Enrollment
1,318
Georgia · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 130141001885
Harlem High School — Harlem, GA
Federal NCES profile for Harlem High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 40/100.
👥 Class size 30
📚 AP courses 60
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 25
📋 Attendance 16
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 →
The verdict
Harlem High School earns a D Resource Investment Index (40/100), with class sizes larger than 90% of Georgia schools.
- D
- Resource Index · 40/100
- 17.5:1
- large classes for Georgia
- 26.7%
- free-lunch eligible
- 1,318
- students enrolled
School address
District: Columbia County · Georgia
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)
70.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.5:1
vs 14.5:1 Georgia avg
+21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
26.7%
vs 60.7% Georgia avg
-56% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Harlem High School compares with Georgia 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
Harlem High School reports 1,318 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 70.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 21% above the Georgia state mean of 14.5:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 10% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 26.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 56% below the Georgia average and 48% below the national baseline. The school offers 12 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 377 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 33.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Columbia County spends $12,726 per pupil district-wide, below the Georgia average of $15,679 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 43.9% from local sources (property taxes), 45.4% from the state, and 10.7% 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 Harlem High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Georgia state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Georgia | Georgia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.5:1 | ▲ 21% | 14.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 26.7% | ▼ 56% | 60.7% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,318 | top 90% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
Class size vs. every US school
Students per teacher (lower means more individual attention)
18 smaller classes than 27% of 92,598 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25
School size vs. every US school
Total enrollment — where this school sits by size (neither large nor small is 'better')
1,318 larger than 95% of 95,891 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 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
26.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 56% below the Georgia average of 60.7%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17.5:1
students per teacher
— 21% above state mean
Top 90% in Georgia — lower ratio than 10% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
33.8%
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
$12,726
per pupil, district-wide
— below Georgia avg of $15,679
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors3.5 FTE
Per 377 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
231
in-school suspensions + 52 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 17.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 21.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 25 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,318 Top 90% in Georgia — larger than 10% of 2,315 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 70.0
Students per teacher 17.5:1 +21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 26.7% -56% vs state
NCES ID 130141001885
Student demographics
White 61.4%
African American 19.9%
Hispanic or Latino 11.2%
Two or More 6.2%
Asian 1.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 61.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 12
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.5
Students per counselor 377:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 33.8%
In-school suspensions 231
Out-of-school suspensions 52
Expulsions 25
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Columbia County, which includes Harlem High School.
$12,726
Per student
-19%
vs Georgia
Avg $15,679
-35%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 43.9%
State 45.4%
Federal 10.7%
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
- 2,256
- Students per teacher
- 18.6:1
- Enrollment
- 1,935
- Students per teacher
- 19:1
- Enrollment
- 1,861
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,800
- Students per teacher
- 18.5:1
- Enrollment
- 1,067
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
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 Harlem High School
How many students attend Harlem High School?
Harlem High School has 1,318 students enrolled. It is a high school in Harlem, GA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Harlem High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Harlem High School is 17.5:1, which is 21% higher than the Georgia average of 14.5:1 and 10% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Harlem High School?
26.7% of students at Harlem High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Georgia average of 60.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Harlem High School?
The largest demographic group at Harlem High School is White at 61.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Harlem, GA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Harlem High School?
Harlem High School 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.