Enrollment
848
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 480021112390 Charter school
Idea College Preparatory Pharr — Pharr, TX
Federal NCES profile for Idea College Preparatory Pharr, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 34/100.
👥 Class size 36
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 43
📋 Attendance 27
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: Idea Public Schools · Texas
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)
48.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.1:1
vs 14.6:1 Texas avg
+10% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
92.2%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+49% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Idea College Preparatory Pharr compares with Texas 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
Idea College Preparatory Pharr reports 848 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 48.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 10% above the Texas state mean of 14.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 1% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 92.2% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 49% above the Texas average and 78% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 283 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 29.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Idea Public Schools spends $11,965 per pupil district-wide, below the Texas average of $17,150 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 2.8% from local sources (property taxes), 76.8% from the state, and 20.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (F), 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 Idea College Preparatory Pharr compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Texas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.1:1 | ▲ 10% | 14.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 92.2% | ▲ 49% | 61.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 848 | top 84% | — | — |
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
92.2%
free-lunch eligible
— 49% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
16.1:1
students per teacher
— 10% above state mean
Top 73% in Texas — lower ratio than 27% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
29.1%
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
$11,965
per pupil, district-wide
— below Texas avg of $17,150
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 283 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 848 Top 84% in Texas — larger than 16% of 9,061 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 48.0
Students per teacher 16.1:1 +10% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 92.2% +49% vs state
NCES ID 480021112390
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 99.5%
White 0.4%
African American 0.1%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 99.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 15
Counselors (FTE) 3.0
Students per counselor 283:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 29.1%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Idea Public Schools, which includes Idea College Preparatory Pharr.
$11,965
Per student
-30%
vs Texas
Avg $17,150
-39%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 2.8%
State 76.8%
Federal 20.4%
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
- 835
- Students per teacher
- 17.7:1
- Enrollment
- 823
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Enrollment
- 820
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Enrollment
- 813
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
- Enrollment
- 798
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
Similar other schools in Pharr
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Vanguard Rembrandt
Standard public school
1,978 students 14.3:1 students per teacher
Vanguard Van Gogh
Standard public school
1,048 students 16.2:1 students per teacher
Dr William Long El
Standard public school
767 students 18:1 students per teacher
Aida C Escobar El
Standard public school
735 students 17.7:1 students per teacher
Idea Academy Pharr
Standard public school
717 students 25.4:1 students per teacher
Idea Owassa Academy
Standard public school
699 students 23.8:1 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 Idea College Preparatory Pharr
How many students attend Idea College Preparatory Pharr?
Idea College Preparatory Pharr has 848 students enrolled. It is a other school in PHARR, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Idea College Preparatory Pharr?
The student-teacher ratio at Idea College Preparatory Pharr is 16.1:1, which is 10% higher than the Texas average of 14.6:1 and 1% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Idea College Preparatory Pharr?
92.2% of students at Idea College Preparatory Pharr are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Idea College Preparatory Pharr?
The largest demographic group at Idea College Preparatory Pharr is Hispanic or Latino at 99.5%. The school serves a student body in PHARR, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Idea College Preparatory Pharr?
Idea College Preparatory Pharr has a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (F) 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.