Enrollment
486
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Creston, IA
Creston High School
Federal NCES profile for Creston High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 44/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 190831000444
👥 S:T ratio 41
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 51
📋 Attendance 45
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Creston High School earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Iowa median.
- #1 of 4
- public schools in Creston · Resource Index
- 44
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14.7:1
- students per teacher
- 36.7%
- free-lunch eligible
Creston High School has class sizes near the Iowa median. Computed live against every Iowa school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Creston High School ranks #1 of 4 public schools in Creston, IA.
School address
District: Creston Comm School District · Iowa
NCES ID 190831000444 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
33.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.7:1
vs 14.8:1 Iowa avg
-1% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
36.7%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
+1% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Creston High School compares with Iowa and U.S. medians
What stands out at Creston High School
Creston High School is a mid-sized high school in Creston, Iowa, enrolling 486 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 14.7:1 puts it in the larger third of Iowa schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 36.7% lands close to the Iowa typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 486 puts it in the larger third of Iowa schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 1,322 scored Iowa schools.
Against 345 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #66.
Its student body is predominantly White (88% of enrollment) (diversity index 23/100).
No Advanced Placement courses are reported for this campus in the federal data.
Counselor coverage is strong, about 243 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 22.0% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Discipline events run high: 191 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 486 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
Creston Comm School District also operates Creston Elementary School (416 students) and Creston Middle School (259 students) alongside Creston 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 Creston High School compares
Creston High School on the metrics families compare, against Iowa and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.7:1 | ▼ 1% | 14.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 36.7% | ▲ 1% | 36.4% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 486 | top 21% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.7:1
Leaner classes than 50% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
486
Bigger than 60% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
36.7%
free-lunch eligible
- 1% above the Iowa average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
14.7:1
students per teacher
- 1% below state mean
Top 61% in Iowa - lower ratio than 39% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
22.0%
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
$12,291
per pupil, district-wide
- below Iowa avg of $12,854
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 243 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
162
in-school suspensions + 29 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 33.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 39.3 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 87.7%
Hispanic or Latino 7.2%
Two or More 2.3%
African American 1.9%
Asian 1.0%
Largest group: White at 87.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 22.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 22.5, Creston High School is less mixed than the Iowa school average of 33.8.
Programs
AP program Not offered
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Creston Comm School District, which includes Creston High School.
$12,291
Per student
-4%
vs Iowa
Avg $12,854
-26%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 37.0%
State 48.9%
Federal 14.1%
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 Creston High School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Creston Elementary School | Similar size | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Creston Middle School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Creston Early Childhood Center | Smaller | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Creston High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 416
- Students per teacher
- 12.2:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 259
- Students per teacher
- 10.4:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
- Enrollment
- 142
- Students per teacher
- 14.2:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Iowa, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~486 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~14.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Creston High School's federal record.
- Compare Creston High School against another school. Compare schools
- Creston Comm School District'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 Creston High School
How many students attend Creston High School?
Creston High School has 486 students enrolled. It is a high school in Creston, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Creston High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Creston High School is 14.7:1, which is 1% lower than the Iowa average of 14.8:1 and 6% 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 Creston High School?
36.7% of students at Creston High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Creston High School?
The largest demographic group at Creston High School is White at 87.7% of enrollment, in Creston, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Creston High School?
Creston High School has a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Creston High School rank among public schools in Creston?
By Resource Investment Index, Creston High School ranks #1 of 4 public schools in Creston, IA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Creston on the city page.
Is Creston High School a good school?
Creston High School earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Iowa median. 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 Creston Comm School District?
Besides Creston High School, Creston Comm School District also operates Creston Elementary School (416 students), Creston Middle School (259 students), and Creston Early Childhood Center (142 students). See the Creston Comm School District 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.