Enrollment
1,377
Maryland · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Ellicott City, MD
Centennial High
Federal NCES profile for Centennial High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 60/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 240042000722
👥 S:T ratio 34
📚 AP courses 100
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 31
📋 Attendance 64
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Centennial High earns 60/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 77% of Maryland schools.
- #2 of 3
- high schools in Ellicott City · Resource Index
- 60
- Resource Index · Higher
- 16.6:1
- large classes for Maryland
- 15.9%
- free-lunch eligible
Centennial High has class sizes larger than 77% of Maryland schools. Computed live against every Maryland school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Centennial High ranks #2 of 3 high schools in Ellicott City, MD.
School address
District: Howard County Public Schools · Maryland
NCES ID 240042000722 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
83.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.6:1
vs 14.5:1 Maryland avg
+14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
15.9%
vs 49.0% Maryland avg
-68% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Centennial High compares with Maryland and U.S. medians
What stands out at Centennial High
Centennial High is a lower-poverty, large high school in Ellicott City, Maryland, enrolling 1,377 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 16.6:1 puts it in the larger third of Maryland schools by student-teacher ratio.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 15.9% free-meal eligibility runs 68% below the Maryland average.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in Maryland, bigger than 93% of state schools at 1,377 students.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 1,382 scored Maryland schools.
Against 88 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #27.
Its student body is led by Asian (40%) and White (33%) (diversity index 71/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 36 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 344 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
14.5% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
Among Ellicott City's high schools, it stands alongside Howard High (1,493 students): Centennial High is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (16.6:1 vs 13.5:1).
Howard County Public Schools also operates Marriotts Ridge High (1,741 students) and Reservoir High (1,597 students) alongside Centennial High.
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 Centennial High compares
Centennial High on the metrics families compare, against Maryland and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Maryland | Maryland avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.6:1 | ▲ 14% | 14.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 15.9% | ▼ 68% | 49.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 1,377 | top 7% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
16.6:1
Leaner classes than 33% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
1,377
Bigger than 95% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
15.9%
free-lunch eligible
- 68% below the Maryland average of 49.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
16.6:1
students per teacher
- 14% above state mean
Top 77% in Maryland - lower ratio than 23% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
14.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$17,971
per pupil, district-wide
- below Maryland avg of $20,446
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 344 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 17 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
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
Asian 39.8%
White 33.1%
African American 13.5%
Hispanic or Latino 7.8%
Two or More 5.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: Asian at 39.8% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 70.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 70.5, Centennial High is more mixed than the Maryland school average of 52.3.
Programs
AP courses offered 36
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Howard County Public Schools, which includes Centennial High.
$17,971
Per student
-12%
vs Maryland
Avg $20,446
+8%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 62.7%
State 29.5%
Federal 7.7%
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.
How Centennial High Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marriotts Ridge High | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Reservoir High | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Atholton High | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Howard High | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Mount Hebron High | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Centennial High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,741
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 1,597
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 1,540
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 1,493
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 1,455
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
Similar high schools in Ellicott City
2 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Maryland, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~1,377 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~16.6:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Centennial High's federal record.
- Compare Centennial High against another school. Compare schools
- Howard County Public 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 Centennial High
How many students attend Centennial High?
Centennial High has 1,377 students enrolled. It is a high school in Ellicott City, MD.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Centennial High?
The student-teacher ratio at Centennial High is 16.6:1, which is 14% higher than the Maryland average of 14.5:1 and 6% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Centennial High?
15.9% of students at Centennial High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Maryland average of 49.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Centennial High?
The largest demographic group at Centennial High is Asian at 39.8% of enrollment, in Ellicott City, MD. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 70.5/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Centennial High?
Centennial High has a Resource Investment Index of 60/100 (higher 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 Centennial High rank among high schools in Ellicott City?
By Resource Investment Index, Centennial High ranks #2 of 3 high schools in Ellicott City, MD. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all high schools in Ellicott City on the city page.
Is Centennial High a good school?
Centennial High earns 60/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 77% of Maryland 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 Howard County Public Schools?
Besides Centennial High, Howard County Public Schools also operates Marriotts Ridge High (1,741 students), Reservoir High (1,597 students), and Atholton High (1,540 students). See the Howard County Public 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.