rate is 40.4% — high (typically associated with higher-than-average disruption; recent CRDC data showed elevated rates persisting after pandemic-era schooling changes)
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 Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Richmond County Schools has 15 schools, including 3 high, 4 middle, 7 combined, 1 elementary. Total enrollment is 6,678 students.
How much does Richmond County Schools spend per student?
Richmond County Schools spends $12,389 per student. The district has an equity score of 72/100, ranking #40 in North Carolina.
What is the demographic composition of Richmond County Schools?
Richmond County Schools students are 36.2% African American, 35.7% White, 15.9% Hispanic or Latino, 1.1% Asian, averaged across 15 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Richmond County Schools?
Richmond County Schools has an equity score of 72/100, ranking #40 out of 293 districts in North Carolina.