Enrollment
935
South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 450390901650 Charter school
Gray Collegiate Academy — West Columbia, SC
Federal NCES profile for Gray Collegiate Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 58/100.
👥 Class size 18
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 53
📋 Attendance 92
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: Charter Institute at Erskine · South 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)
39.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.6:1
vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg
+44% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
10.7%
vs 74.0% South Carolina avg
-86% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Gray Collegiate Academy compares with South 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
Gray Collegiate Academy reports 935 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 39.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 20.6:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 44% above the South Carolina state mean of 14.3:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 30% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 10.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 86% below the South Carolina average and 79% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 234 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 3.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Charter Institute at Erskine spends $18,946 per pupil district-wide, above the South Carolina average of $17,182 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 2.7% from local sources (property taxes), 85.8% from the state, and 11.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (C), calculated from 4 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 Gray Collegiate Academy compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against South 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 South Carolina | South Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.6:1 | ▲ 44% | 14.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 10.7% | ▼ 86% | 74.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 935 | top 85% | — | — |
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
10.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 86% below the South Carolina average of 74.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
20.6:1
students per teacher
— 44% above state mean
Top 98% in South Carolina — lower ratio than 2% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
3.4%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$18,946
per pupil, district-wide
— above South Carolina avg of $17,182
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 234 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 7 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
Overview
Enrollment 935 Top 85% in South Carolina — larger than 15% of 1,215 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 39.0
Students per teacher 20.6:1 +44% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 10.7% -86% vs state
NCES ID 450390901650
Student demographics
White 71.3%
African American 16.4%
Hispanic or Latino 6.6%
Two or More 5.1%
Asian 0.5%
Largest group: White at 71.3% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 1
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 4.0
Students per counselor 234:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 3.4%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 7
Expulsions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Charter Institute at Erskine, which includes Gray Collegiate Academy.
$18,946
Per student
+10%
vs South Carolina
Avg $17,182
-3%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 2.7%
State 85.8%
Federal 11.5%
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
- 6,152
- Students per teacher
- 28.3:1
- Enrollment
- 3,280
- Students per teacher
- 23.4:1
- Enrollment
- 2,180
- Students per teacher
- 21.1:1
- Enrollment
- 772
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
- Enrollment
- 764
- Students per teacher
- 12.2:1
Similar other schools in West Columbia
5 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
South Carolina Virtual Charter School
Standard public school
2,180 students 21.1:1 students per teacher
Riverbank Elementary
Standard public school
996 students 13.9:1 students per teacher
Herbert a. Wood Elementary
Standard public school
938 students 14:1 students per teacher
White Knoll Elementary
Standard public school
615 students 12.9:1 students per teacher
Springdale Elementary
Standard public school
443 students 13.4:1 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 Gray Collegiate Academy
How many students attend Gray Collegiate Academy?
Gray Collegiate Academy has 935 students enrolled. It is a other school in West Columbia, SC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Gray Collegiate Academy?
The student-teacher ratio at Gray Collegiate Academy is 20.6:1, which is 44% higher than the South Carolina average of 14.3:1 and 30% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Gray Collegiate Academy?
10.7% of students at Gray Collegiate Academy are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Gray Collegiate Academy?
The largest demographic group at Gray Collegiate Academy is White at 71.3%. The school serves a diverse student body in West Columbia, SC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Gray Collegiate Academy?
Gray Collegiate Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (C) based on 4 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.