Enrollment
207
Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 080435000623
R-5 High School — Grand Junction, CO
Federal NCES profile for R-5 High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 41/100.
👥 Class size 53
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 74
📋 Attendance 0
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: Mesa County Valley School District No. 51 · Colorado
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)
16.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.8:1
vs 16.9:1 Colorado avg
-30% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
55.0%
vs 38.5% Colorado avg
+43% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How R-5 High School compares with Colorado 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
R-5 High School reports 207 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 16.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 11.8:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 30% below the Colorado state mean of 16.9:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 26% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 55.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 43% above the Colorado average and 6% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 132 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 100.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Mesa County Valley School District No. 51 spends $13,239 per pupil district-wide, below the Colorado average of $20,949 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 38.9% from local sources (property taxes), 46.3% from the state, and 14.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D), 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 R-5 High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Colorado state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Colorado | Colorado avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.8:1 | ▼ 30% | 16.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 55.0% | ▲ 43% | 38.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 207 | top 24% | — | — |
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
55.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 43% above the Colorado average of 38.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
11.8:1
students per teacher
— 30% below state mean
Top 13% in Colorado — lower ratio than 87% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
100.0%
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
$13,239
per pupil, district-wide
— below Colorado avg of $20,949
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.6 FTE
Per 132 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 11 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 207 Top 24% in Colorado — larger than 76% of 1,923 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 16.0
Students per teacher 11.8:1 -30% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 55.0% +43% vs state
NCES ID 080435000623
Student demographics
White 51.9%
Hispanic or Latino 40.8%
Two or More 4.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.9%
African American 1.0%
Largest group: White at 51.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP program Not offered
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.6
Students per counselor 132:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 100.0%
In-school suspensions 3
Out-of-school suspensions 11
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mesa County Valley School District No. 51, which includes R-5 High School.
$13,239
Per student
-37%
vs Colorado
Avg $20,949
-32%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 38.9%
State 46.3%
Federal 14.7%
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
- 1,832
- Students per teacher
- 19:1
- Enrollment
- 1,427
- Students per teacher
- 19.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,352
- Students per teacher
- 19.4:1
- Enrollment
- 1,073
- Students per teacher
- 19.7:1
- Enrollment
- 704
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
Similar high schools in Grand Junction
2 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 R-5 High School
How many students attend R-5 High School?
R-5 High School has 207 students enrolled. It is a high school in GRAND JUNCTION, CO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at R-5 High School?
The student-teacher ratio at R-5 High School is 11.8:1, which is 30% lower than the Colorado average of 16.9:1 and 26% 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 R-5 High School?
55.0% of students at R-5 High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of R-5 High School?
The largest demographic group at R-5 High School is White at 51.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in GRAND JUNCTION, CO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for R-5 High School?
R-5 High School has a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.