Enrollment
1,831
Kentucky · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 210249000528
Central Hardin High School — Cecilia, KY
Federal NCES profile for Central Hardin High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 36/100.
👥 Class size 17
📚 AP courses 50
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 8
📋 Attendance 33
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: Hardin County · Kentucky
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)
92.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.8:1
vs 15.6:1 Kentucky avg
+33% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
34.2%
vs 59.2% Kentucky avg
-42% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Central Hardin High School compares with Kentucky 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
Central Hardin High School reports 1,831 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 92.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 20.8:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 33% above the Kentucky state mean of 15.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 31% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 34.2% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 42% below the Kentucky average and 34% below the national baseline. The school offers 10 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 458 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 27.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Hardin County spends $13,705 per pupil district-wide, below the Kentucky average of $15,105 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 29.3% from local sources (property taxes), 53.0% from the state, and 17.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 36/100 (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 Central Hardin High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Kentucky state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Kentucky | Kentucky avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.8:1 | ▲ 33% | 15.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 34.2% | ▼ 42% | 59.2% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,831 | top 99% | — | — |
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
34.2%
free-lunch eligible
— 42% below the Kentucky average of 59.2%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
20.8:1
students per teacher
— 33% above state mean
Top 95% in Kentucky — lower ratio than 5% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
27.0%
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
$13,705
per pupil, district-wide
— below Kentucky avg of $15,105
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 458 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
315
in-school suspensions + 124 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 17.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 24.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 41 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,831 Top 99% in Kentucky — larger than 1% of 1,395 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 92.0
Students per teacher 20.8:1 +33% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 34.2% -42% vs state
NCES ID 210249000528
Student demographics
White 81.8%
Hispanic or Latino 7.4%
Two or More 6.0%
African American 3.2%
Asian 1.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 81.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 10
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 4.0
Students per counselor 458:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 27.0%
In-school suspensions 315
Out-of-school suspensions 124
Expulsions 41
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Hardin County, which includes Central Hardin High School.
$13,705
Per student
-9%
vs Kentucky
Avg $15,105
-30%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 29.3%
State 53.0%
Federal 17.7%
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
- 1,593
- Students per teacher
- 19.7:1
- Enrollment
- 868
- Students per teacher
- 14.6:1
- Enrollment
- 775
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Enrollment
- 653
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Enrollment
- 634
- Students per teacher
- 16.6:1
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 Central Hardin High School
How many students attend Central Hardin High School?
Central Hardin High School has 1,831 students enrolled. It is a high school in Cecilia, KY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Central Hardin High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Central Hardin High School is 20.8:1, which is 33% higher than the Kentucky average of 15.6:1 and 31% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Central Hardin High School?
34.2% of students at Central Hardin High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kentucky average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Central Hardin High School?
The largest demographic group at Central Hardin High School is White at 81.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Cecilia, KY.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Central Hardin High School?
Central Hardin High School has a Resource Investment Index of 36/100 (F) 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.