Enrollment
1,395
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · St Louis, MO
Ladue Horton Watkins High
Federal NCES profile for Ladue Horton Watkins High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 55/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 291782000946
👥 S:T ratio 41
📚 AP courses 100
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 54
📋 Attendance 49
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Ladue Horton Watkins High earns 55/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 78% of Missouri schools. It is also one of the largest schools in Missouri.
- #12 of 26
- high schools in St Louis · Resource Index
- 55
- Resource Index · Higher
- 14.8:1
- large classes for Missouri
- 10.4%
- free-lunch eligible
Ladue Horton Watkins High has class sizes larger than 78% of Missouri schools. Computed live against every Missouri school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Ladue Horton Watkins High ranks #12 of 26 high schools in St Louis, MO.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
94.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.8:1
vs 12.8:1 Missouri avg
+16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
10.4%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
-77% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Ladue Horton Watkins High compares with Missouri and U.S. medians
What stands out at Ladue Horton Watkins High
Ladue Horton Watkins High is a lower-poverty, large high school in St Louis, Missouri, enrolling 1,395 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 14.8:1 puts it in the larger third of Missouri schools by student-teacher ratio.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 10.4% free-meal eligibility runs 77% below the Missouri average.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in Missouri, bigger than 97% of state schools at 1,395 students.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,313 scored Missouri schools.
Against 68 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #36.
Its student body is led by White (51%) and Asian (18%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 67/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 24 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage is strong, about 233 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 20.6% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Ladue also operates Ladue Middle (1,053 students) and Reed Elementary (410 students) alongside Ladue Horton Watkins High.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Ladue Horton Watkins High compares
Ladue Horton Watkins High on the metrics families compare, against Missouri and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.8:1 | ▲ 16% | 12.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 10.4% | ▼ 77% | 46.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 1,395 | top 3% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.8:1
Leaner classes than 49% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
1,395
Bigger than 95% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
10.4%
free-lunch eligible
- 77% below the Missouri average of 46.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
14.8:1
students per teacher
- 16% above state mean
Top 78% in Missouri - lower ratio than 22% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
20.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$14,618
per pupil, district-wide
- above Missouri avg of $12,931
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors6.0 FTE
Per 233 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
5
in-school suspensions + 67 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 5.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 51.3%
Asian 18.3%
African American 17.1%
Two or More 8.0%
Hispanic or Latino 5.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: White at 51.3% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 66.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 66.5, Ladue Horton Watkins High is more mixed than the Missouri school average of 31.0.
Programs
AP courses offered 24
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Ladue, which includes Ladue Horton Watkins High.
$14,618
Per student
+13%
vs Missouri
Avg $12,931
-12%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 94.0%
State 3.3%
Federal 2.7%
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.
How Ladue Horton Watkins High Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ladue Middle | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Reed Elementary | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Conway Elementary | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Old Bonhomme Elementary | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Spoede Elementary | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Ladue Horton Watkins High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,053
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 410
- Students per teacher
- 12.8:1
- Resource Index
- 55/100
- Enrollment
- 392
- Students per teacher
- 12.3:1
- Resource Index
- 55/100
- Enrollment
- 379
- Students per teacher
- 10.8:1
- Resource Index
- 62/100
- Enrollment
- 376
- Students per teacher
- 12.1:1
- Resource Index
- 59/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Missouri, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~1,395 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~14.8:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Ladue Horton Watkins High's federal record.
- Compare Ladue Horton Watkins High against another school. Compare schools
- Ladue's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Ladue Horton Watkins High
How many students attend Ladue Horton Watkins High?
Ladue Horton Watkins High has 1,395 students enrolled. It is a high school in St Louis, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ladue Horton Watkins High?
The student-teacher ratio at Ladue Horton Watkins High is 14.8:1, which is 16% higher than the Missouri average of 12.8:1 and 6% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Ladue Horton Watkins High?
10.4% of students at Ladue Horton Watkins High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Ladue Horton Watkins High?
The largest demographic group at Ladue Horton Watkins High is White at 51.3% of enrollment, in St Louis, MO. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 66.5/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Ladue Horton Watkins High?
Ladue Horton Watkins High has a Resource Investment Index of 55/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Ladue Horton Watkins High rank among high schools in St Louis?
By Resource Investment Index, Ladue Horton Watkins High ranks #12 of 26 high schools in St Louis, MO. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all high schools in St Louis on the city page.
Is Ladue Horton Watkins High a good school?
Ladue Horton Watkins High earns 55/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 78% of Missouri schools. It is also one of the largest schools in Missouri. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Ladue?
Besides Ladue Horton Watkins High, Ladue also operates Ladue Middle (1,053 students), Reed Elementary (410 students), and Conway Elementary (392 students). See the Ladue district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.