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, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.
Wichita, Kansas - 88 schools
An equity score of 67/100 ranks Wichita #56 of 250 districts in Kansas (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $15,361 per pupil, Wichita ranks #113 of 285 Kansas districts by per-pupil spending (Kansas districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
Wichita operates 88 public schools serving 46,796 students, placing it among the largest districts in Kansas. The school portfolio breaks down into 57 combined, 16 middle, 12 high, 3 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 Sedgwick County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $15,361 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the upper half of 285 Kansas districts by per-pupil spending. See how Kansas compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 17.2% local, 70.9% state, and 11.9% 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 67/100, ranked #56 of 250 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 8 of 88 schools offering Advanced Placement (68 AP courses district-wide), a 409.8:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 30.7% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 37.2% Hispanic or Latino, 29.1% White, 19.8% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Seltzer Elem, with a diversity index of 79.9/100.
Its largest campus is East High, enrolling 2,435 students (5% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Bryant Opportunity Academy, at 36 students, a 68x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Wichita school enrollment ranges from 36 students (lowest) to 2,435 students (highest), a spread of 2,399 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 NCES Common Core of Data
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 approaching the 75% concentration-grant threshold; it does not yet unlock the extra funding tier but sits meaningfully above the baseline 50% majority mark. 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.
Source: ESSA Title I Part A; ED EDFacts file system ESSA Title I Part A; ED EDFacts file system
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.
Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection NCES Civil Rights Data Collection
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.
Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22 NCES Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22
This district has moderate funding equity. There may be room to improve funding diversity or resource allocation.
Average demographic composition across 88 schools in Wichita.
Source: NCES CCD School Membership 2024-25.
Average Simpson diversity index across Wichita's schools, above the Kansas average of 39.4.
Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22.
The Kansas districts closest to this one in total enrollment.
| District | Enrollment | Spending | Funding Mix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Olathe | Smaller | Similar spending | More locally funded |
| Shawnee Mission Pub Sch | Smaller | Lower spending | More locally funded |
| Blue Valley | Smaller | Lower spending | More locally funded |
| Kansas City | Smaller | Similar spending | Similar funding mix |
| Topeka Public Schools | Smaller | Similar spending | Similar funding mix |
Comparisons are relative to Wichita'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.
See how this district compares to others in enrollment, spending, demographics, and academic resources.
Compare vs Olathe →Wichita has 88 schools, including 12 high, 16 middle, 57 combined, 3 elementary. Total enrollment is 46,796 students.
Wichita spends $15,361 per student. The district has an equity score of 67/100, ranking #56 in Kansas.
Wichita students are 37.2% Hispanic or Latino, 29.1% White, 19.8% African American, 3.8% Asian, averaged across 88 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
Wichita has an equity score of 67/100, ranking #56 out of 250 districts in Kansas.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.