Enrollment
1,921
South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 450390001103
Nation Ford High — Fort Mill, SC
Federal NCES profile for Nation Ford High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 63/100.
👥 Class size 40
📚 AP courses 100
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 36
📋 Attendance 68
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: York 04 · South Carolina
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)
125.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15:1
vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg
+5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
25.8%
vs 74.0% South Carolina avg
-65% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Nation Ford High compares with South Carolina 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
Nation Ford High reports 1,921 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 125.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 5% above the South Carolina state mean of 14.3:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 6% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 25.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 65% below the South Carolina average and 50% below the national baseline. The school offers 22 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 320 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 13.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding York 04 spends $14,621 per pupil district-wide, below the South Carolina average of $17,182 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 48.2% from local sources (property taxes), 44.3% from the state, and 7.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 63/100 (C+), 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 Nation Ford High compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against South Carolina state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs South Carolina | South Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15:1 | ▲ 5% | 14.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 25.8% | ▼ 65% | 74.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,921 | top 98% | — | — |
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
25.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 65% below the South Carolina average of 74.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15:1
students per teacher
— 5% above state mean
Top 63% in South Carolina — lower ratio than 37% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
13.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$14,621
per pupil, district-wide
— below South Carolina avg of $17,182
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors6.0 FTE
Per 320 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
248
in-school suspensions + 82 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 12.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 17.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 1,921 Top 98% in South Carolina — larger than 2% of 1,215 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 125.0
Students per teacher 15:1 +5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 25.8% -65% vs state
NCES ID 450390001103
Student demographics
White 50.3%
Hispanic or Latino 17.8%
African American 15.5%
Asian 9.6%
Two or More 6.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 50.3% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 22
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 6.0
Students per counselor 320:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 13.0%
In-school suspensions 248
Out-of-school suspensions 82
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for York 04, which includes Nation Ford High.
$14,621
Per student
-15%
vs South Carolina
Avg $17,182
-25%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 48.2%
State 44.3%
Federal 7.5%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,115
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,704
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
- Enrollment
- 916
- Students per teacher
- 14.3:1
- Enrollment
- 877
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
- Enrollment
- 815
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
Similar high schools in Fort Mill
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 Nation Ford High
How many students attend Nation Ford High?
Nation Ford High has 1,921 students enrolled. It is a high school in Fort Mill, SC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Nation Ford High?
The student-teacher ratio at Nation Ford High is 15:1, which is 5% higher than the South Carolina average of 14.3:1 and 6% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Nation Ford High?
25.8% of students at Nation Ford High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Nation Ford High?
The largest demographic group at Nation Ford High is White at 50.3%. The school serves a diverse student body in Fort Mill, SC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Nation Ford High?
Nation Ford High has a Resource Investment Index of 63/100 (C+) 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.