Enrollment
2,359
Florida · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 120168001838
Sarasota High School — Sarasota, FL
Federal NCES profile for Sarasota High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 36/100.
👥 Class size 21
📚 AP courses 20
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 33
📋 Attendance 38
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
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)
128.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
19.8:1
vs 18.3:1 Florida avg
+8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
36.4%
vs 52.0% Florida avg
-30% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sarasota High School compares with Florida 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
Sarasota High School reports 2,359 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 128.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 19.8:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 8% above the Florida state mean of 18.3:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 25% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 36.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 30% below the Florida average and 30% below the national baseline. The school offers 4 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 337 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 24.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Sarasota spends $14,758 per pupil district-wide, above the Florida average of $12,756 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 77.1% from local sources (property taxes), 11.5% from the state, and 11.3% 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 Sarasota High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Florida state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Florida | Florida avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 19.8:1 | ▲ 8% | 18.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 36.4% | ▼ 30% | 52.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 2,359 | top 98% | — | — |
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
36.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 30% below the Florida average of 52.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
19.8:1
students per teacher
— 8% above state mean
Top 76% in Florida — lower ratio than 24% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
24.6%
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
$14,758
per pupil, district-wide
— above Florida avg of $12,756
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors7.0 FTE
Per 337 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
82
in-school suspensions + 130 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 9.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 2,359 Top 98% in Florida — larger than 2% of 4,029 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 128.0
Students per teacher 19.8:1 +8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 36.4% -30% vs state
NCES ID 120168001838
Student demographics
White 54.7%
Hispanic or Latino 33.4%
African American 5.0%
Two or More 5.0%
Asian 1.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: White at 54.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 4
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 7.0
Students per counselor 337:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 24.6%
In-school suspensions 82
Out-of-school suspensions 130
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Sarasota, which includes Sarasota High School.
$14,758
Per student
+16%
vs Florida
Avg $12,756
-24%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 77.1%
State 11.5%
Federal 11.3%
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
- 2,637
- Students per teacher
- 20:1
- Enrollment
- 2,579
- Students per teacher
- 23.7:1
- Enrollment
- 2,557
- Students per teacher
- 20.8:1
- Enrollment
- 1,752
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Enrollment
- 1,479
- Students per teacher
- 17.5:1
Similar high schools in Sarasota
4 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Riverview High School
Standard public school
2,637 students 20:1 students per teacher
Booker High School
Standard public school
1,479 students 17.5:1 students per teacher
Suncoast Polytechnical High School
Standard public school
556 students 20.9:1 students per teacher
Sarasota County Acceleration Academies
Alternative education program
106 students 27.3:1 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 Sarasota High School
How many students attend Sarasota High School?
Sarasota High School has 2,359 students enrolled. It is a high school in SARASOTA, FL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sarasota High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Sarasota High School is 19.8:1, which is 8% higher than the Florida average of 18.3:1 and 25% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Sarasota High School?
36.4% of students at Sarasota High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Florida average of 52.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sarasota High School?
The largest demographic group at Sarasota High School is White at 54.7%. The school serves a diverse student body in SARASOTA, FL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sarasota High School?
Sarasota High School 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.