Enrollment
51
Kentucky · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 210411002285
Mercer Central — Harrodsburg, KY
Federal NCES profile for Mercer Central, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 35/100.
👥 Class size 10
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 80
📋 Attendance 7
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: Mercer County · Kentucky
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)
2.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
22.5:1
vs 15.6:1 Kentucky avg
+44% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
77.8%
vs 59.2% Kentucky avg
+31% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Mercer Central compares with Kentucky 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
Mercer Central reports 51 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 2.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 22.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 44% above the Kentucky state mean of 15.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 42% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 77.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 31% above the Kentucky average and 50% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 102 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 37.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Mercer County spends $13,323 per pupil district-wide, below the Kentucky average of $15,105 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 31.5% from local sources (property taxes), 52.8% from the state, and 15.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F), 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 Mercer Central compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Kentucky state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Kentucky | Kentucky avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 22.5:1 | ▲ 44% | 15.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 77.8% | ▲ 31% | 59.2% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 51 | top 10% | — | — |
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
77.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 31% above the Kentucky average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
22.5:1
students per teacher
— 44% above state mean
Top 97% in Kentucky — lower ratio than 3% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
37.3%
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
$13,323
per pupil, district-wide
— below Kentucky avg of $15,105
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.5 FTE
Per 102 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 9.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 51 Top 10% in Kentucky — larger than 90% of 1,395 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 2.0
Students per teacher 22.5:1 +44% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 77.8% +31% vs state
NCES ID 210411002285
Student demographics
White 72.5%
Hispanic or Latino 21.6%
Two or More 3.9%
African American 2.0%
Largest group: White at 72.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP program Not offered
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.5
Students per counselor 102:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 37.3%
In-school suspensions 3
Out-of-school suspensions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mercer County, which includes Mercer Central.
$13,323
Per student
-12%
vs Kentucky
Avg $15,105
-32%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 31.5%
State 52.8%
Federal 15.8%
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
- 748
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Enrollment
- 713
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Enrollment
- 581
- Students per teacher
- 16.1:1
- Enrollment
- 570
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
- Enrollment
- 11
- Students per teacher
- 6:1
Similar high schools in Harrodsburg
1 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 Mercer Central
How many students attend Mercer Central?
Mercer Central has 51 students enrolled. It is a high school in Harrodsburg, KY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Mercer Central?
The student-teacher ratio at Mercer Central is 22.5:1, which is 44% higher than the Kentucky average of 15.6:1 and 42% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Mercer Central?
77.8% of students at Mercer Central are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kentucky average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Mercer Central?
The largest demographic group at Mercer Central is White at 72.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in Harrodsburg, KY.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Mercer Central?
Mercer Central has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.