Enrollment
143
Montana · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Shelby, MT
Shelby High School
Federal NCES profile for Shelby High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 42/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 302391000694
👥 S:T ratio 56
📚 AP courses 15
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 71
📋 Attendance 37
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Shelby High School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Montana median.
- #1 of 5
- public schools in Shelby · Resource Index
- 42
- Resource Index · Typical
- 11:1
- students per teacher
- 143
- students enrolled
Shelby High School has class sizes near the Montana median. Computed live against every Montana school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Shelby High School ranks #1 of 5 public schools in Shelby, MT.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
13.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11:1
vs 11.8:1 Montana avg
-7% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Shelby High School compares with Montana and U.S. medians
What stands out at Shelby High School
Shelby High School is a mid-sized high school in Shelby, Montana, enrolling 143 students.
At 11:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Montana median, within a few percentage points of the 11.8:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
With 143 students, its enrollment sits close to the Montana median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 826 scored Montana schools.
Its student body is led by White (78%) and Hispanic or Latino (9%) (diversity index 38/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 3 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage is strong, about 143 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 25.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The surrounding Shelby H S spends $24,964 per pupil, 29% above the Montana average, a better-resourced district than most.
Shelby H S operates only this one school, so Shelby High School has no district-mates to compare against locally.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Shelby High School compares
Shelby High School on the metrics families compare, against Montana and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Montana | Montana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11:1 | ▼ 7% | 11.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 143 | top 39% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11:1
Leaner classes than 83% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
143
Bigger than 14% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
11:1
students per teacher
- 7% below state mean
Top 41% in Montana - lower ratio than 59% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
25.2%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$24,964
per pupil, district-wide
- above Montana avg of $19,282
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 143 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
20
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 14.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 16.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 77.6%
Hispanic or Latino 9.1%
Two or More 8.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 3.5%
Asian 1.4%
Largest group: White at 77.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 38.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 38.1, Shelby High School is more mixed than the Montana school average of 23.6.
Programs
AP courses offered 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Shelby H S, which includes Shelby High School.
$24,964
Per student
+29%
vs Montana
Avg $19,282
+50%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 59.9%
State 26.9%
Federal 13.2%
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.
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Montana, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~143 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Shelby High School's federal record.
- Compare Shelby High School against another school. Compare schools
- Shelby H S's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Shelby High School
How many students attend Shelby High School?
Shelby High School has 143 students enrolled. It is a high school in Shelby, MT.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Shelby High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Shelby High School is 11:1, which is 7% lower than the Montana average of 11.8:1 and 30% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Shelby High School?
The largest demographic group at Shelby High School is White at 77.6% of enrollment, in Shelby, MT.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Shelby High School?
Shelby High School has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Shelby High School rank among public schools in Shelby?
By Resource Investment Index, Shelby High School ranks #1 of 5 public schools in Shelby, MT. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Shelby on the city page.
Is Shelby High School a good school?
Shelby High School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Montana median. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Shelby H S?
None reported; Shelby H S operates only Shelby High School as a public school district in NCES's records.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.