Enrollment
618
West Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Bluefield, WV
Bluefield High School
Federal NCES profile for Bluefield High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 28/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 540084000674
👥 S:T ratio 29
📚 AP courses 45
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 38
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Bluefield High School earns 28/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 94% of West Virginia schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most West Virginia schools.
- #7 of 7
- public schools in Bluefield · Resource Index
- 28
- Resource Index · Lower
- 17.7:1
- large classes for West Virginia
- 618
- students enrolled
Bluefield High School has class sizes larger than 94% of West Virginia schools. Computed live against every West Virginia school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Bluefield High School ranks #7 of 7 public schools in Bluefield, WV.
School address
District: Mercer County Schools · West Virginia
NCES ID 540084000674 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
35.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.7:1
vs 13.1:1 West Virginia avg
+35% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Bluefield High School compares with West Virginia and U.S. medians
What stands out at Bluefield High School
Bluefield High School is a large high school in Bluefield, West Virginia, enrolling 618 students.
Class loads run heavy: 17.7:1 is larger than about 94% of West Virginia schools and 35% above the 13.1:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Enrollment of 618 puts it in the larger third of West Virginia schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index trails 98% of the 643 West Virginia schools with a score on record, one of the lower results on this measure.
Its student body is led by White (63%) and African American (26%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 53/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 9 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 309 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 43.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 19.9% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Discipline events run high: 147 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 618 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 1 expulsion at this campus for 2021-22.
Mercer County Schools also operates Princeton Senior High School (925 students) and Pikeview High School (629 students) alongside Bluefield High School.
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 Bluefield High School compares
Bluefield High School on the metrics families compare, against West Virginia and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs West Virginia | West Virginia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.7:1 | ▲ 35% | 13.1:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 618 | top 13% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17.7:1
Leaner classes than 26% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
618
Bigger than 74% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
17.7:1
students per teacher
- 35% above state mean
Top 94% in West Virginia - lower ratio than 6% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
43.2%
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
$12,553
per pupil, district-wide
- below West Virginia avg of $14,844
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 309 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
52
in-school suspensions + 95 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 8.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 23.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
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 62.9%
African American 25.9%
Two or More 9.4%
Hispanic or Latino 1.8%
Largest group: White at 62.9% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 52.8/100
Simpson diversity index - at 52.8, Bluefield High School is more mixed than the West Virginia school average of 17.9.
Programs
AP courses offered 9
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mercer County Schools, which includes Bluefield High School.
$12,553
Per student
-15%
vs West Virginia
Avg $14,844
-24%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 25.3%
State 54.8%
Federal 19.9%
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 Bluefield High School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Princeton Senior High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Pikeview High School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Glenwood School (K-8) | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Pikeview Middle School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Princeton Middle School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Bluefield High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 925
- Students per teacher
- 17.1:1
- Resource Index
- 25/100
- Enrollment
- 629
- Students per teacher
- 18.5:1
- Resource Index
- 14/100
- Enrollment
- 614
- Students per teacher
- 14.6:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 502
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
- Enrollment
- 488
- Students per teacher
- 10.6:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of West Virginia, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~618 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~17.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Bluefield High School's federal record.
- Compare Bluefield High School against another school. Compare schools
- Mercer County Schools'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 Bluefield High School
How many students attend Bluefield High School?
Bluefield High School has 618 students enrolled. It is a high school in Bluefield, WV.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Bluefield High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Bluefield High School is 17.7:1, which is 35% higher than the West Virginia average of 13.1:1 and 13% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Bluefield High School?
The largest demographic group at Bluefield High School is White at 62.9% of enrollment, in Bluefield, WV. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 52.8/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Bluefield High School?
Bluefield High School has a Resource Investment Index of 28/100 (lower 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 Bluefield High School rank among public schools in Bluefield?
By Resource Investment Index, Bluefield High School ranks #7 of 7 public schools in Bluefield, WV. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Bluefield on the city page.
Is Bluefield High School a good school?
Bluefield High School earns 28/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 94% of West Virginia schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most West Virginia 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 Mercer County Schools?
Besides Bluefield High School, Mercer County Schools also operates Princeton Senior High School (925 students), Pikeview High School (629 students), and Glenwood School (K-8) (614 students). See the Mercer County Schools 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.