Enrollment
384
Tennessee · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 470369002627
Rutherford County Virtual School — Smyrna, TN
Federal NCES profile for Rutherford County Virtual School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 56/100.
👥 Class size 0
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 62
📋 Attendance 91
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: Rutherford County · Tennessee
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)
13.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
27.2:1
vs 15.6:1 Tennessee avg
+74% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Rutherford County Virtual School compares with Tennessee 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
Rutherford County Virtual School reports 384 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 13.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 27.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 74% above the Tennessee state mean of 15.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 71% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Counselor coverage works out to roughly 192 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 3.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Rutherford County spends $11,822 per pupil district-wide, below the Tennessee average of $12,324 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 41.9% from local sources (property taxes), 45.4% from the state, and 12.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (C), 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 Rutherford County Virtual School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Tennessee state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Tennessee | Tennessee avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 27.2:1 | ▲ 74% | 15.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Enrollment | 384 | top 37% | — | — |
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
27.2:1
students per teacher
— 74% above state mean
Top 98% in Tennessee — lower ratio than 2% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
3.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$11,822
per pupil, district-wide
— below Tennessee avg of $12,324
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 192 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 384 Top 37% in Tennessee — larger than 63% of 1,844 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 13.0
Students per teacher 27.2:1 +74% vs state
Free-lunch eligible —
NCES ID 470369002627
Student demographics
White 63.3%
African American 15.6%
Hispanic or Latino 13.5%
Two or More 4.7%
Asian 2.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 63.3% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 1
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 192:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 3.6%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Rutherford County, which includes Rutherford County Virtual School.
$11,822
Per student
-4%
vs Tennessee
Avg $12,324
-39%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 41.9%
State 45.4%
Federal 12.7%
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
- 2,474
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
- Enrollment
- 2,301
- Students per teacher
- 17.7:1
- Enrollment
- 2,275
- Students per teacher
- 13.4:1
- Enrollment
- 2,266
- Students per teacher
- 17.5:1
- Enrollment
- 2,126
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
Similar other schools in Smyrna
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Rocky Fork Elementary School
Standard public school
905 students 16.6:1 students per teacher
John Colemon Elementary
Standard public school
861 students 14.8:1 students per teacher
Cedar Grove Elementary
Standard public school
856 students 12.7:1 students per teacher
Stewartsboro Elementary
Standard public school
854 students 15.6:1 students per teacher
David Youree Elementary
Standard public school
705 students 15.1:1 students per teacher
Smyrna Elementary
Standard public school
646 students 13.7:1 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 Rutherford County Virtual School
How many students attend Rutherford County Virtual School?
Rutherford County Virtual School has 384 students enrolled. It is a other school in Smyrna, TN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Rutherford County Virtual School?
The student-teacher ratio at Rutherford County Virtual School is 27.2:1, which is 74% higher than the Tennessee average of 15.6:1 and 71% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Rutherford County Virtual School?
The largest demographic group at Rutherford County Virtual School is White at 63.3%. The school serves a diverse student body in Smyrna, TN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Rutherford County Virtual School?
Rutherford County Virtual School has a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (C) 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.