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.
Topeka, Kansas - 26 schools
An equity score of 88/100 ranks Topeka Public Schools #2 of 252 districts in Kansas (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $17,228 per pupil, Topeka Public Schools ranks #72 of 286 Kansas districts by per-pupil spending (Kansas districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
Topeka Public Schools operates 26 public schools serving 12,858 students, placing it in the mid-size range in Kansas. The school portfolio breaks down into 15 combined, 6 middle, 4 high, 1 elementary schools, giving families a clear picture of grade-band coverage 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 Shawnee County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $17,228 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 13.8% local, 72.4% state, and 13.8% 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 88/100, ranked #2 of 252 in Kansas against a state average of 50, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 3 of 26 schools offering Advanced Placement (23 AP courses district-wide), a 259.8:1 student-counselor ratio, somewhat above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 37.5% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 37.2% Hispanic or Latino, 32.3% White, 14.4% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Williams Science and Fine Arts Magnet School, with a diversity index of 75.7/100.
Its largest campus is Topeka High, enrolling 1,578 students (13% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Avondale Academy, at 23 students, a 69x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Topeka Public Schools school enrollment ranges from 23 students (lowest) to 1,578 students (highest), a spread of 1,555 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.
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
The reported share sits between 62.5% and 75%, above a simple majority but below the highest descriptive band used here. 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
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 Topeka Public Schools is typically wider than the Topeka Public Schools-aggregate figure suggests.
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.
This district scores well on funding equity, with balanced funding sources and good resource allocation.
Average demographic composition across 26 schools in Topeka Public Schools.
Source: NCES CCD School Membership 2024-25.
Average Simpson diversity index across Topeka Public Schools's schools, above the Kansas average of 39.4.
Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22.
| School | Enrollment |
|---|---|
| Topeka High | 1,578 |
| Topeka West High | 971 |
| Highland Park High | 835 |
| Jardine Elementary | 729 |
| Ross Elementary | 563 |
| Jardine Middle School | 508 |
| Marjorie French Middle School | 480 |
| Williams Science and Fine Arts Magnet School | 447 |
| Eisenhower Middle School | 440 |
| Landon Middle School | 430 |
| Mceachron Elem | 422 |
| Meadows Elementary | 417 |
| Whitson Elem | 416 |
| State Street Elem | 411 |
| Scott Dual Language Magnet | 402 |
| Mccarter Elem | 401 |
| Chase Middle School | 390 |
| Robinson Middle School | 361 |
| Randolph Elem | 346 |
| Highland Park Central | 318 |
| Mcclure Elem | 301 |
| Lowman Hill Elem | 294 |
| Quincy Elem | 142 |
| Hope Street Charter Academy Charter | 103 |
| Capital City | 67 |
| Avondale Academy | 23 |
The Kansas districts closest to this one in total enrollment.
| District | Enrollment | Spending | Funding Mix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lawrence | Similar size | Lower spending | More locally funded |
| Andover | Smaller | Lower spending | More locally funded |
| Maize | Smaller | Lower spending | More locally funded |
| De Soto | Smaller | Lower spending | More locally funded |
| Geary County Schools | Smaller | Similar spending | Similar funding mix |
Comparisons are relative to Topeka Public Schools'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 →Topeka Public Schools has 26 schools, including 4 high, 15 combined, 6 middle, 1 elementary. Total enrollment is 12,858 students.
Topeka Public Schools spends $17,228 per student. The district has an equity score of 88/100, ranking #2 in Kansas.
Topeka Public Schools students are 37.2% Hispanic or Latino, 32.3% White, 14.4% African American, 0.5% Asian, averaged across 26 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
Topeka Public Schools has an equity score of 88/100, ranking #2 out of 252 districts in Kansas.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.