Enrollment
1,080
Maryland · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Harwood, MD
Southern High
Federal NCES profile for Southern High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 56/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 240006000132
👥 S:T ratio 37
📚 AP courses 100
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 46
📋 Attendance 27
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Southern High earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Maryland median.
- 56
- Resource Index · Higher
- 15.7:1
- students per teacher
- 34.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 1,080
- students enrolled
Southern High has class sizes near the Maryland median. Computed live against every Maryland school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Anne Arundel County Public Schools · Maryland
NCES ID 240006000132 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
69.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.7:1
vs 14.5:1 Maryland avg
+8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
34.0%
vs 49.0% Maryland avg
-31% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Southern High compares with Maryland and U.S. medians
What stands out at Southern High
Southern High is a large high school in Harwood, Maryland, enrolling 1,080 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 15.7:1 puts it in the larger third of Maryland schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 34.0% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 1,080 puts it in the larger third of Maryland schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,382 scored Maryland schools.
Against 155 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #59.
Its student body is led by White (60%) and Hispanic or Latino (26%) (diversity index 57/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 21 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 270 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 29.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Anne Arundel County Public Schools also operates Glen Burnie High (2,226 students) and North County High (2,161 students) alongside Southern High.
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 Southern High compares
Southern High on the metrics families compare, against Maryland and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Maryland | Maryland avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.7:1 | ▲ 8% | 14.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 34.0% | ▼ 31% | 49.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 1,080 | top 12% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
15.7:1
Leaner classes than 41% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
1,080
Bigger than 93% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
34.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 31% below the Maryland average of 49.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15.7:1
students per teacher
- 8% above state mean
Top 66% in Maryland - lower ratio than 34% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
29.2%
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
$16,620
per pupil, district-wide
- below Maryland avg of $20,446
Close to the U.S. public-school average per-pupil spend.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 270 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
10
in-school suspensions + 53 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 5.8 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 59.6%
Hispanic or Latino 26.2%
African American 8.1%
Two or More 4.9%
Asian 0.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 59.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 56.7/100
Simpson diversity index - at 56.7, Southern High is more mixed than the Maryland school average of 52.3.
Programs
AP courses offered 21
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Anne Arundel County Public Schools, which includes Southern High.
$16,620
Per student
-19%
vs Maryland
Avg $20,446
+0%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 56.4%
State 32.3%
Federal 11.4%
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.
How Southern High Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Glen Burnie High | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| North County High | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Broadneck High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Annapolis High | Larger | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Meade High | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Southern High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,226
- Students per teacher
- 16.7:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
- Enrollment
- 2,161
- Students per teacher
- 15:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 2,143
- Students per teacher
- 17.6:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 2,075
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 2,045
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Maryland, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~1,080 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~15.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Southern High's federal record.
- Compare Southern High against another school. Compare schools
- Anne Arundel County Public Schools'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 Southern High
How many students attend Southern High?
Southern High has 1,080 students enrolled. It is a high school in Harwood, MD.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Southern High?
The student-teacher ratio at Southern High is 15.7:1, which is 8% higher than the Maryland average of 14.5:1 and 0% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Southern High?
34.0% of students at Southern High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Maryland average of 49.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Southern High?
The largest demographic group at Southern High is White at 59.6% of enrollment, in Harwood, MD. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 56.7/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Southern High?
Southern High has a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (higher 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).
Is Southern High a good school?
Southern High earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Maryland 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 Anne Arundel County Public Schools?
Besides Southern High, Anne Arundel County Public Schools also operates Glen Burnie High (2,226 students), North County High (2,161 students), and Broadneck High (2,143 students). See the Anne Arundel County Public Schools district page for the complete list.
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.