Enrollment
1,143
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 370012302597 Charter school
Kipp Gaston College Preparatory — Gaston, NC
Federal NCES profile for Kipp Gaston College Preparatory, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 19/100.
👥 Class size 26
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 21
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: Kipp Gaston College Preparatory · 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)
69.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.6:1
vs 16.4:1 North Carolina avg
+13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
97.7%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
+48% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Kipp Gaston College Preparatory 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
Kipp Gaston College Preparatory reports 1,143 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 69.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 18.6:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 13% 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 17% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 97.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 48% above the North Carolina average and 89% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 1143 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 31.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Kipp Gaston College Preparatory spends $13,159 per pupil district-wide, above the North Carolina average of $13,042 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 6.2% from local sources (property taxes), 77.3% from the state, and 16.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 19/100 (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 Kipp Gaston College Preparatory 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 | 18.6:1 | ▲ 13% | 16.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 97.7% | ▲ 48% | 66.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,143 | top 93% | — | — |
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
97.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 48% above 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
18.6:1
students per teacher
— 13% above state mean
Top 86% in North Carolina — lower ratio than 14% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
31.5%
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
$13,159
per pupil, district-wide
— above North Carolina avg of $13,042
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 1143 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 144 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 12.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 6 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,143 Top 93% in North Carolina — larger than 7% of 2,703 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 69.0
Students per teacher 18.6:1 +13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 97.7% +48% vs state
NCES ID 370012302597
Student demographics
African American 82.2%
Hispanic or Latino 7.9%
White 4.5%
Two or More 4.5%
Asian 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Largest group: African American at 82.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 10
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 1143:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 31.5%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 144
Expulsions 6
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Kipp Gaston College Preparatory, which includes Kipp Gaston College Preparatory.
$13,159
Per student
+1%
vs North Carolina
Avg $13,042
-32%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 6.2%
State 77.3%
Federal 16.5%
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 other schools in Gaston
1 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
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 Kipp Gaston College Preparatory
How many students attend Kipp Gaston College Preparatory?
Kipp Gaston College Preparatory has 1,143 students enrolled. It is a other school in Gaston, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Kipp Gaston College Preparatory?
The student-teacher ratio at Kipp Gaston College Preparatory is 18.6:1, which is 13% higher than the North Carolina average of 16.4:1 and 17% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Kipp Gaston College Preparatory?
97.7% of students at Kipp Gaston College Preparatory are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Kipp Gaston College Preparatory?
The largest demographic group at Kipp Gaston College Preparatory is African American at 82.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in Gaston, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Kipp Gaston College Preparatory?
Kipp Gaston College Preparatory has a Resource Investment Index of 19/100 (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.