Enrollment
247
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 482442006275
Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center — Irving, TX
Federal NCES profile for Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 39/100.
👥 Class size 62
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 51
📋 Attendance 0
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: Irving Isd · Texas
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)
28.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
9.4:1
vs 14.6:1 Texas avg
-36% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
78.4%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+27% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center compares with Texas 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
Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center reports 247 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 28.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 9.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 36% below the Texas state mean of 14.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 41% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 78.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 27% above the Texas average and 51% above the national baseline. The school offers 2 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 247 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 49.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Irving Isd spends $12,870 per pupil district-wide, below the Texas average of $17,150 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 45.7% from local sources (property taxes), 37.6% from the state, and 16.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 39/100 (F), 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 Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Texas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 9.4:1 | ▼ 36% | 14.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 78.4% | ▲ 27% | 61.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 247 | top 20% | — | — |
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
78.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 27% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
9.4:1
students per teacher
— 36% below state mean
Top 7% in Texas — lower ratio than 93% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
49.4%
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
$12,870
per pupil, district-wide
— below Texas avg of $17,150
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 247 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
16
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 247 Top 20% in Texas — larger than 80% of 9,061 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 28.0
Students per teacher 9.4:1 -36% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 78.4% +27% vs state
NCES ID 482442006275
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 81.4%
White 8.1%
African American 7.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 2.4%
Asian 0.4%
Two or More 0.4%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 81.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 2
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 247:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 49.4%
In-school suspensions 16
Out-of-school suspensions 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Irving Isd, which includes Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center.
$12,870
Per student
-25%
vs Texas
Avg $17,150
-34%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 45.7%
State 37.6%
Federal 16.7%
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
- 2,484
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Enrollment
- 2,390
- Students per teacher
- 14.3:1
- Enrollment
- 2,343
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Enrollment
- 1,697
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Enrollment
- 947
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
Similar high schools in Irving
6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Macarthur H S
Standard public school
2,484 students 14.8:1 students per teacher
Irving H S
Standard public school
2,390 students 14.3:1 students per teacher
Nimitz H S
Standard public school
2,343 students 14.4:1 students per teacher
Jack E Singley Academy
Standard public school
1,697 students 13.6:1 students per teacher
Ranchview H S
Standard public school
899 students 12.3:1 students per teacher
Uplift Education-North Hills Prep H S
Standard public school
522 students 14.4:1 students per teacher
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 Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center
How many students attend Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center?
Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center has 247 students enrolled. It is a high school in IRVING, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center?
The student-teacher ratio at Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center is 9.4:1, which is 36% lower than the Texas average of 14.6:1 and 41% 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 Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center?
78.4% of students at Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center?
The largest demographic group at Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center is Hispanic or Latino at 81.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in IRVING, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center?
Barbara Cardwell Career Preparatory Center has a Resource Investment Index of 39/100 (F) 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.