Enrollment
1,260
Mississippi · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 280279001220
Madison Central High School — Madison, MS
Federal NCES profile for Madison Central High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 43/100.
👥 Class size 41
📚 AP courses 80
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 37
📋 Attendance 25
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: Madison Co School Dist · Mississippi
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)
85.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.7:1
vs 13.4:1 Mississippi avg
+10% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
20.1%
vs 80.5% Mississippi avg
-75% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Madison Central High School compares with Mississippi 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
Madison Central High School reports 1,260 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 85.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 10% above the Mississippi state mean of 13.4:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 8% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 20.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 75% below the Mississippi average and 61% below the national baseline. The school offers 16 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 315 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 30.2% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Madison Co School Dist spends $11,926 per pupil district-wide, below the Mississippi average of $13,402 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 48.5% from local sources (property taxes), 40.6% from the state, and 10.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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 Madison Central High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Mississippi state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Mississippi | Mississippi avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.7:1 | ▲ 10% | 13.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 20.1% | ▼ 75% | 80.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,260 | top 97% | — | — |
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
20.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 75% below the Mississippi average of 80.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
14.7:1
students per teacher
— 10% above state mean
Top 73% in Mississippi — lower ratio than 27% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
30.2%
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
$11,926
per pupil, district-wide
— below Mississippi avg of $13,402
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 315 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
187
in-school suspensions + 89 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 14.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 21.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 5 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,260 Top 97% in Mississippi — larger than 3% of 877 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 85.0
Students per teacher 14.7:1 +10% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 20.1% -75% vs state
NCES ID 280279001220
Student demographics
White 57.7%
African American 28.8%
Asian 8.2%
Hispanic or Latino 3.3%
Two or More 1.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: White at 57.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 16
Counselors (FTE) 4.0
Students per counselor 315:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 30.2%
In-school suspensions 187
Out-of-school suspensions 89
Expulsions 5
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Madison Co School Dist, which includes Madison Central High School.
$11,926
Per student
-11%
vs Mississippi
Avg $13,402
-39%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 48.5%
State 40.6%
Federal 10.9%
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
- 1,411
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Enrollment
- 1,180
- Students per teacher
- 12:1
- Enrollment
- 1,008
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Enrollment
- 995
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Enrollment
- 980
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
Similar high schools in Madison
2 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 Madison Central High School
How many students attend Madison Central High School?
Madison Central High School has 1,260 students enrolled. It is a high school in Madison, MS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Madison Central High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Madison Central High School is 14.7:1, which is 10% higher than the Mississippi average of 13.4:1 and 8% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Madison Central High School?
20.1% of students at Madison Central High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Mississippi average of 80.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Madison Central High School?
The largest demographic group at Madison Central High School is White at 57.7%. The school serves a diverse student body in Madison, MS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Madison Central High School?
Madison Central High School has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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.