Enrollment
1,272
South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · West Columbia, SC
Airport High
Federal NCES profile for Airport High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 40/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 450273000741
👥 S:T ratio 32
📚 AP courses 60
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 36
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Airport High earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 84% of South Carolina schools.
- #13 of 14
- public schools in West Columbia · Resource Index
- 40
- Resource Index · Typical
- 17:1
- large classes for South Carolina
- 78.6%
- free-lunch eligible
Airport High has class sizes larger than 84% of South Carolina schools. Computed live against every South Carolina school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Airport High ranks #13 of 14 public schools in West Columbia, SC.
School address
District: Lexington 02 · South Carolina
NCES ID 450273000741 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
75.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17:1
vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg
+19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
78.6%
vs 74.0% South Carolina avg
+6% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Airport High compares with South Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Airport High
Airport High is a high-poverty, large high school in West Columbia, South Carolina, enrolling 1,272 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 17:1 puts it in the larger third of South Carolina schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 78.6% lands close to the South Carolina typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in South Carolina, bigger than 93% of state schools at 1,272 students.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,214 scored South Carolina schools.
Among 42 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need South Carolina schools statewide, it ranks #37, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by White (36%) and African American (35%) (diversity index 69/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 12 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 318 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 43.6% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 17.2% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 16 expulsions at this campus for 2021-22.
Among West Columbia's high schools, it stands alongside Midlands Middle College (115 students): Airport High is larger than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (17:1 vs 14.4:1).
Lexington 02 also operates Brookland-Cayce High (1,212 students) and Riverbank Elementary (996 students) alongside Airport High.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Airport High compares
Airport High on the metrics families compare, against South Carolina and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs South Carolina | South Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17:1 | ▲ 19% | 14.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 78.6% | ▲ 6% | 74.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 1,272 | top 7% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17:1
Leaner classes than 30% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
1,272
Bigger than 95% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
78.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 6% above the South Carolina average of 74.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
17:1
students per teacher
- 19% above state mean
Top 84% in South Carolina - lower ratio than 16% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
43.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$14,320
per pupil, district-wide
- below South Carolina avg of $14,558
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 318 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
123
in-school suspensions + 85 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 9.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 16.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 16 expulsions.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 35.6%
African American 34.6%
Hispanic or Latino 24.2%
Two or More 4.1%
Asian 1.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: White at 35.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 69.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 69.3, Airport High is more mixed than the South Carolina school average of 52.7.
Programs
AP courses offered 12
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Lexington 02, which includes Airport High.
$14,320
Per student
-2%
vs South Carolina
Avg $14,558
-14%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 41.1%
State 41.7%
Federal 17.2%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Airport High Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brookland-Cayce High | Similar size | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Riverbank Elementary | Similar size | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Cayce Elementary | Similar size | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Herbert a. Wood Elementary | Smaller | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Northside Middle | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Airport High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,212
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 996
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
- Enrollment
- 977
- Students per teacher
- 13:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 938
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 528
- Students per teacher
- 12.9:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
Similar high schools in West Columbia
1 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of South Carolina, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~1,272 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~17:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Airport High's federal record.
- Compare Airport High against another school. Compare schools
- Lexington 02's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Airport High
How many students attend Airport High?
Airport High has 1,272 students enrolled. It is a high school in West Columbia, SC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Airport High?
The student-teacher ratio at Airport High is 17:1, which is 19% higher than the South Carolina average of 14.3:1 and 8% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Airport High?
78.6% of students at Airport High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Airport High?
The largest demographic group at Airport High is White at 35.6% of enrollment, in West Columbia, SC. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 69.3/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Airport High?
Airport High has a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Airport High rank among public schools in West Columbia?
By Resource Investment Index, Airport High ranks #13 of 14 public schools in West Columbia, SC. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in West Columbia on the city page.
Is Airport High a good school?
Airport High earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 84% of South Carolina schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Lexington 02?
Besides Airport High, Lexington 02 also operates Brookland-Cayce High (1,212 students), Riverbank Elementary (996 students), and Cayce Elementary (977 students). See the Lexington 02 district page for the complete list.
Related tools
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. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.