Enrollment
415
Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 420228007623
Building 21 Allentown — Allentown, PA
Federal NCES profile for Building 21 Allentown, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 35/100.
👥 Class size 37
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 59
📋 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: Allentown City Sd · Pennsylvania
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
15.7:1
vs 13.5:1 Pennsylvania avg
+16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
97.3%
vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg
+67% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Building 21 Allentown compares with Pennsylvania 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
Building 21 Allentown reports 415 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 28.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 16% above the Pennsylvania state mean of 13.5:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 1% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 97.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 67% above the Pennsylvania average and 88% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 208 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 65.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Allentown City Sd spends $22,177 per pupil district-wide, below the Pennsylvania average of $22,745 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 29.0% from local sources (property taxes), 52.7% from the state, and 18.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (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 Building 21 Allentown compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Pennsylvania state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.7:1 | ▲ 16% | 13.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 97.3% | ▲ 67% | 58.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 415 | top 42% | — | — |
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
97.3%
free-lunch eligible
— 67% above the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.7:1
students per teacher
— 16% above state mean
Top 83% in Pennsylvania — lower ratio than 17% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
65.1%
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
$22,177
per pupil, district-wide
— below Pennsylvania avg of $22,745
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 208 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 14 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 415 Top 42% in Pennsylvania — larger than 58% of 2,930 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 28.0
Students per teacher 15.7:1 +16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 97.3% +67% vs state
NCES ID 420228007623
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 81.2%
African American 9.4%
Two or More 5.1%
White 3.1%
Asian 1.0%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 81.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP program Not offered
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 208:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 65.1%
In-school suspensions 1
Out-of-school suspensions 14
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Allentown City Sd, which includes Building 21 Allentown.
$22,177
Per student
-2%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $22,745
+14%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 29.0%
State 52.7%
Federal 18.3%
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
- 3,074
- Students per teacher
- 20.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,914
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Enrollment
- 972
- Students per teacher
- 14.2:1
- Enrollment
- 876
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Enrollment
- 807
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
Similar high schools in Allentown
4 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Parkland Hs
Standard public school
3,279 students 14.9:1 students per teacher
William Allen Hs
Standard public school
3,074 students 20.2:1 students per teacher
Louis E Dieruff Hs
Standard public school
1,914 students 18.1:1 students per teacher
Salisbury Shs
Standard public school
546 students 15:1 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 Building 21 Allentown
How many students attend Building 21 Allentown?
Building 21 Allentown has 415 students enrolled. It is a high school in Allentown, PA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Building 21 Allentown?
The student-teacher ratio at Building 21 Allentown is 15.7:1, which is 16% higher than the Pennsylvania average of 13.5:1 and 1% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Building 21 Allentown?
97.3% of students at Building 21 Allentown are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Building 21 Allentown?
The largest demographic group at Building 21 Allentown is Hispanic or Latino at 81.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in Allentown, PA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Building 21 Allentown?
Building 21 Allentown has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.