High school (grades 9-12) · Seattle, WA

Chief Sealth International High School

Federal NCES profile for Chief Sealth International High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 38/100.

2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 530771001149
0/100100/10038/100
👥 S:T ratio
28
📚 AP courses
10
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
21
📋 Attendance
60
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Chief Sealth International High School earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Washington median. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Washington schools.

#9 of 14
high schools in Seattle · Resource Index
38
Resource Index · Typical
17.9:1
students per teacher
52.2%
free-lunch eligible

Chief Sealth International High School has class sizes near the Washington median. Computed live against every Washington school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Chief Sealth International High School ranks #9 of 14 high schools in Seattle, WA.

Enrollment

1,184

Washington · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

66.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

17.9:1

vs 17.6:1 Washington avg

+2% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

52.2%

vs 45.0% Washington avg

+16% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Chief Sealth International High School compares with Washington and U.S. medians

Slightly above state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Chief Sealth International High School

Chief Sealth International High School is a higher-need, large high school in Seattle, Washington, enrolling 1,184 students.

Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 17.9:1 puts it in the larger third of Washington schools by student-teacher ratio.

Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 52.2% of students eligible for free meals.

By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in Washington, bigger than 94% of state schools at 1,184 students.

Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,394 scored Washington schools.

Against 111 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #37.

Its student body is led by White (26%) and Hispanic or Latino (26%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 79/100).

On the academic-pipeline side it reports 2 Advanced Placement courses.

Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 395 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.

15.9% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.

The federal civil-rights collection also records 1 expulsion at this campus for 2021-22.

Among Seattle's high schools, it stands alongside Lincoln High School (1,770 students): Chief Sealth International High School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (17.9:1 vs 24.6:1).

Seattle School District No. 1 also operates Lincoln High School (1,770 students) and Ballard High School (1,697 students) alongside Chief Sealth International High School.

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 Chief Sealth International High School compares

Chief Sealth International High School on the metrics families compare, against Washington and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Washington Washington avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 17.9:1 ▲ 2% 17.6:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 52.2% ▲ 16% 45.0% 51.7%
Enrollment 1,184 top 6% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

17.9:1
Leaner classes than 25% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
1,184
Bigger than 94% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
52.2%
free-lunch eligible - 16% above the Washington average of 45.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
17.9:1
students per teacher - 2% above state mean
Top 64% in Washington - lower ratio than 36% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
15.9%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$20,430
per pupil, district-wide - above Washington avg of $19,487
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 395 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 72 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.

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 25.7%
Hispanic or Latino 25.5%
African American 23.3%
Asian 13.6%
Two or More 9.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 1.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.6%

Largest group: White at 25.7% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 78.7/100

Simpson diversity index - at 78.7, Chief Sealth International High School is more mixed than the Washington school average of 53.3.

Programs

AP courses offered 2
Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Seattle School District No. 1, which includes Chief Sealth International High School.

$20,430
Per student
+5%
vs Washington
Avg $19,487
+23%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 40.0%
State 50.6%
Federal 9.3%

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 Chief Sealth International High School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Lincoln High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Ballard High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Roosevelt High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Garfield High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
West Seattle High School Similar size Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Chief Sealth International High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Seattle School District No. 1 · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar high schools in Seattle

6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.

Similar high schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Washington, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Chief Sealth International High School's federal record.

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 Chief Sealth International High School

How many students attend Chief Sealth International High School?

Chief Sealth International High School has 1,184 students enrolled. It is a high school in Seattle, WA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Chief Sealth International High School?

The student-teacher ratio at Chief Sealth International High School is 17.9:1, which is 2% higher than the Washington average of 17.6:1 and 14% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Chief Sealth International High School?

52.2% of students at Chief Sealth International High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Washington average of 45.0%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Chief Sealth International High School?

The largest demographic group at Chief Sealth International High School is White at 25.7% of enrollment, in Seattle, WA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 78.7/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Chief Sealth International High School?

Chief Sealth International High School has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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).

How does Chief Sealth International High School rank among high schools in Seattle?

By Resource Investment Index, Chief Sealth International High School ranks #9 of 14 high schools in Seattle, WA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all high schools in Seattle on the city page.

Is Chief Sealth International High School a good school?

Chief Sealth International High School earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Washington median. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Washington 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 Seattle School District No. 1?

Besides Chief Sealth International High School, Seattle School District No. 1 also operates Lincoln High School (1,770 students), Ballard High School (1,697 students), and Roosevelt High School (1,542 students). See the Seattle School District No. 1 district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.