Enrollment
1,690
Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 510384002166
Salem High — Virginia Beach, VA
Federal NCES profile for Salem High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 63/100.
👥 Class size 39
📚 AP courses 100
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 44
📋 Attendance 60
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: Virginia Beach City 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)
108.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.3:1
vs 14:1 Virginia avg
+9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
29.8%
vs 59.9% Virginia avg
-50% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Salem 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
Salem High reports 1,690 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 108.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 9% 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% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 29.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 50% below the Virginia average and 42% below the national baseline. The school offers 21 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 282 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 15.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Virginia Beach City Public Schools spends $15,459 per pupil district-wide, below the Virginia average of $16,211 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 46.6% from local sources (property taxes), 39.7% from the state, and 13.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 63/100 (C+), 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 Salem 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 | 15.3:1 | ▲ 9% | 14:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 29.8% | ▼ 50% | 59.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,690 | top 95% | — | — |
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
29.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 50% below the Virginia average of 59.9%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15.3:1
students per teacher
— 9% above state mean
Top 74% in Virginia — lower ratio than 26% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
15.9%
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
$15,459
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
Counselors6.0 FTE
Per 282 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
96
in-school suspensions + 88 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 1,690 Top 95% in Virginia — larger than 5% of 1,869 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 108.0
Students per teacher 15.3:1 +9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 29.8% -50% vs state
NCES ID 510384002166
Student demographics
White 37.2%
African American 25.1%
Hispanic or Latino 15.2%
Two or More 12.2%
Asian 9.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: White at 37.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 21
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 6.0
Students per counselor 282:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 15.9%
In-school suspensions 96
Out-of-school suspensions 88
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Virginia Beach City Public Schools, which includes Salem High.
$15,459
Per student
-5%
vs Virginia
Avg $16,211
-21%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 46.6%
State 39.7%
Federal 13.7%
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
- 2,152
- Students per teacher
- 17.1:1
- Enrollment
- 2,046
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,984
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,890
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
- Enrollment
- 1,842
- Students per teacher
- 17.6:1
Similar high schools in Virginia Beach
6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Landstown High
Standard public school
2,152 students 17.1:1 students per teacher
Kempsville High
Standard public school
2,046 students 17.9:1 students per teacher
Bayside High
Standard public school
1,984 students 16.3:1 students per teacher
Tallwood High
Standard public school
1,890 students 15.6:1 students per teacher
Floyd Kellam High
Standard public school
1,842 students 17.6:1 students per teacher
Ocean Lakes High
Standard public school
1,834 students 15.2:1 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 Salem High
How many students attend Salem High?
Salem High has 1,690 students enrolled. It is a high school in Virginia Beach, VA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Salem High?
The student-teacher ratio at Salem High is 15.3:1, which is 9% higher than the Virginia average of 14:1 and 4% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Salem High?
29.8% of students at Salem High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Virginia average of 59.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Salem High?
The largest demographic group at Salem High is White at 37.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in Virginia Beach, VA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Salem High?
Salem High has a Resource Investment Index of 63/100 (C+) 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.