Enrollment
37
Michigan · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 263555008315
Career Connections Academy — Wayland, MI
Federal NCES profile for Career Connections Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 25/100.
👥 Class size 0
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 85
📋 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: Wayland Union Schools · Michigan
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)
1.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
40:1
vs 18.2:1 Michigan avg
+120% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
62.5%
vs 54.3% Michigan avg
+15% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Career Connections Academy compares with Michigan 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
Career Connections Academy reports 37 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 1.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 40:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 120% above the Michigan state mean of 18.2:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 152% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 62.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 15% above the Michigan average and 21% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 74 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 100.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Wayland Union Schools spends $14,081 per pupil district-wide, below the Michigan average of $15,842 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 31.3% from local sources (property taxes), 57.5% from the state, and 11.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 25/100 (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 Career Connections Academy compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Michigan state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Michigan | Michigan avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 40:1 | ▲ 120% | 18.2:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 62.5% | ▲ 15% | 54.3% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 37 | top 6% | — | — |
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
62.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 15% above the Michigan average of 54.3%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
40:1
students per teacher
— 120% above state mean
Top 98% in Michigan — lower ratio than 2% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
100.0%
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
$14,081
per pupil, district-wide
— below Michigan avg of $15,842
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.5 FTE
Per 74 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
7
in-school suspensions + 6 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 18.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 35.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 3 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 37 Top 6% in Michigan — larger than 94% of 3,399 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 1.0
Students per teacher 40:1 +120% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 62.5% +15% vs state
NCES ID 263555008315
Student demographics
White 94.6%
African American 2.7%
Hispanic or Latino 2.7%
Largest group: White at 94.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP program Not offered
Counselors (FTE) 0.5
Students per counselor 74:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 100.0%
In-school suspensions 7
Out-of-school suspensions 6
Expulsions 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Wayland Union Schools, which includes Career Connections Academy.
$14,081
Per student
-11%
vs Michigan
Avg $15,842
-28%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 31.3%
State 57.5%
Federal 11.2%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 800
- Students per teacher
- 20.2:1
- Enrollment
- 611
- Students per teacher
- 17.5:1
- Enrollment
- 413
- Students per teacher
- 20.1:1
- Enrollment
- 311
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Enrollment
- 280
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
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 Career Connections Academy
How many students attend Career Connections Academy?
Career Connections Academy has 37 students enrolled. It is a high school in Wayland, MI.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Career Connections Academy?
The student-teacher ratio at Career Connections Academy is 40:1, which is 120% higher than the Michigan average of 18.2:1 and 152% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Career Connections Academy?
62.5% of students at Career Connections Academy are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Michigan average of 54.3%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Career Connections Academy?
The largest demographic group at Career Connections Academy is White at 94.6%. The school serves a student body in Wayland, MI.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Career Connections Academy?
Career Connections Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 25/100 (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.