Enrollment
1,529
Louisiana · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 220012500363
Central High School — Baton Rouge, LA
Federal NCES profile for Central High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 55/100.
👥 Class size 31
📚 AP courses 70
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 24
📋 Attendance 80
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: Central Community School District · Louisiana
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
17.3:1
vs 18.6:1 Louisiana avg
-7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
39.1%
vs 62.5% Louisiana avg
-37% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Central High School compares with Louisiana 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 1,529 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 92.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 7% below the Louisiana state mean of 18.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 9% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 39.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 37% below the Louisiana average and 25% below the national baseline. The school offers 14 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 382 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 7.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Central Community School District spends $17,496 per pupil district-wide, below the Louisiana average of $17,870 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 39.1% from local sources (property taxes), 48.1% from the state, and 12.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 55/100 (C), 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 Louisiana state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Louisiana | Louisiana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.3:1 | ▼ 7% | 18.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 39.1% | ▼ 37% | 62.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,529 | top 98% | — | — |
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
39.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 37% below the Louisiana average of 62.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17.3:1
students per teacher
— 7% below state mean
Top 47% in Louisiana — lower ratio than 53% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
7.9%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$17,496
per pupil, district-wide
— below Louisiana avg of $17,870
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 382 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
137
in-school suspensions + 95 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 9.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 15.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 28 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,529 Top 98% in Louisiana — larger than 2% of 1,330 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 92.0
Students per teacher 17.3:1 -7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 39.1% -37% vs state
NCES ID 220012500363
Student demographics
White 63.8%
African American 24.3%
Hispanic or Latino 8.5%
Two or More 2.4%
Asian 0.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: White at 63.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 14
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 4.0
Students per counselor 382:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 7.9%
In-school suspensions 137
Out-of-school suspensions 95
Expulsions 28
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Central Community School District, which includes Central High School.
$17,496
Per student
-2%
vs Louisiana
Avg $17,870
-10%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 39.1%
State 48.1%
Federal 12.8%
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
- 1,039
- Students per teacher
- 18.5:1
- Enrollment
- 1,012
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
- Enrollment
- 622
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Enrollment
- 378
- Students per teacher
- 14.2:1
Similar high schools in Baton Rouge
6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Baton Rouge Magnet High School
Standard public school
1,593 students 19.8:1 students per teacher
Woodlawn High School
Standard public school
1,331 students 19.1:1 students per teacher
Liberty High School
Standard public school
1,218 students 18.3:1 students per teacher
Tara High School
Standard public school
1,016 students 18.6:1 students per teacher
Scotlandville Magnet High School
Standard public school
837 students 17:1 students per teacher
Broadmoor Senior High School
Standard public school
791 students 20:1 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 Central High School
How many students attend Central High School?
Central High School has 1,529 students enrolled. It is a high school in Baton Rouge, LA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Central High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Central High School is 17.3:1, which is 7% lower than the Louisiana average of 18.6:1 and 9% higher 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 Central High School?
39.1% of students at Central High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Louisiana average of 62.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Central High School?
The largest demographic group at Central High School is White at 63.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Baton Rouge, LA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Central High School?
Central High School has a Resource Investment Index of 55/100 (C) 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.