Enrollment
200
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 291218000485
Fordland High — Fordland, MO
Federal NCES profile for Fordland High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 40/100.
👥 Class size 50
📚 AP courses 25
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 20
📋 Attendance 73
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: Fordland R-Iii · Missouri
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)
15.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.4:1
vs 12.9:1 Missouri avg
-4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
24.7%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
-46% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Fordland High compares with Missouri 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
Fordland High reports 200 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 15.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 4% below the Missouri state mean of 12.9:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 22% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 24.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 46% below the Missouri average and 52% below the national baseline. The school offers 5 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 400 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 11.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Fordland R-Iii spends $18,462 per pupil district-wide, above the Missouri average of $15,248 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 40.1% from local sources (property taxes), 29.8% from the state, and 30.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (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 Fordland High compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Missouri state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.4:1 | ▼ 4% | 12.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 24.7% | ▼ 46% | 46.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 200 | top 30% | — | — |
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
24.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 46% below the Missouri average of 46.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
12.4:1
students per teacher
— 4% below state mean
Top 43% in Missouri — lower ratio than 57% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
11.0%
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
$18,462
per pupil, district-wide
— above Missouri avg of $15,248
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.5 FTE
Per 400 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
10
in-school suspensions + 5 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 200 Top 30% in Missouri — larger than 70% of 2,321 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 15.0
Students per teacher 12.4:1 -4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 24.7% -46% vs state
NCES ID 291218000485
Student demographics
White 89.5%
Hispanic or Latino 6.0%
Two or More 4.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Largest group: White at 89.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 5
Counselors (FTE) 0.5
Students per counselor 400:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 11.0%
In-school suspensions 10
Out-of-school suspensions 5
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Fordland R-Iii, which includes Fordland High.
$18,462
Per student
+21%
vs Missouri
Avg $15,248
-5%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 40.1%
State 29.8%
Federal 30.1%
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
- 300
- Students per teacher
- 13:1
- Enrollment
- 150
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
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 Fordland High
How many students attend Fordland High?
Fordland High has 200 students enrolled. It is a high school in FORDLAND, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Fordland High?
The student-teacher ratio at Fordland High is 12.4:1, which is 4% lower than the Missouri average of 12.9:1 and 22% 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 Fordland High?
24.7% of students at Fordland High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Fordland High?
The largest demographic group at Fordland High is White at 89.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in FORDLAND, MO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Fordland High?
Fordland High has a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (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.