Enrollment
559
Arkansas · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Malvern, AR
Malvern High School
Federal NCES profile for Malvern High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 51/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 050924001372
👥 S:T ratio 69
📚 AP courses 45
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 25
📋 Attendance 48
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Malvern High School earns 51/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 88% of Arkansas schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Arkansas schools.
- #1 of 9
- public schools in Malvern · Resource Index
- 51
- Resource Index · Higher
- 7.7:1
- small classes for Arkansas
- 52.3%
- free-lunch eligible
Malvern High School has class sizes smaller than 88% of Arkansas schools. Computed live against every Arkansas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Malvern High School ranks #1 of 9 public schools in Malvern, AR.
School address
District: Malvern School District · Arkansas
NCES ID 050924001372 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
73.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
7.7:1
vs 13.6:1 Arkansas avg
-43% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
52.3%
vs 59.2% Arkansas avg
-12% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Malvern High School compares with Arkansas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Malvern High School
Malvern High School is a higher-need, mid-sized high school in Malvern, Arkansas, enrolling 559 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 7.7:1, Malvern High School is leaner than roughly 88% of Arkansas schools and 43% under the state's 13.6:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 52.3% lands close to the Arkansas typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 559 puts it in the larger third of Arkansas schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 1,066 scored Arkansas schools.
Against 246 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #33.
Its student body is led by White (45%) and African American (32%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 67/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 9 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 373 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 20.9% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 23.5% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Malvern School District also operates Malvern Elementary School (781 students) and Wilson Intermediate School (272 students) alongside Malvern High School.
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 Malvern High School compares
Malvern High School on the metrics families compare, against Arkansas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Arkansas | Arkansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 7.7:1 | ▼ 43% | 13.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 52.3% | ▼ 12% | 59.2% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 559 | top 24% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
7.7:1
Leaner classes than 96% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
559
Bigger than 69% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
52.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 12% below the Arkansas average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
7.7:1
students per teacher
- 43% below state mean
Top 12% in Arkansas - lower ratio than 88% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
20.9%
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
$13,071
per pupil, district-wide
- above Arkansas avg of $12,251
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.5 FTE
Per 373 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
40
in-school suspensions + 48 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 7.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 15.7 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 45.1%
African American 31.8%
Hispanic or Latino 12.7%
Two or More 9.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.7%
Asian 0.2%
Largest group: White at 45.1% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 67.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 67.0, Malvern High School is more mixed than the Arkansas school average of 40.4.
Programs
AP courses offered 9
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Malvern School District, which includes Malvern High School.
$13,071
Per student
+7%
vs Arkansas
Avg $12,251
-21%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 37.1%
State 39.4%
Federal 23.5%
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.
How Malvern High School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Malvern Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Wilson Intermediate School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Malvern Junior High School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Malvern High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 781
- Students per teacher
- 17.8:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 272
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 264
- Students per teacher
- 11:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Arkansas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~559 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~7.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Malvern High School's federal record.
- Compare Malvern High School against another school. Compare schools
- Malvern School District'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 Malvern High School
How many students attend Malvern High School?
Malvern High School has 559 students enrolled. It is a high school in Malvern, AR.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Malvern High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Malvern High School is 7.7:1, which is 43% lower than the Arkansas average of 13.6:1 and 51% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Malvern High School?
52.3% of students at Malvern High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arkansas average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Malvern High School?
The largest demographic group at Malvern High School is White at 45.1% of enrollment, in Malvern, AR. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 67.0/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Malvern High School?
Malvern High School has a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (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 Malvern High School rank among public schools in Malvern?
By Resource Investment Index, Malvern High School ranks #1 of 9 public schools in Malvern, AR. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Malvern on the city page.
Is Malvern High School a good school?
Malvern High School earns 51/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 88% of Arkansas schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Arkansas schools. 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 Malvern School District?
Besides Malvern High School, Malvern School District also operates Malvern Elementary School (781 students), Wilson Intermediate School (272 students), and Malvern Junior High School (264 students). See the Malvern School District 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.