Enrollment
1,946
Kansas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 200639001175
Garden City High School — Garden City, KS
Federal NCES profile for Garden City High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 42/100.
👥 Class size 37
📚 AP courses 60
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 44
📋 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: Garden City · Kansas
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)
126.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.7:1
vs 14.4:1 Kansas avg
+9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
52.5%
vs 42.7% Kansas avg
+23% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Garden City High School compares with Kansas 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
Garden City High School reports 1,946 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 126.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 9% above the Kansas state mean of 14.4:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 1% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 52.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 23% above the Kansas average and 1% above the national baseline. The school offers 12 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 278 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 42.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Garden City spends $14,751 per pupil district-wide, below the Kansas average of $17,342 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 22.3% from local sources (property taxes), 68.1% from the state, and 9.6% 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 Garden City High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Kansas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Kansas | Kansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.7:1 | ▲ 9% | 14.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 52.5% | ▲ 23% | 42.7% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,946 | top 99% | — | — |
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
52.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 23% above the Kansas average of 42.7%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.7:1
students per teacher
— 9% above state mean
Top 79% in Kansas — lower ratio than 21% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
42.4%
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
$14,751
per pupil, district-wide
— below Kansas avg of $17,342
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors7.0 FTE
Per 278 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
372
in-school suspensions + 211 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 19.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 30.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 27 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,946 Top 99% in Kansas — larger than 1% of 1,354 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 126.0
Students per teacher 15.7:1 +9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 52.5% +23% vs state
NCES ID 200639001175
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 71.2%
White 18.8%
Asian 4.3%
African American 3.8%
Two or More 1.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 71.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 12
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 7.0
Students per counselor 278:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 42.4%
In-school suspensions 372
Out-of-school suspensions 211
Expulsions 27
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Garden City, which includes Garden City High School.
$14,751
Per student
-15%
vs Kansas
Avg $17,342
-24%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 22.3%
State 68.1%
Federal 9.6%
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
- 796
- Students per teacher
- 57.1:1
- Enrollment
- 583
- Students per teacher
- 13.4:1
- Enrollment
- 425
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Enrollment
- 377
- Students per teacher
- 11.8:1
- Enrollment
- 376
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
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 Garden City High School
How many students attend Garden City High School?
Garden City High School has 1,946 students enrolled. It is a high school in Garden City, KS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Garden City High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Garden City High School is 15.7:1, which is 9% higher than the Kansas average of 14.4:1 and 1% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Garden City High School?
52.5% of students at Garden City High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kansas average of 42.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Garden City High School?
The largest demographic group at Garden City High School is Hispanic or Latino at 71.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in Garden City, KS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Garden City High School?
Garden City 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.