Enrollment
860
Kentucky · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 210465001154
Paducah Tilghman High School — Paducah, KY
Federal NCES profile for Paducah Tilghman High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 54/100.
👥 Class size 40
📚 AP courses 90
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 43
📋 Attendance 26
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: Paducah Independent · Kentucky
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)
58.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.1:1
vs 15.6:1 Kentucky avg
-3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
62.6%
vs 59.2% Kentucky avg
+6% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Paducah Tilghman High School compares with Kentucky 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
Paducah Tilghman High School reports 860 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 58.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 3% below the Kentucky state mean of 15.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 5% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 62.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 6% above the Kentucky average and 21% above the national baseline. The school offers 18 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 287 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 29.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Paducah Independent spends $18,277 per pupil district-wide, above the Kentucky average of $15,105 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 29.0% from local sources (property taxes), 44.9% from the state, and 26.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 54/100 (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 Paducah Tilghman High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Kentucky state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Kentucky | Kentucky avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.1:1 | ▼ 3% | 15.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 62.6% | ▲ 6% | 59.2% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 860 | top 91% | — | — |
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
62.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 6% above the Kentucky average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.1:1
students per teacher
— 3% below state mean
Top 49% in Kentucky — lower ratio than 51% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
29.7%
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
$18,277
per pupil, district-wide
— above Kentucky avg of $15,105
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 287 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
242
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 28.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 28.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 860 Top 91% in Kentucky — larger than 9% of 1,395 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 58.0
Students per teacher 15.1:1 -3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 62.6% +6% vs state
NCES ID 210465001154
Student demographics
African American 41.2%
White 39.4%
Two or More 11.3%
Hispanic or Latino 7.4%
Asian 0.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: African American at 41.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 18
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.0
Students per counselor 287:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 29.7%
In-school suspensions 242
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Paducah Independent, which includes Paducah Tilghman High School.
$18,277
Per student
+21%
vs Kentucky
Avg $15,105
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 29.0%
State 44.9%
Federal 26.1%
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
- 632
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Enrollment
- 615
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Enrollment
- 369
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Enrollment
- 334
- Students per teacher
- 11.9:1
- Enrollment
- 251
- Students per teacher
- 14.6:1
Similar high schools in Paducah
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 Paducah Tilghman High School
How many students attend Paducah Tilghman High School?
Paducah Tilghman High School has 860 students enrolled. It is a high school in Paducah, KY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Paducah Tilghman High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Paducah Tilghman High School is 15.1:1, which is 3% lower than the Kentucky average of 15.6:1 and 5% lower 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 Paducah Tilghman High School?
62.6% of students at Paducah Tilghman High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kentucky average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Paducah Tilghman High School?
The largest demographic group at Paducah Tilghman High School is African American at 41.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in Paducah, KY.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Paducah Tilghman High School?
Paducah Tilghman High School has a Resource Investment Index of 54/100 (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.