Enrollment
1,044
Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 080336001574
Denver School of the Arts — Denver, CO
Federal NCES profile for Denver School of the Arts, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 45/100.
👥 Class size 22
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 25
📋 Attendance 62
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
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)
54.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
19.6:1
vs 16.9:1 Colorado avg
+16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
10.3%
vs 38.5% Colorado avg
-73% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Denver School of the Arts compares with Colorado 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
Denver School of the Arts reports 1,044 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 54.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 19.6:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 16% above the Colorado state mean of 16.9:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 23% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 10.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 73% below the Colorado average and 80% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 373 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 15.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding School District No. 1 in the County of Denver and State of C spends $19,296 per pupil district-wide, below the Colorado average of $20,949 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 70.4% from local sources (property taxes), 16.8% from the state, and 12.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (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 Denver School of the Arts compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Colorado state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Colorado | Colorado avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 19.6:1 | ▲ 16% | 16.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 10.3% | ▼ 73% | 38.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,044 | 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
10.3%
free-lunch eligible
— 73% below the Colorado average of 38.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
19.6:1
students per teacher
— 16% above state mean
Top 86% in Colorado — lower ratio than 14% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
15.3%
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
$19,296
per pupil, district-wide
— below Colorado avg of $20,949
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.8 FTE
Per 373 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
24
in-school suspensions + 5 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 1,044 Top 93% in Colorado — larger than 7% of 1,923 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 54.0
Students per teacher 19.6:1 +16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 10.3% -73% vs state
NCES ID 080336001574
Student demographics
White 61.0%
Hispanic or Latino 19.3%
Two or More 9.5%
African American 6.0%
Asian 4.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 61.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 9
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.8
Students per counselor 373:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 15.3%
In-school suspensions 24
Out-of-school suspensions 5
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for School District No. 1 in the County of Denver and State of C, which includes Denver School of the Arts.
$19,296
Per student
-8%
vs Colorado
Avg $20,949
-1%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 70.4%
State 16.8%
Federal 12.8%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,476
- Students per teacher
- 20.2:1
- Enrollment
- 2,137
- Students per teacher
- 18.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,950
- Students per teacher
- 20.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,653
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
- Enrollment
- 1,390
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
Similar other schools in Denver
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
D'Evelyn Junior/Senior High School
Standard public school
1,212 students 20.8:1 students per teacher
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Early College
Standard public school
1,027 students 19:1 students per teacher
Florida Pitt-Waller Ece-8 School
Standard public school
886 students 18:1 students per teacher
Mcglone Academy
Standard public school
842 students 16.4:1 students per teacher
Place Bridge Academy
Standard public school
824 students 14.6:1 students per teacher
Park Hill School
Standard public school
717 students 18.3:1 students per teacher
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 Denver School of the Arts
How many students attend Denver School of the Arts?
Denver School of the Arts has 1,044 students enrolled. It is a other school in DENVER, CO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Denver School of the Arts?
The student-teacher ratio at Denver School of the Arts is 19.6:1, which is 16% higher than the Colorado average of 16.9:1 and 23% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Denver School of the Arts?
10.3% of students at Denver School of the Arts are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Denver School of the Arts?
The largest demographic group at Denver School of the Arts is White at 61.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in DENVER, CO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Denver School of the Arts?
Denver School of the Arts has a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (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.