Other / mixed grade configuration · Charlotte, NC

Metro School

Federal NCES profile for Metro School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 37/100.

2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 370297001241
0/100100/10037/100
👥 S:T ratio
69
🌟 Gifted program
30
🎓 Counselors
48
📋 Attendance
0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Metro School earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 97% of North Carolina schools.

#42 of 70
schools in Charlotte · Resource Index
37
Resource Index · Typical
7.8:1
small classes for North Carolina
73.4%
free-lunch eligible

Metro School has class sizes smaller than 97% of North Carolina schools. Computed live against every North Carolina school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Metro School ranks #42 of 70 schools in Charlotte, NC.

Enrollment

258

North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

33.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

7.8:1

vs 15.8:1 North Carolina avg

-51% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

73.4%

vs 66.0% North Carolina avg

+11% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Metro School compares with North Carolina and U.S. medians

Smaller 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 Metro School

Metro School is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Charlotte, North Carolina, enrolling 258 students.

Classes run notably small here: at 7.8:1, Metro School is leaner than roughly 97% of North Carolina schools and 51% under the state's 15.8:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.

Its free-meal eligibility rate of 73.4% lands close to the North Carolina typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.

Enrollment of 258 puts it in the smaller third of North Carolina schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,698 scored North Carolina schools.

Among 120 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need North Carolina schools statewide, it ranks #102, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is led by African American (46%) and Hispanic or Latino (28%) (diversity index 68/100).

Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 258 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 49.6% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Its district draws 15.6% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Among Charlotte's public schools, it stands alongside Sugar Creek Charter (1,591 students): Metro School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (7.8:1 vs 30:1).

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools also operates Myers Park High School (3,225 students) and Ardrey Kell High School (3,036 students) alongside Metro 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 Metro School compares

Metro School on the metrics families compare, against North Carolina and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs North Carolina North Carolina avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 7.8:1 ▼ 51% 15.8:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 73.4% ▲ 11% 66.0% 51.7%
Enrollment 258 top 82% - -

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

7.8:1
Leaner classes than 95% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
258
Bigger than 26% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
73.4%
free-lunch eligible - 11% above the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
7.8:1
students per teacher - 51% below state mean
Top 3% in North Carolina - lower ratio than 97% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
49.6%
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
$11,853
per pupil, district-wide - below North Carolina avg of $12,017
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 258 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 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

African American 45.7%
Hispanic or Latino 28.3%
White 17.8%
Asian 5.0%
Two or More 2.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%

Largest group: African American at 45.7% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 67.6/100

Simpson diversity index - at 67.6, Metro School is more mixed than the North Carolina school average of 56.1.

Programs

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, which includes Metro School.

$11,853
Per student
-1%
vs North Carolina
Avg $12,017
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 32.2%
State 52.1%
Federal 15.6%

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 Metro School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Myers Park High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Ardrey Kell High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
South Mecklenburg High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
William Amos Hough High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
East Mecklenburg High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio

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

Other Schools in This District

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar other schools in Charlotte

6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.

Similar other schools statewide

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

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Metro School'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 Metro School

How many students attend Metro School?

Metro School has 258 students enrolled. It is a special-education school in Charlotte, NC.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Metro School?

The student-teacher ratio at Metro School is 7.8:1, which is 51% lower than the North Carolina average of 15.8:1 and 50% 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 Metro School?

73.4% of students at Metro School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Metro School?

The largest demographic group at Metro School is African American at 45.7% of enrollment, in Charlotte, NC. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 67.6/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Metro School?

Metro School has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).

How does Metro School rank among schools in Charlotte?

By Resource Investment Index, Metro School ranks #42 of 70 schools in Charlotte, NC. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Charlotte on the city page.

Is Metro School a good school?

Metro School earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 97% of North Carolina 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 Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools?

Besides Metro School, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools also operates Myers Park High School (3,225 students), Ardrey Kell High School (3,036 students), and South Mecklenburg High School (2,534 students). See the Charlotte-Mecklenburg 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.