Enrollment
787
Mississippi · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 280273001127
New Hope High School — Columbus, MS
Federal NCES profile for New Hope High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 25/100.
👥 Class size 40
📚 AP courses 5
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 21
📋 Attendance 28
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: Lowndes Co School Dist · Mississippi
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)
54.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.9:1
vs 13.4:1 Mississippi avg
+11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
59.9%
vs 80.5% Mississippi avg
-26% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How New Hope High School compares with Mississippi 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
New Hope High School reports 787 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 54.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 11% above the Mississippi state mean of 13.4:1, 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: 59.9% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 26% below the Mississippi average and 16% above the national baseline. The school offers 1 Advanced Placement course, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 394 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 29.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Lowndes Co School Dist spends $11,562 per pupil district-wide, below the Mississippi average of $13,402 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 44.4% from local sources (property taxes), 39.5% from the state, and 16.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 25/100 (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 New Hope High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Mississippi state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Mississippi | Mississippi avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.9:1 | ▲ 11% | 13.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 59.9% | ▼ 26% | 80.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 787 | top 86% | — | — |
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
59.9%
free-lunch eligible
— 26% below the Mississippi average of 80.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.9:1
students per teacher
— 11% above state mean
Top 77% in Mississippi — lower ratio than 23% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
29.0%
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
$11,562
per pupil, district-wide
— below Mississippi avg of $13,402
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 394 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
43
in-school suspensions + 52 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 12.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 787 Top 86% in Mississippi — larger than 14% of 877 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 54.0
Students per teacher 14.9:1 +11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 59.9% -26% vs state
NCES ID 280273001127
Student demographics
White 50.1%
African American 45.4%
Two or More 2.4%
Hispanic or Latino 1.3%
Asian 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: White at 50.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 1
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 394:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 29.0%
In-school suspensions 43
Out-of-school suspensions 52
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Lowndes Co School Dist, which includes New Hope High School.
$11,562
Per student
-14%
vs Mississippi
Avg $13,402
-41%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 44.4%
State 39.5%
Federal 16.2%
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
- 1,191
- Students per teacher
- 12.4:1
- Enrollment
- 1,070
- Students per teacher
- 13.1:1
- Enrollment
- 640
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Enrollment
- 604
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
- Enrollment
- 487
- Students per teacher
- 14.6:1
Similar high schools in Columbus
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 New Hope High School
How many students attend New Hope High School?
New Hope High School has 787 students enrolled. It is a high school in COLUMBUS, MS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at New Hope High School?
The student-teacher ratio at New Hope High School is 14.9:1, which is 11% higher than the Mississippi average of 13.4:1 and 6% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at New Hope High School?
59.9% of students at New Hope High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Mississippi average of 80.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of New Hope High School?
The largest demographic group at New Hope High School is White at 50.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in COLUMBUS, MS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for New Hope High School?
New Hope High School has a Resource Investment Index of 25/100 (F) 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.