Enrollment
402
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 290057903342 Charter school
Grand Center Arts Academy High — St. Louis, MO
Federal NCES profile for Grand Center Arts Academy High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 38/100.
👥 Class size 52
📚 AP courses 50
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 20
📋 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: Confluence Academies · 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)
35.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.9:1
vs 12.9:1 Missouri avg
-8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
+117% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Grand Center Arts Academy 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
Grand Center Arts Academy High reports 402 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 35.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 11.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 8% 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 25% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 100.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 117% above the Missouri average and 93% above the national baseline. The school offers 10 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 402 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 46.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Confluence Academies spends $17,326 per pupil district-wide, above the Missouri average of $15,248 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 8.9% from local sources (property taxes), 65.9% from the state, and 25.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (F), 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 Grand Center Arts Academy 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 | 11.9:1 | ▼ 8% | 12.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 117% | 46.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 402 | top 66% | — | — |
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
100.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 117% above the Missouri average of 46.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
11.9:1
students per teacher
— 8% below state mean
Top 35% in Missouri — lower ratio than 65% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
46.5%
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
$17,326
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
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 402 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
110
in-school suspensions + 52 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 27.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 40.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 402 Top 66% in Missouri — larger than 34% of 2,321 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 35.0
Students per teacher 11.9:1 -8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 100.0% +117% vs state
NCES ID 290057903342
Student demographics
African American 78.1%
White 14.2%
Hispanic or Latino 3.5%
Two or More 3.5%
Asian 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: African American at 78.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 10
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 402:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 46.5%
In-school suspensions 110
Out-of-school suspensions 52
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Confluence Academies, which includes Grand Center Arts Academy High.
$17,326
Per student
+14%
vs Missouri
Avg $15,248
-11%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 8.9%
State 65.9%
Federal 25.2%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 838
- Students per teacher
- 12.1:1
- Enrollment
- 448
- Students per teacher
- 11.9:1
- Enrollment
- 442
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Enrollment
- 218
- Students per teacher
- 11.1:1
- Enrollment
- 112
- Students per teacher
- 7.1:1
Similar high schools in St. Louis
4 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Lindbergh Sr. High
Standard public school
2,304 students 17.2:1 students per teacher
Gateway Science Academy High
Standard public school
461 students 12.9:1 students per teacher
Collegiate School of Med/Bio
Standard public school
332 students 15.9:1 students per teacher
Kairos High
Standard public school
287 students 8.3:1 students per teacher
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 Grand Center Arts Academy High
How many students attend Grand Center Arts Academy High?
Grand Center Arts Academy High has 402 students enrolled. It is a high school in ST. LOUIS, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Grand Center Arts Academy High?
The student-teacher ratio at Grand Center Arts Academy High is 11.9:1, which is 8% lower than the Missouri average of 12.9:1 and 25% 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 Grand Center Arts Academy High?
100.0% of students at Grand Center Arts Academy High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Grand Center Arts Academy High?
The largest demographic group at Grand Center Arts Academy High is African American at 78.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in ST. LOUIS, MO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Grand Center Arts Academy High?
Grand Center Arts Academy High has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (F) 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.