Enrollment
320
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Bear Creek, NC
Chatham Central High
Federal NCES profile for Chatham Central High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 42/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 370075000306
👥 S:T ratio 54
📚 AP courses 50
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 36
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Chatham Central High earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 90% of North Carolina schools.
- 42
- Resource Index · Typical
- 11.4:1
- small classes for North Carolina
- 43.1%
- free-lunch eligible
- 320
- students enrolled
Chatham Central High has class sizes smaller than 90% of North Carolina schools. Computed live against every North Carolina school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Chatham County Schools · North Carolina
NCES ID 370075000306 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
28.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.4:1
vs 15.8:1 North Carolina avg
-28% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
43.1%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
-35% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Chatham Central High compares with North Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Chatham Central High
Chatham Central High is a mid-sized high school in Bear Creek, North Carolina, enrolling 320 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 11.4:1, Chatham Central High is leaner than roughly 90% of North Carolina schools and 28% under the state's 15.8:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 43.1% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 320 puts it in the smaller third of North Carolina schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,698 scored North Carolina schools.
Among 233 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need North Carolina schools statewide, it ranks #172, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by White (65%) and Hispanic or Latino (24%) (diversity index 52/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 10 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 320 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 45.6% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Discipline events run high: 172 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 320 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
Chatham County Schools also operates Seaforth High (1,088 students) and Jordan Matthews High (848 students) alongside Chatham Central High.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Chatham Central High compares
Chatham Central High on the metrics families compare, against North Carolina and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.4:1 | ▼ 28% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 43.1% | ▼ 35% | 66.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 320 | top 75% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.4:1
Leaner classes than 80% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
320
Bigger than 35% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
43.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 35% below the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
11.4:1
students per teacher
- 28% below state mean
Top 10% in North Carolina - lower ratio than 90% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
45.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$13,461
per pupil, district-wide
- above North Carolina avg of $12,017
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 320 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
99
in-school suspensions + 73 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 30.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 53.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 65.0%
Hispanic or Latino 23.8%
African American 6.3%
Two or More 3.8%
Asian 1.3%
Largest group: White at 65.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 51.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 51.5, Chatham Central High is less mixed than the North Carolina school average of 56.1.
Programs
AP courses offered 10
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Chatham County Schools, which includes Chatham Central High.
$13,461
Per student
+12%
vs North Carolina
Avg $12,017
-19%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 38.4%
State 46.9%
Federal 14.8%
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.
How Chatham Central High Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seaforth High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Jordan Matthews High | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Margaret B. Pollard Middle | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Chatham Grove Elementary | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Northwood High | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Chatham Central High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,088
- Students per teacher
- 27.2:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 848
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 736
- Students per teacher
- 18.4:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 683
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 634
- Students per teacher
- 11.1:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of North Carolina, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~320 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11.4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Chatham Central High's federal record.
- Compare Chatham Central High against another school. Compare schools
- Chatham County Schools's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Chatham Central High
How many students attend Chatham Central High?
Chatham Central High has 320 students enrolled. It is a high school in Bear Creek, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Chatham Central High?
The student-teacher ratio at Chatham Central High is 11.4:1, which is 28% lower than the North Carolina average of 15.8:1 and 27% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Chatham Central High?
43.1% of students at Chatham Central High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Chatham Central High?
The largest demographic group at Chatham Central High is White at 65.0% of enrollment, in Bear Creek, NC. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 51.5/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Chatham Central High?
Chatham Central High has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Chatham Central High a good school?
Chatham Central High earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 90% of North Carolina schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Chatham County Schools?
Besides Chatham Central High, Chatham County Schools also operates Seaforth High (1,088 students), Jordan Matthews High (848 students), and Margaret B. Pollard Middle (736 students). See the Chatham County Schools district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.