Enrollment
777
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 190891000508
Denison High School — Denison, IA
Federal NCES profile for Denison High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 31/100.
👥 Class size 28
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 22
📋 Attendance 22
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: Denison 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)
44.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.9:1
vs 15:1 Iowa avg
+19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
48.3%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
+33% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Denison High 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
Denison High School reports 777 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 44.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 19% above the Iowa state mean of 15:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 13% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 48.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 33% above the Iowa average and 7% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 389 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 31.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Denison Comm School District spends $14,265 per pupil district-wide, below the Iowa average of $17,211 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 21.6% from local sources (property taxes), 57.4% from the state, and 21.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (F), 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 Denison High 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 | 17.9:1 | ▲ 19% | 15:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 48.3% | ▲ 33% | 36.4% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 777 | top 93% | — | — |
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
48.3%
free-lunch eligible
— 33% above the Iowa average of 36.4%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
17.9:1
students per teacher
— 19% above state mean
Top 90% in Iowa — lower ratio than 10% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
31.1%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$14,265
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
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 389 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
32
in-school suspensions + 27 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 777 Top 93% in Iowa — larger than 7% of 1,326 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 44.0
Students per teacher 17.9:1 +19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 48.3% +33% vs state
NCES ID 190891000508
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 63.4%
White 30.4%
African American 3.2%
Asian 1.8%
Two or More 0.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 63.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP program Not offered
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 389:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 31.1%
In-school suspensions 32
Out-of-school suspensions 27
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Denison Comm School District, which includes Denison High School.
$14,265
Per student
-17%
vs Iowa
Avg $17,211
-27%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 21.6%
State 57.4%
Federal 21.1%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 691
- Students per teacher
- 12.8:1
- Enrollment
- 502
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
- Enrollment
- 288
- Students per teacher
- 17.6:1
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 Denison High School
How many students attend Denison High School?
Denison High School has 777 students enrolled. It is a high school in Denison, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Denison High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Denison High School is 17.9:1, which is 19% higher than the Iowa average of 15:1 and 13% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Denison High School?
48.3% of students at Denison High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Denison High School?
The largest demographic group at Denison High School is Hispanic or Latino at 63.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Denison, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Denison High School?
Denison High School has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (F) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.