Enrollment
358
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 190696000308
Central Lyon Secondary School — Rock Rapids, IA
Federal NCES profile for Central Lyon Secondary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 48/100.
👥 Class size 42
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 28
📋 Attendance 52
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 Lyon Comm School District · Iowa
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)
25.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.5:1
vs 15:1 Iowa avg
-3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
16.8%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
-54% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Central Lyon Secondary School compares with Iowa 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 Lyon Secondary School reports 358 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 25.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 3% below the Iowa state mean of 15:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 9% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 16.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 54% below the Iowa average and 68% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 358 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 19.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Central Lyon Comm School District spends $13,628 per pupil district-wide, below the Iowa average of $17,211 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 41.6% from local sources (property taxes), 47.5% from the state, and 11.0% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (D), calculated from 4 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 Lyon Secondary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Iowa state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.5:1 | ▼ 3% | 15:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 16.8% | ▼ 54% | 36.4% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 358 | top 60% | — | — |
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
16.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 54% below the Iowa average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
14.5:1
students per teacher
— 3% below state mean
Top 56% in Iowa — lower ratio than 44% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
19.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$13,628
per pupil, district-wide
— below Iowa avg of $17,211
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 358 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 358 Top 60% in Iowa — larger than 40% of 1,326 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 25.0
Students per teacher 14.5:1 -3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 16.8% -54% vs state
NCES ID 190696000308
Student demographics
White 90.5%
Hispanic or Latino 4.7%
African American 2.5%
Two or More 1.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: White at 90.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 2
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 358:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 19.3%
In-school suspensions 3
Out-of-school suspensions 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Central Lyon Comm School District, which includes Central Lyon Secondary School.
$13,628
Per student
-21%
vs Iowa
Avg $17,211
-30%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 41.6%
State 47.5%
Federal 11.0%
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
- 431
- Students per teacher
- 13.1:1
Similar other schools in Rock Rapids
1 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) 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 Lyon Secondary School
How many students attend Central Lyon Secondary School?
Central Lyon Secondary School has 358 students enrolled. It is a other school in Rock Rapids, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Central Lyon Secondary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Central Lyon Secondary School is 14.5:1, which is 3% lower than the Iowa average of 15:1 and 9% 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 Central Lyon Secondary School?
16.8% of students at Central Lyon Secondary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Central Lyon Secondary School?
The largest demographic group at Central Lyon Secondary School is White at 90.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in Rock Rapids, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Central Lyon Secondary School?
Central Lyon Secondary School has a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (D) based on 4 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.