Enrollment
981
Indiana · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 180005802315 Charter school
Herron High School — Indianapolis, IN
Federal NCES profile for Herron High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 68/100.
👥 Class size 54
📚 AP courses 85
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 61
📋 Attendance 71
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: Herron Charter · Indiana
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)
87.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.4:1
vs 16.1:1 Indiana avg
-29% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
39.4%
vs 49.5% Indiana avg
-20% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Herron High School compares with Indiana 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
Herron High School reports 981 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 87.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 11.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 29% below the Indiana state mean of 16.1:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 28% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 39.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 20% below the Indiana average and 24% below the national baseline. The school offers 17 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 196 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 11.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Herron Charter spends $10,523 per pupil district-wide, below the Indiana average of $14,559 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 8.3% from local sources (property taxes), 71.2% from the state, and 20.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 68/100 (B-), 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 Herron High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Indiana state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Indiana | Indiana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.4:1 | ▼ 29% | 16.1:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 39.4% | ▼ 20% | 49.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 981 | top 91% | — | — |
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
39.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 20% below the Indiana average of 49.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
11.4:1
students per teacher
— 29% below state mean
Top 7% in Indiana — lower ratio than 93% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
11.7%
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
$10,523
per pupil, district-wide
— below Indiana avg of $14,559
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors5.0 FTE
Per 196 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
11
in-school suspensions + 60 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 2 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 981 Top 91% in Indiana — larger than 9% of 1,865 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 87.0
Students per teacher 11.4:1 -29% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 39.4% -20% vs state
NCES ID 180005802315
Student demographics
White 45.7%
African American 24.7%
Hispanic or Latino 20.6%
Two or More 6.9%
Asian 2.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: White at 45.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 17
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 5.0
Students per counselor 196:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 11.7%
In-school suspensions 11
Out-of-school suspensions 60
Expulsions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Herron Charter, which includes Herron High School.
$10,523
Per student
-28%
vs Indiana
Avg $14,559
-46%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 8.3%
State 71.2%
Federal 20.5%
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.
Similar high schools in Indianapolis
6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
North Central High School
Standard public school
3,682 students 16.1:1 students per teacher
Franklin Central High School
Standard public school
3,438 students 21:1 students per teacher
Warren Central High School
Standard public school
3,391 students 18.5:1 students per teacher
Ben Davis High School
Standard public school
3,315 students 18.5:1 students per teacher
Pike High School
Standard public school
3,188 students 16.5:1 students per teacher
Lawrence North High School
Standard public school
2,799 students 19.7:1 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 Herron High School
How many students attend Herron High School?
Herron High School has 981 students enrolled. It is a high school in Indianapolis, IN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Herron High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Herron High School is 11.4:1, which is 29% lower than the Indiana average of 16.1:1 and 28% 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 Herron High School?
39.4% of students at Herron High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Indiana average of 49.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Herron High School?
The largest demographic group at Herron High School is White at 45.7%. The school serves a diverse student body in Indianapolis, IN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Herron High School?
Herron High School has a Resource Investment Index of 68/100 (B-) 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.