Enrollment
2,197
Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 510313001857
Potomac High — Dumfries, VA
Federal NCES profile for Potomac High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 36/100.
👥 Class size 34
📚 AP courses 55
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 12
📋 Attendance 8
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 →
The verdict
Potomac High earns an F Resource Investment Index (36/100), with class sizes larger than 89% of Virginia schools.
- F
- Resource Index · 36/100
- 16.5:1
- large classes for Virginia
- 45.7%
- free-lunch eligible
- 2,197
- students enrolled
School address
District: Prince William County Public Schools · Virginia
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)
125.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.5:1
vs 14:1 Virginia avg
+18% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
45.7%
vs 59.9% Virginia avg
-24% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Potomac High compares with Virginia 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
Potomac High reports 2,197 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 125.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 18% above the Virginia state mean of 14:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 4% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 45.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 24% below the Virginia average and 12% below the national baseline. The school offers 11 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 439 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 36.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Prince William County Public Schools spends $15,984 per pupil district-wide, below the Virginia average of $16,211 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 47.2% from local sources (property taxes), 44.1% from the state, and 8.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 36/100 (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 Potomac High compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Virginia state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Virginia | Virginia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.5:1 | ▲ 18% | 14:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 45.7% | ▼ 24% | 59.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 2,197 | top 98% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
Class size vs. every US school
Students per teacher (lower means more individual attention)
17 smaller classes than 35% of 92,598 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25
School size vs. every US school
Total enrollment — where this school sits by size (neither large nor small is 'better')
2,197 larger than 99% of 95,891 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 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
45.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 24% below the Virginia average of 59.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
16.5:1
students per teacher
— 18% above state mean
Top 89% in Virginia — lower ratio than 11% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
36.6%
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
$15,984
per pupil, district-wide
— below Virginia avg of $16,211
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors5.0 FTE
Per 439 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
5
in-school suspensions + 277 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 12.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 2,197 Top 98% in Virginia — larger than 2% of 1,869 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 125.0
Students per teacher 16.5:1 +18% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 45.7% -24% vs state
NCES ID 510313001857
Student demographics
African American 43.5%
Hispanic or Latino 31.0%
Asian 10.3%
White 9.1%
Two or More 5.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: African American at 43.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 11
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 5.0
Students per counselor 439:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 36.6%
In-school suspensions 5
Out-of-school suspensions 277
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Prince William County Public Schools, which includes Potomac High.
$15,984
Per student
-1%
vs Virginia
Avg $16,211
-18%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 47.2%
State 44.1%
Federal 8.6%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,956
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
- Enrollment
- 2,898
- Students per teacher
- 17.5:1
- Enrollment
- 2,661
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Enrollment
- 2,648
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Enrollment
- 2,524
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
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 Potomac High
How many students attend Potomac High?
Potomac High has 2,197 students enrolled. It is a high school in Dumfries, VA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Potomac High?
The student-teacher ratio at Potomac High is 16.5:1, which is 18% higher than the Virginia average of 14:1 and 4% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Potomac High?
45.7% of students at Potomac High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Virginia average of 59.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Potomac High?
The largest demographic group at Potomac High is African American at 43.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in Dumfries, VA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Potomac High?
Potomac High has a Resource Investment Index of 36/100 (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.