Enrollment
393
Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Tappahannock, VA
Essex High
Federal NCES profile for Essex High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 47/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 510120000419
👥 S:T ratio 58
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 61
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Essex High earns 47/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 91% of Virginia schools.
- #3 of 3
- public schools in Tappahannock · Resource Index
- 47
- Resource Index · Typical
- 10.6:1
- small classes for Virginia
- 393
- students enrolled
Essex High has class sizes smaller than 91% of Virginia schools. Computed live against every Virginia school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Essex High ranks #3 of 3 public schools in Tappahannock, VA.
School address
District: Essex County Public Schools · Virginia
NCES ID 510120000419 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
37.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.6:1
vs 13.9:1 Virginia avg
-24% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Essex High compares with Virginia and U.S. medians
What stands out at Essex High
Essex High is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Tappahannock, Virginia, enrolling 393 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 10.6:1, Essex High is leaner than roughly 91% of Virginia schools and 24% under the state's 13.9:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Enrollment of 393 puts it in the smaller third of Virginia schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,868 scored Virginia schools.
Its student body is led by African American (57%) and White (26%) (diversity index 60/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 197 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 46.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 18.2% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Discipline events run high: 82 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 393 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 1 expulsion at this campus for 2021-22.
Among Tappahannock's public schools, it stands alongside Tappahannock Elementary (400 students): Essex High is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (10.6:1 vs 13.8:1).
Essex County Public Schools also operates Tappahannock Elementary (400 students) and James H. Cary Intermediate (299 students) alongside Essex High.
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 Essex High compares
Essex High on the metrics families compare, against Virginia and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Virginia | Virginia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.6:1 | ▼ 24% | 13.9:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 393 | top 75% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
10.6:1
Leaner classes than 85% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
393
Bigger than 46% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
10.6:1
students per teacher
- 24% below state mean
Top 9% in Virginia - lower ratio than 91% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
46.3%
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
$15,164
per pupil, district-wide
- above Virginia avg of $14,649
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 197 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
34
in-school suspensions + 48 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 8.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 20.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
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
African American 56.5%
White 26.0%
Two or More 8.7%
Hispanic or Latino 6.9%
Asian 1.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: African American at 56.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 60.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 60.1, Essex High is more mixed than the Virginia school average of 53.7.
Programs
AP courses offered 1
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Essex County Public Schools, which includes Essex High.
$15,164
Per student
+4%
vs Virginia
Avg $14,649
-9%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 34.9%
State 46.9%
Federal 18.2%
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 Essex High Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tappahannock Elementary | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| James H. Cary Intermediate | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Essex High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 400
- Students per teacher
- 13.8:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 299
- Students per teacher
- 9.6:1
- Resource Index
- 48/100
Similar other schools in Tappahannock
1 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Virginia, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~393 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~10.6:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Essex High's federal record.
- Compare Essex High against another school. Compare schools
- Essex County Public Schools'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 Essex High
How many students attend Essex High?
Essex High has 393 students enrolled. It is a public school in Tappahannock, VA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Essex High?
The student-teacher ratio at Essex High is 10.6:1, which is 24% lower than the Virginia average of 13.9:1 and 32% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Essex High?
The largest demographic group at Essex High is African American at 56.5% of enrollment, in Tappahannock, VA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 60.1/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Essex High?
Essex High has a Resource Investment Index of 47/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Essex High rank among public schools in Tappahannock?
By Resource Investment Index, Essex High ranks #3 of 3 public schools in Tappahannock, VA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Tappahannock on the city page.
Is Essex High a good school?
Essex High earns 47/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 91% of Virginia schools. 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 Essex County Public Schools?
Besides Essex High, Essex County Public Schools also operates Tappahannock Elementary (400 students) and James H. Cary Intermediate (299 students). See the Essex County Public Schools 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.