Enrollment
1,963
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 370010402520 Charter school
Piedmont Community Charter School — Gastonia, NC
Federal NCES profile for Piedmont Community Charter School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 35/100.
👥 Class size 34
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 2
📋 Attendance 75
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: Piedmont Community Charter · North Carolina
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)
116.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.4:1
vs 16.4:1 North Carolina avg
+0% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Piedmont Community Charter School compares with North Carolina 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
Piedmont Community Charter School reports 1,963 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 116.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 0% above the North Carolina state mean of 16.4:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 3% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Counselor coverage works out to roughly 491 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 10.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Piedmont Community Charter spends $9,880 per pupil district-wide, below the North Carolina average of $13,042 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 25.8% from local sources (property taxes), 62.0% from the state, and 12.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F), calculated from 4 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 Piedmont Community Charter School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against North Carolina state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.4:1 | ▼ 0% | 16.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Enrollment | 1,963 | top 98% | — | — |
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.
Staffing depth
16.4:1
students per teacher
— 0% above state mean
Top 68% in North Carolina — lower ratio than 32% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
10.1%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$9,880
per pupil, district-wide
— below North Carolina avg of $13,042
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 491 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
57
in-school suspensions + 147 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
Overview
Enrollment 1,963 Top 98% in North Carolina — larger than 2% of 2,703 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 116.0
Students per teacher 16.4:1 +0% vs state
Free-lunch eligible —
NCES ID 370010402520
Student demographics
White 48.8%
Hispanic or Latino 23.4%
African American 19.5%
Two or More 6.8%
Asian 1.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: White at 48.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 2
Counselors (FTE) 4.0
Students per counselor 491:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 10.1%
In-school suspensions 57
Out-of-school suspensions 147
Expulsions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Piedmont Community Charter, which includes Piedmont Community Charter School.
$9,880
Per student
-24%
vs North Carolina
Avg $13,042
-49%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 25.8%
State 62.0%
Federal 12.2%
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.
Similar other schools in Gastonia
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Pleasant Ridge Elementary
Standard public school
887 students 15.5:1 students per teacher
W a Bess Elementary School
Standard public school
674 students 17.3:1 students per teacher
H H Beam Elementary
Standard public school
591 students 18.9:1 students per teacher
Woodhill Elementary
Standard public school
577 students 15.4:1 students per teacher
Gardner Park Elementary
Standard public school
560 students 13.7:1 students per teacher
Sherwood Elementary
Standard public school
553 students 17.7:1 students per teacher
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 Piedmont Community Charter School
How many students attend Piedmont Community Charter School?
Piedmont Community Charter School has 1,963 students enrolled. It is a other school in Gastonia, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Piedmont Community Charter School?
The student-teacher ratio at Piedmont Community Charter School is 16.4:1, which is 0% higher than the North Carolina average of 16.4:1 and 3% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Piedmont Community Charter School?
The largest demographic group at Piedmont Community Charter School is White at 48.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Gastonia, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Piedmont Community Charter School?
Piedmont Community Charter School has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F) based on 4 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.