Enrollment
1,238
Maryland · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Ridgely, MD
North Caroline High School
Federal NCES profile for North Caroline High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 44/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 240018000523
👥 S:T ratio 34
📚 AP courses 80
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 38
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
North Caroline High School earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 76% of Maryland schools.
- 44
- Resource Index · Typical
- 16.5:1
- large classes for Maryland
- 56.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 1,238
- students enrolled
North Caroline High School has class sizes larger than 76% of Maryland schools. Computed live against every Maryland school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Caroline County Public Schools · Maryland
NCES ID 240018000523 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
75.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.5:1
vs 14.5:1 Maryland avg
+14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
56.0%
vs 49.0% Maryland avg
+14% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How North Caroline High School compares with Maryland and U.S. medians
What stands out at North Caroline High School
North Caroline High School is a higher-need, large high school in Ridgely, Maryland, enrolling 1,238 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 16.5:1 puts it in the larger third of Maryland schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 56.0% lands close to the Maryland typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in Maryland, bigger than 91% of state schools at 1,238 students.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,382 scored Maryland schools.
Against 126 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #77.
Its student body is led by White (55%) and Hispanic or Latino (25%) (diversity index 61/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 16 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 310 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 53.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Caroline County Public Schools also operates Greensboro Elementary School (840 students) and Lockerman Middle School (827 students) alongside North Caroline High 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 North Caroline High School compares
North Caroline High School on the metrics families compare, against Maryland and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Maryland | Maryland avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.5:1 | ▲ 14% | 14.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 56.0% | ▲ 14% | 49.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 1,238 | top 9% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
16.5:1
Leaner classes than 34% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
1,238
Bigger than 94% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
56.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 14% above the Maryland average of 49.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
16.5:1
students per teacher
- 14% above state mean
Top 76% in Maryland - lower ratio than 24% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
53.2%
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
$18,641
per pupil, district-wide
- below Maryland avg of $20,446
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 310 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
20
in-school suspensions + 94 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 9.2 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
White 55.4%
Hispanic or Latino 24.8%
African American 11.1%
Two or More 7.4%
Asian 1.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: White at 55.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 61.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 61.4, North Caroline High School is more mixed than the Maryland school average of 52.3.
Programs
AP courses offered 16
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Caroline County Public Schools, which includes North Caroline High School.
$18,641
Per student
-9%
vs Maryland
Avg $20,446
+12%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 19.1%
State 68.1%
Federal 12.8%
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.
How North Caroline High School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greensboro Elementary School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Lockerman Middle School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Denton Elementary School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Colonel Richardson High School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Ridgely Elementary School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to North Caroline High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 840
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 827
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 596
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 528
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 433
- Students per teacher
- 13.1:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Maryland, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~1,238 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~16.5:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on North Caroline High School's federal record.
- Compare North Caroline High School against another school. Compare schools
- Caroline County Public Schools's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
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 North Caroline High School
How many students attend North Caroline High School?
North Caroline High School has 1,238 students enrolled. It is a high school in Ridgely, MD.
What is the student-teacher ratio at North Caroline High School?
The student-teacher ratio at North Caroline High School is 16.5:1, which is 14% higher than the Maryland average of 14.5:1 and 5% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at North Caroline High School?
56.0% of students at North Caroline High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Maryland average of 49.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of North Caroline High School?
The largest demographic group at North Caroline High School is White at 55.4% of enrollment, in Ridgely, MD. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 61.4/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for North Caroline High School?
North Caroline High School has a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (typical 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).
Is North Caroline High School a good school?
North Caroline High School earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 76% of Maryland 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 Caroline County Public Schools?
Besides North Caroline High School, Caroline County Public Schools also operates Greensboro Elementary School (840 students), Lockerman Middle School (827 students), and Denton Elementary School (596 students). See the Caroline County Public Schools district page for the complete list.
Related tools
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.