Enrollment
1,352
Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 080435000600
Central High School — Grand Junction, CO
Federal NCES profile for Central High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 37/100.
👥 Class size 22
📚 AP courses 35
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 57
📋 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: Mesa County Valley School District No. 51 · Colorado
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)
83.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
19.4:1
vs 16.9:1 Colorado avg
+15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
34.5%
vs 38.5% Colorado avg
-10% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Central High School compares with Colorado 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 High School reports 1,352 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 83.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 19.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 15% above the Colorado state mean of 16.9:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 22% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 34.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 10% below the Colorado average and 33% below the national baseline. The school offers 7 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 216 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 60.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Mesa County Valley School District No. 51 spends $13,239 per pupil district-wide, below the Colorado average of $20,949 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 38.9% from local sources (property taxes), 46.3% from the state, and 14.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (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 High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Colorado state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Colorado | Colorado avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 19.4:1 | ▲ 15% | 16.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 34.5% | ▼ 10% | 38.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,352 | top 96% | — | — |
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
34.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 10% below the Colorado average of 38.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
19.4:1
students per teacher
— 15% above state mean
Top 85% in Colorado — lower ratio than 15% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
60.5%
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
$13,239
per pupil, district-wide
— below Colorado avg of $20,949
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors6.3 FTE
Per 216 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
127
in-school suspensions + 127 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 9.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 18.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 11 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,352 Top 96% in Colorado — larger than 4% of 1,923 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 83.0
Students per teacher 19.4:1 +15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 34.5% -10% vs state
NCES ID 080435000600
Student demographics
White 57.1%
Hispanic or Latino 37.0%
Two or More 3.8%
Asian 0.8%
African American 0.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
Largest group: White at 57.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 7
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 6.3
Students per counselor 216:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 60.5%
In-school suspensions 127
Out-of-school suspensions 127
Expulsions 11
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mesa County Valley School District No. 51, which includes Central High School.
$13,239
Per student
-37%
vs Colorado
Avg $20,949
-32%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 38.9%
State 46.3%
Federal 14.7%
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
- 1,832
- Students per teacher
- 19:1
- Enrollment
- 1,427
- Students per teacher
- 19.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,073
- Students per teacher
- 19.7:1
- Enrollment
- 704
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Enrollment
- 690
- Students per teacher
- 15:1
Similar high schools in Grand Junction
2 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
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 High School
How many students attend Central High School?
Central High School has 1,352 students enrolled. It is a high school in GRAND JUNCTION, CO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Central High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Central High School is 19.4:1, which is 15% higher than the Colorado average of 16.9:1 and 22% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Central High School?
34.5% of students at Central High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Central High School?
The largest demographic group at Central High School is White at 57.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in GRAND JUNCTION, CO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Central High School?
Central High School has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (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.