Enrollment
661
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 370048002836
Jimmy C Draughn High School — Valdese, NC
Federal NCES profile for Jimmy C Draughn High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 40/100.
👥 Class size 24
📚 AP courses 70
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 34
📋 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: Burke County Schools · North 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)
36.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.9:1
vs 16.4:1 North Carolina avg
+15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
47.7%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
-28% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Jimmy C Draughn High School compares with North 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
Jimmy C Draughn High School reports 661 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 36.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 18.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 15% above the North Carolina state mean of 16.4:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 19% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 47.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 28% below the North Carolina average and 8% below the national baseline. The school offers 14 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 331 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 45.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Burke County Schools spends $12,502 per pupil district-wide, below the North Carolina average of $13,042 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 15.2% from local sources (property taxes), 61.7% from the state, and 23.1% 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 Jimmy C Draughn High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against North 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 North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.9:1 | ▲ 15% | 16.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 47.7% | ▼ 28% | 66.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 661 | top 72% | — | — |
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
47.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 28% below the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
18.9:1
students per teacher
— 15% above state mean
Top 88% in North Carolina — lower ratio than 12% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
45.4%
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
$12,502
per pupil, district-wide
— below North Carolina avg of $13,042
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 331 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
47
in-school suspensions + 36 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 7.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 12.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 661 Top 72% in North Carolina — larger than 28% of 2,703 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 36.0
Students per teacher 18.9:1 +15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 47.7% -28% vs state
NCES ID 370048002836
Student demographics
White 74.9%
Hispanic or Latino 10.4%
Asian 6.5%
Two or More 5.4%
African American 2.0%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.8%
Largest group: White at 74.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 14
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 331:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 45.4%
In-school suspensions 47
Out-of-school suspensions 36
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Burke County Schools, which includes Jimmy C Draughn High School.
$12,502
Per student
-4%
vs North Carolina
Avg $13,042
-36%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 15.2%
State 61.7%
Federal 23.1%
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
- 1,299
- Students per teacher
- 19.4:1
- Enrollment
- 874
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Enrollment
- 762
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Enrollment
- 756
- Students per teacher
- 19.3:1
- Enrollment
- 630
- Students per teacher
- 19.5:1
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 Jimmy C Draughn High School
How many students attend Jimmy C Draughn High School?
Jimmy C Draughn High School has 661 students enrolled. It is a high school in Valdese, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Jimmy C Draughn High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Jimmy C Draughn High School is 18.9:1, which is 15% higher than the North Carolina average of 16.4:1 and 19% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Jimmy C Draughn High School?
47.7% of students at Jimmy C Draughn High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Jimmy C Draughn High School?
The largest demographic group at Jimmy C Draughn High School is White at 74.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in Valdese, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Jimmy C Draughn High School?
Jimmy C Draughn 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.