Enrollment
679
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 290825000225
Center Sr. High — Kansas City, MO
Federal NCES profile for Center Sr. High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 45/100.
👥 Class size 51
📚 AP courses 40
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 32
📋 Attendance 32
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
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)
61.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.2:1
vs 12.9:1 Missouri avg
-5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
57.8%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
+25% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Center Sr. High compares with Missouri 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
Center Sr. High reports 679 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 61.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 5% below the Missouri state mean of 12.9:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 23% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 57.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 25% above the Missouri average and 12% above the national baseline. The school offers 8 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 340 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 27.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Center 58 spends $20,469 per pupil district-wide, above the Missouri average of $15,248 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 68.3% from local sources (property taxes), 11.0% from the state, and 20.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (D), 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 Center Sr. High compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Missouri state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.2:1 | ▼ 5% | 12.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 57.8% | ▲ 25% | 46.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 679 | top 89% | — | — |
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
57.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 25% above the Missouri average of 46.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.2:1
students per teacher
— 5% below state mean
Top 39% in Missouri — lower ratio than 61% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
27.4%
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
$20,469
per pupil, district-wide
— above Missouri avg of $15,248
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 340 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
205
in-school suspensions + 78 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 30.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 41.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
Overview
Enrollment 679 Top 89% in Missouri — larger than 11% of 2,321 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 61.0
Students per teacher 12.2:1 -5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 57.8% +25% vs state
NCES ID 290825000225
Student demographics
African American 61.6%
White 15.2%
Hispanic or Latino 12.4%
Two or More 9.6%
Asian 0.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: African American at 61.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 8
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 340:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 27.4%
In-school suspensions 205
Out-of-school suspensions 78
Expulsions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Center 58, which includes Center Sr. High.
$20,469
Per student
+34%
vs Missouri
Avg $15,248
+5%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 68.3%
State 11.0%
Federal 20.7%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 493
- Students per teacher
- 11.7:1
- Enrollment
- 314
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
- Enrollment
- 285
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Enrollment
- 247
- Students per teacher
- 10.9:1
- Enrollment
- 201
- Students per teacher
- 11.9:1
Similar high schools in Kansas City
6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Staley High
Standard public school
2,091 students 20:1 students per teacher
Park Hill High
Standard public school
1,947 students 17.7:1 students per teacher
Oak Park High
Standard public school
1,755 students 18.1:1 students per teacher
North Kansas City High
Standard public school
1,719 students 16.4:1 students per teacher
Ruskin High School
Standard public school
1,299 students 13.7:1 students per teacher
Winnetonka High
Standard public school
1,238 students 14.6:1 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 Center Sr. High
How many students attend Center Sr. High?
Center Sr. High has 679 students enrolled. It is a high school in KANSAS CITY, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Center Sr. High?
The student-teacher ratio at Center Sr. High is 12.2:1, which is 5% lower than the Missouri average of 12.9:1 and 23% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Center Sr. High?
57.8% of students at Center Sr. High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Center Sr. High?
The largest demographic group at Center Sr. High is African American at 61.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in KANSAS CITY, MO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Center Sr. High?
Center Sr. High has a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (D) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.