Enrollment
186
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Hamilton, MO
Penney High
Federal NCES profile for Penney High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 46/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 291359000580
👥 S:T ratio 63
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 63
📋 Attendance 65
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Penney High earns 46/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 85% of Missouri schools.
- #2 of 4
- public schools in Hamilton · Resource Index
- 46
- Resource Index · Typical
- 9.3:1
- small classes for Missouri
- 36.5%
- free-lunch eligible
Penney High has class sizes smaller than 85% of Missouri schools. Computed live against every Missouri school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Penney High ranks #2 of 4 public schools in Hamilton, MO.
School address
District: Hamilton R-Ii · Missouri
NCES ID 291359000580 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
20.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
9.3:1
vs 12.8:1 Missouri avg
-27% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
36.5%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
-21% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Penney High compares with Missouri and U.S. medians
What stands out at Penney High
Penney High is a mid-sized high school in Hamilton, Missouri, enrolling 186 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 9.3:1, Penney High is leaner than roughly 85% of Missouri schools and 27% under the state's 12.8:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 36.5% lands close to the Missouri typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 186 puts it in the smaller third of Missouri schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 2,313 scored Missouri schools.
Against 323 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #99.
Its student body is predominantly White (93% of enrollment) (diversity index 14/100).
No Advanced Placement courses are reported for this campus in the federal data.
Counselor coverage is strong, about 186 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
14.0% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
Hamilton R-Ii also operates Hamilton Elem. (270 students) and Hamilton Middle (150 students) alongside Penney High.
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 Penney High compares
Penney High on the metrics families compare, against Missouri and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 9.3:1 | ▼ 27% | 12.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 36.5% | ▼ 21% | 46.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 186 | top 72% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
9.3:1
Leaner classes than 92% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
186
Bigger than 18% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
36.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 21% below the Missouri average of 46.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
9.3:1
students per teacher
- 27% below state mean
Top 15% in Missouri - lower ratio than 85% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
14.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$12,307
per pupil, district-wide
- below Missouri avg of $12,931
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 186 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
11
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 8.1 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 92.5%
Hispanic or Latino 4.3%
Two or More 2.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.5%
Largest group: White at 92.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 14.2/100
Simpson diversity index - at 14.2, Penney High is less mixed than the Missouri school average of 31.0.
Programs
AP program Not offered
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Hamilton R-Ii, which includes Penney High.
$12,307
Per student
-5%
vs Missouri
Avg $12,931
-26%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 52.9%
State 33.5%
Federal 13.6%
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 Penney High Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hamilton Elem. | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Hamilton Middle | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Penney High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 270
- Students per teacher
- 9.6:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 150
- Students per teacher
- 12.5:1
- Resource Index
- 53/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Missouri, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~186 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~9.3:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Penney High's federal record.
- Compare Penney High against another school. Compare schools
- Hamilton R-Ii'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 Penney High
How many students attend Penney High?
Penney High has 186 students enrolled. It is a high school in Hamilton, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Penney High?
The student-teacher ratio at Penney High is 9.3:1, which is 27% lower than the Missouri average of 12.8:1 and 41% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Penney High?
36.5% of students at Penney High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Penney High?
The largest demographic group at Penney High is White at 92.5% of enrollment, in Hamilton, MO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Penney High?
Penney High has a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Penney High rank among public schools in Hamilton?
By Resource Investment Index, Penney High ranks #2 of 4 public schools in Hamilton, MO. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Hamilton on the city page.
Is Penney High a good school?
Penney High earns 46/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 85% of Missouri 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 Hamilton R-Ii?
Besides Penney High, Hamilton R-Ii also operates Hamilton Elem. (270 students) and Hamilton Middle (150 students). See the Hamilton R-Ii 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.