High school (grades 9-12) · Mclean, VA

Mclean High

Federal NCES profile for Mclean High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 56/100.

2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 510126000538
0/100100/10056/100
👥 S:T ratio
30
📚 AP courses
100
🌟 Gifted program
30
🎓 Counselors
51
📋 Attendance
70
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Mclean High earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 94% of Virginia schools. It is also one of the largest schools in Virginia.

#6 of 8
public schools in Mclean · Resource Index
56
Resource Index · Higher
17.5:1
large classes for Virginia
10.2%
free-lunch eligible

Mclean High has class sizes larger than 94% of Virginia schools. Computed live against every Virginia school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Mclean High ranks #6 of 8 public schools in Mclean, VA.

Enrollment

2,428

Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

139.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

17.5:1

vs 13.9:1 Virginia avg

+26% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

10.2%

vs 57.6% Virginia avg

-82% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Mclean High compares with Virginia and U.S. medians

Larger classes than state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Mclean High

Mclean High is a lower-poverty, large high school in Mclean, Virginia, enrolling 2,428 students.

Class loads run heavy: 17.5:1 is larger than about 94% of Virginia schools and 26% above the 13.9:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.

Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 10.2% free-meal eligibility runs 82% below the Virginia average.

By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in Virginia, bigger than 99% of state schools at 2,428 students.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,868 scored Virginia schools.

Against 42 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #28.

Its student body is led by White (47%) and Asian (27%) (diversity index 68/100).

On the academic-pipeline side it reports 29 Advanced Placement courses.

Counselor coverage is strong, about 243 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.

12.1% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.

The surrounding Fairfax County Public Schools spends $17,977 per pupil, 23% above the Virginia average, a better-resourced district than most.

The federal civil-rights collection also records 1 expulsion at this campus for 2021-22.

Fairfax County Public Schools also operates Lake Braddock Secondary (4,411 students) and Robinson Secondary (3,710 students) alongside Mclean 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 Mclean High compares

Mclean High on the metrics families compare, against Virginia and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Virginia Virginia avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 17.5:1 ▲ 26% 13.9:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 10.2% ▼ 82% 57.6% 51.7%
Enrollment 2,428 top 1% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

17.5:1
Leaner classes than 27% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
2,428
Bigger than 99% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
10.2%
free-lunch eligible - 82% below the Virginia average of 57.6%
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
17.5:1
students per teacher - 26% above state mean
Top 94% in Virginia - lower ratio than 6% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
12.1%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$17,977
per pupil, district-wide - above Virginia avg of $14,649
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors10.0 FTE
Per 243 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
62
in-school suspensions + 27 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.

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 46.5%
Asian 26.9%
Hispanic or Latino 14.8%
Two or More 7.1%
African American 4.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%

Largest group: White at 46.5% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 68.3/100

Simpson diversity index - at 68.3, Mclean High is more mixed than the Virginia school average of 53.7.

Programs

AP courses offered 29

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Fairfax County Public Schools, which includes Mclean High.

$17,977
Per student
+23%
vs Virginia
Avg $14,649
+8%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 66.6%
State 23.3%
Federal 10.1%

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 Mclean High Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Lake Braddock Secondary Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Robinson Secondary Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Hayfield Secondary Larger Higher economic need Similar S:T ratio
Chantilly High Similar size Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
West Springfield High Similar size Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Mclean High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Fairfax County Public Schools · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar high schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Virginia, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Mclean High's federal record.

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 Mclean High

How many students attend Mclean High?

Mclean High has 2,428 students enrolled. It is a high school in Mclean, VA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Mclean High?

The student-teacher ratio at Mclean High is 17.5:1, which is 26% higher than the Virginia average of 13.9:1 and 11% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Mclean High?

10.2% of students at Mclean High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Virginia average of 57.6%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Mclean High?

The largest demographic group at Mclean High is White at 46.5% of enrollment, in Mclean, VA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 68.3/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Mclean High?

Mclean High has a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (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 Mclean High rank among public schools in Mclean?

By Resource Investment Index, Mclean High ranks #6 of 8 public schools in Mclean, VA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Mclean on the city page.

Is Mclean High a good school?

Mclean High earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 94% of Virginia schools. It is also one of the largest schools in Virginia. 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 Fairfax County Public Schools?

Besides Mclean High, Fairfax County Public Schools also operates Lake Braddock Secondary (4,411 students), Robinson Secondary (3,710 students), and Hayfield Secondary (3,256 students). See the Fairfax County Public Schools district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.