Enrollment
488
Alabama · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 010342001297
Deshler High School — Tuscumbia, AL
Federal NCES profile for Deshler High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 41/100.
👥 Class size 44
📚 AP courses 30
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 51
📋 Attendance 48
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: Tuscumbia City · Alabama
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)
31.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14:1
vs 17.8:1 Alabama avg
-21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
47.7%
vs 58.8% Alabama avg
-19% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Deshler High School compares with Alabama 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
Deshler High School reports 488 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 31.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 21% below the Alabama state mean of 17.8:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 12% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 47.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 19% below the Alabama average and 8% below the national baseline. The school offers 6 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 244 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 20.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Tuscumbia City spends $15,261 per pupil district-wide, above the Alabama average of $14,500 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 26.7% from local sources (property taxes), 52.7% from the state, and 20.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D), 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 Deshler High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Alabama state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Alabama | Alabama avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14:1 | ▼ 21% | 17.8:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 47.7% | ▼ 19% | 58.8% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 488 | top 52% | — | — |
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
47.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 19% below the Alabama average of 58.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14:1
students per teacher
— 21% below state mean
Top 7% in Alabama — lower ratio than 93% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
20.9%
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
$15,261
per pupil, district-wide
— above Alabama avg of $14,500
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 244 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
15
in-school suspensions + 5 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 488 Top 52% in Alabama — larger than 48% of 1,369 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 31.0
Students per teacher 14:1 -21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 47.7% -19% vs state
NCES ID 010342001297
Student demographics
White 62.9%
African American 26.0%
Two or More 7.0%
Hispanic or Latino 3.7%
Asian 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 62.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 6
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 244:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 20.9%
In-school suspensions 15
Out-of-school suspensions 5
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Tuscumbia City, which includes Deshler High School.
$15,261
Per student
+5%
vs Alabama
Avg $14,500
-22%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 26.7%
State 52.7%
Federal 20.6%
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
- 413
- Students per teacher
- 19.1:1
- Enrollment
- 360
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Enrollment
- 336
- Students per teacher
- 16.6:1
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 Deshler High School
How many students attend Deshler High School?
Deshler High School has 488 students enrolled. It is a high school in Tuscumbia, AL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Deshler High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Deshler High School is 14:1, which is 21% lower than the Alabama average of 17.8:1 and 12% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Deshler High School?
47.7% of students at Deshler High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Alabama average of 58.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Deshler High School?
The largest demographic group at Deshler High School is White at 62.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in Tuscumbia, AL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Deshler High School?
Deshler High School has a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D) based on 5 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.