Enrollment
1,590
Alabama · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 010258001070
Opelika High School — Opelika, AL
Federal NCES profile for Opelika High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 33/100.
👥 Class size 32
📚 AP courses 55
🌟 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: Opelika City · Alabama
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)
92.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17:1
vs 17.8:1 Alabama avg
-4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
58.3%
vs 58.8% Alabama avg
-1% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Opelika High School compares with Alabama 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
Opelika High School reports 1,590 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 92.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 4% below the Alabama state mean of 17.8:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 7% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 58.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 1% below the Alabama average and 13% above the national baseline. The school offers 11 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 398 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 28.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Opelika City spends $13,791 per pupil district-wide, below the Alabama average of $14,500 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 37.5% from local sources (property taxes), 46.5% from the state, and 16.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 33/100 (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 Opelika High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Alabama state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Alabama | Alabama avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17:1 | ▼ 4% | 17.8:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 58.3% | ▼ 1% | 58.8% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,590 | top 99% | — | — |
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
58.3%
free-lunch eligible
— 1% below the Alabama average of 58.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
17:1
students per teacher
— 4% below state mean
Top 39% in Alabama — lower ratio than 61% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
28.9%
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
$13,791
per pupil, district-wide
— below Alabama avg of $14,500
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 398 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
281
in-school suspensions + 67 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 17.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 21.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 1,590 Top 99% in Alabama — larger than 1% of 1,369 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 92.0
Students per teacher 17:1 -4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 58.3% -1% vs state
NCES ID 010258001070
Student demographics
African American 54.4%
White 27.0%
Hispanic or Latino 15.3%
Two or More 1.6%
Asian 0.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: African American at 54.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 11
Counselors (FTE) 4.0
Students per counselor 398:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 28.9%
In-school suspensions 281
Out-of-school suspensions 67
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Opelika City, which includes Opelika High School.
$13,791
Per student
-5%
vs Alabama
Avg $14,500
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 37.5%
State 46.5%
Federal 16.1%
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
- 812
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
- Enrollment
- 480
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Enrollment
- 464
- Students per teacher
- 19.8:1
- Enrollment
- 435
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
- Enrollment
- 414
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
Similar high schools in Opelika
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 Opelika High School
How many students attend Opelika High School?
Opelika High School has 1,590 students enrolled. It is a high school in Opelika, AL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Opelika High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Opelika High School is 17:1, which is 4% lower than the Alabama average of 17.8:1 and 7% higher than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Opelika High School?
58.3% of students at Opelika High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Alabama average of 58.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Opelika High School?
The largest demographic group at Opelika High School is African American at 54.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Opelika, AL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Opelika High School?
Opelika High School has a Resource Investment Index of 33/100 (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.