Enrollment
5,239
Indiana · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 180120000193
Carmel High School — Carmel, IN
Federal NCES profile for Carmel High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 58/100.
👥 Class size 29
📚 AP courses 100
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 35
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: Carmel Clay Schools · Indiana
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)
291.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.8:1
vs 16.1:1 Indiana avg
+11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
11.6%
vs 49.5% Indiana avg
-77% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Carmel High School compares with Indiana 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
Carmel High School reports 5,239 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 291.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.8:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 11% above the Indiana state mean of 16.1:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 12% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 11.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 77% below the Indiana average and 78% below the national baseline. The school offers 37 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 327 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1.
On the finance side, the surrounding Carmel Clay Schools spends $16,428 per pupil district-wide, above the Indiana average of $14,559 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 40.8% from local sources (property taxes), 53.8% from the state, and 5.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (C), calculated from 4 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 Carmel High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Indiana state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Indiana | Indiana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.8:1 | ▲ 11% | 16.1:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 11.6% | ▼ 77% | 49.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 5,239 | top 100% | — | — |
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
11.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 77% below the Indiana average of 49.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17.8:1
students per teacher
— 11% above state mean
Top 80% in Indiana — lower ratio than 20% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Funding equity
$16,428
per pupil, district-wide
— above Indiana avg of $14,559
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors16.0 FTE
Per 327 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
138
in-school suspensions + 62 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 5,239 Top 100% in Indiana — larger than 0% of 1,865 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 291.0
Students per teacher 17.8:1 +11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 11.6% -77% vs state
NCES ID 180120000193
Student demographics
White 64.6%
Asian 18.0%
Hispanic or Latino 7.6%
African American 4.9%
Two or More 4.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: White at 64.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 37
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 16.0
Students per counselor 327:1
Discipline & special education
In-school suspensions 138
Out-of-school suspensions 62
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Carmel Clay Schools, which includes Carmel High School.
$16,428
Per student
+13%
vs Indiana
Avg $14,559
-16%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 40.8%
State 53.8%
Federal 5.5%
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
- 1,428
- Students per teacher
- 17.8:1
- Enrollment
- 1,415
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
- Enrollment
- 1,047
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Enrollment
- 715
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Enrollment
- 711
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
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 Carmel High School
How many students attend Carmel High School?
Carmel High School has 5,239 students enrolled. It is a high school in Carmel, IN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Carmel High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Carmel High School is 17.8:1, which is 11% higher than the Indiana average of 16.1:1 and 12% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Carmel High School?
11.6% of students at Carmel High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Indiana average of 49.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Carmel High School?
The largest demographic group at Carmel High School is White at 64.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in Carmel, IN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Carmel High School?
Carmel High School has a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (C) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.