Enrollment
1,247
Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 510402001773
Lafayette High — Williamsburg, VA
Federal NCES profile for Lafayette High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 59/100.
👥 Class size 31
📚 AP courses 100
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 50
📋 Attendance 46
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
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)
70.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.3:1
vs 14:1 Virginia avg
+24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
36.6%
vs 59.9% Virginia avg
-39% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Lafayette High compares with Virginia 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
Lafayette High reports 1,247 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 70.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 24% above the Virginia state mean of 14:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 9% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 36.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 39% below the Virginia average and 29% below the national baseline. The school offers 26 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 249 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 21.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools spends $14,988 per pupil district-wide, below the Virginia average of $16,211 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 84.7% from local sources (property taxes), 3.7% from the state, and 11.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 59/100 (C), 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 Lafayette High compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Virginia state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Virginia | Virginia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.3:1 | ▲ 24% | 14:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 36.6% | ▼ 39% | 59.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,247 | top 90% | — | — |
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
36.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 39% below the Virginia average of 59.9%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17.3:1
students per teacher
— 24% above state mean
Top 94% in Virginia — lower ratio than 6% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
21.7%
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
$14,988
per pupil, district-wide
— below Virginia avg of $16,211
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors5.0 FTE
Per 249 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
132
in-school suspensions + 65 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 10.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 15.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 1,247 Top 90% in Virginia — larger than 10% of 1,869 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 70.0
Students per teacher 17.3:1 +24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 36.6% -39% vs state
NCES ID 510402001773
Student demographics
White 47.9%
African American 23.5%
Hispanic or Latino 16.3%
Two or More 8.7%
Asian 3.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 47.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 26
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 5.0
Students per counselor 249:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 21.7%
In-school suspensions 132
Out-of-school suspensions 65
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools, which includes Lafayette High.
$14,988
Per student
-8%
vs Virginia
Avg $16,211
-23%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 84.7%
State 3.7%
Federal 11.5%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,277
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,243
- Students per teacher
- 17.1:1
- Enrollment
- 838
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Enrollment
- 805
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Enrollment
- 704
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
Similar high schools in Williamsburg
3 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) 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 Lafayette High
How many students attend Lafayette High?
Lafayette High has 1,247 students enrolled. It is a high school in Williamsburg, VA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Lafayette High?
The student-teacher ratio at Lafayette High is 17.3:1, which is 24% higher than the Virginia average of 14:1 and 9% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Lafayette High?
36.6% of students at Lafayette High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Virginia average of 59.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Lafayette High?
The largest demographic group at Lafayette High is White at 47.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in Williamsburg, VA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Lafayette High?
Lafayette High has a Resource Investment Index of 59/100 (C) 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.