Enrollment
1,397
Arizona · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 040752001036
Rio Rico High School — Rio Rico, AZ
Federal NCES profile for Rio Rico High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 16/100.
👥 Class size 0
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 1
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: Santa Cruz Valley Unified District (4458) · Arizona
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)
55.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
25.7:1
vs 17.7:1 Arizona avg
+45% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
60.0%
vs 48.3% Arizona avg
+24% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Rio Rico High School compares with Arizona 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
Rio Rico High School reports 1,397 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 55.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 25.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 45% above the Arizona state mean of 17.7:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 62% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 60.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 24% above the Arizona average and 16% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 1050 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 39.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Santa Cruz Valley Unified District (4458) spends $16,049 per pupil district-wide, above the Arizona average of $15,070 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 28.9% from local sources (property taxes), 50.5% from the state, and 20.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 16/100 (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 Rio Rico High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Arizona state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Arizona | Arizona avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 25.7:1 | ▲ 45% | 17.7:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 60.0% | ▲ 24% | 48.3% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,397 | top 94% | — | — |
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
60.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 24% above the Arizona average of 48.3%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
25.7:1
students per teacher
— 45% above state mean
Top 96% in Arizona — lower ratio than 4% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
39.5%
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
$16,049
per pupil, district-wide
— above Arizona avg of $15,070
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.3 FTE
Per 1050 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 1,397 Top 94% in Arizona — larger than 6% of 2,186 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 55.0
Students per teacher 25.7:1 +45% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 60.0% +24% vs state
NCES ID 040752001036
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 97.1%
White 2.1%
Asian 0.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
African American 0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Two or More 0.1%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 97.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP program Not offered
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.3
Students per counselor 1050:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 39.5%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Santa Cruz Valley Unified District (4458), which includes Rio Rico High School.
$16,049
Per student
+6%
vs Arizona
Avg $15,070
-18%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 28.9%
State 50.5%
Federal 20.6%
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
- 917
- Students per teacher
- 18.3:1
- Enrollment
- 497
- Students per teacher
- 18.9:1
- Enrollment
- 406
- Students per teacher
- 20.4:1
- Enrollment
- 395
- Students per teacher
- 19.7:1
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 Rio Rico High School
How many students attend Rio Rico High School?
Rio Rico High School has 1,397 students enrolled. It is a high school in Rio Rico, AZ.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Rio Rico High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Rio Rico High School is 25.7:1, which is 45% higher than the Arizona average of 17.7:1 and 62% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Rio Rico High School?
60.0% of students at Rio Rico High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arizona average of 48.3%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Rio Rico High School?
The largest demographic group at Rio Rico High School is Hispanic or Latino at 97.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in Rio Rico, AZ.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Rio Rico High School?
Rio Rico High School has a Resource Investment Index of 16/100 (F) 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.