Enrollment
865
New York · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 360292000061
Amherst Central High School — Amherst, NY
Federal NCES profile for Amherst Central High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 49/100.
👥 Class size 57
📚 AP courses 60
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 57
📋 Attendance 39
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: Amherst Central School District · New York
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
81.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.7:1
vs 11.7:1 New York avg
-9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
34.0%
vs 56.2% New York avg
-40% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Amherst Central High School compares with New York and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Amherst Central High School reports 865 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 81.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 10.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 9% below the New York state mean of 11.7:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 33% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 34.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 40% below the New York average and 34% below the national baseline. The school offers 12 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 216 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 24.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Amherst Central School District spends $23,840 per pupil district-wide, below the New York average of $29,727 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 49.0% from local sources (property taxes), 26.9% from the state, and 24.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 49/100 (D), calculated from 5 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Amherst Central High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against New York state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs New York | New York avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.7:1 | ▼ 9% | 11.7:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 34.0% | ▼ 40% | 56.2% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 865 | top 88% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
34.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 40% below the New York average of 56.2%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
10.7:1
students per teacher
— 9% below state mean
Top 37% in New York — lower ratio than 63% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
24.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$23,840
per pupil, district-wide
— below New York avg of $29,727
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 216 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
82
in-school suspensions + 21 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 9.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 11.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 81 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 865 Top 88% in New York — larger than 12% of 4,812 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 81.0
Students per teacher 10.7:1 -9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 34.0% -40% vs state
NCES ID 360292000061
Student demographics
White 63.1%
African American 13.8%
Asian 12.5%
Hispanic or Latino 5.8%
Two or More 4.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Largest group: White at 63.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 12
Counselors (FTE) 4.0
Students per counselor 216:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 24.3%
In-school suspensions 82
Out-of-school suspensions 21
Expulsions 81
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Amherst Central School District, which includes Amherst Central High School.
$23,840
Per student
-20%
vs New York
Avg $29,727
+22%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 49.0%
State 26.9%
Federal 24.1%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 738
- Students per teacher
- 11.7:1
- Enrollment
- 708
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Enrollment
- 646
- Students per teacher
- 9:1
Similar high schools in Amherst
1 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Amherst Central High School
How many students attend Amherst Central High School?
Amherst Central High School has 865 students enrolled. It is a high school in AMHERST, NY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Amherst Central High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Amherst Central High School is 10.7:1, which is 9% lower than the New York average of 11.7:1 and 33% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Amherst Central High School?
34.0% of students at Amherst Central High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the New York average of 56.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Amherst Central High School?
The largest demographic group at Amherst Central High School is White at 63.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in AMHERST, NY.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Amherst Central High School?
Amherst Central High School has a Resource Investment Index of 49/100 (D) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.