Enrollment
146
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 370336002754
Discovery High School — Newton, NC
Federal NCES profile for Discovery High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 42/100.
👥 Class size 4
📚 AP courses 65
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 71
📋 Attendance 0
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: Newton Conover City Schools · North Carolina
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)
8.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
24.1:1
vs 16.4:1 North Carolina avg
+47% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
18.1%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
-73% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Discovery High School compares with North Carolina 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
Discovery High School reports 146 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 8.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 24.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 47% above the North Carolina state mean of 16.4:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 52% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 18.1% 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 North Carolina average and 65% below the national baseline. The school offers 13 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 146 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 43.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Newton Conover City Schools spends $12,580 per pupil district-wide, below the North Carolina average of $13,042 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 20.7% from local sources (property taxes), 58.9% from the state, and 20.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (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 Discovery High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against North Carolina state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 24.1:1 | ▲ 47% | 16.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 18.1% | ▼ 73% | 66.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 146 | top 8% | — | — |
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
18.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 73% below the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
24.1:1
students per teacher
— 47% above state mean
Top 96% in North Carolina — lower ratio than 4% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
43.8%
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
$12,580
per pupil, district-wide
— below North Carolina avg of $13,042
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 146 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 146 Top 8% in North Carolina — larger than 92% of 2,703 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 8.0
Students per teacher 24.1:1 +47% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 18.1% -73% vs state
NCES ID 370336002754
Student demographics
White 58.2%
Hispanic or Latino 19.2%
Asian 10.3%
Two or More 9.6%
African American 2.7%
Largest group: White at 58.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 13
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 146:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 43.8%
In-school suspensions 1
Out-of-school suspensions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Newton Conover City Schools, which includes Discovery High School.
$12,580
Per student
-4%
vs North Carolina
Avg $13,042
-35%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 20.7%
State 58.9%
Federal 20.4%
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
- 724
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Enrollment
- 559
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Enrollment
- 402
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
- Enrollment
- 388
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Enrollment
- 328
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
Similar high schools in Newton
2 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
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 Discovery High School
How many students attend Discovery High School?
Discovery High School has 146 students enrolled. It is a high school in Newton, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Discovery High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Discovery High School is 24.1:1, which is 47% higher than the North Carolina average of 16.4:1 and 52% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Discovery High School?
18.1% of students at Discovery High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Discovery High School?
The largest demographic group at Discovery High School is White at 58.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in Newton, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Discovery High School?
Discovery High School has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (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.