Enrollment
1,013
Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 422235002839
Southern Lehigh Shs — Center Valley, PA
Federal NCES profile for Southern Lehigh Shs, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 58/100.
👥 Class size 27
📚 AP courses 90
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 49
📋 Attendance 51
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: Southern Lehigh Sd · Pennsylvania
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)
58.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.2:1
vs 13.5:1 Pennsylvania avg
+35% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
12.0%
vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg
-79% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Southern Lehigh Shs compares with Pennsylvania 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
Southern Lehigh Shs reports 1,013 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 58.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 18.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 35% above the Pennsylvania state mean of 13.5:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 14% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 12.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 79% below the Pennsylvania average and 77% below the national baseline. The school offers 18 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 253 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 19.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Southern Lehigh Sd spends $22,201 per pupil district-wide, below the Pennsylvania average of $22,745 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 75.3% from local sources (property taxes), 20.8% from the state, and 3.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (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 Southern Lehigh Shs compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Pennsylvania state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.2:1 | ▲ 35% | 13.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 12.0% | ▼ 79% | 58.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,013 | top 91% | — | — |
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
12.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 79% below the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
18.2:1
students per teacher
— 35% above state mean
Top 96% in Pennsylvania — lower ratio than 4% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
19.5%
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
$22,201
per pupil, district-wide
— below Pennsylvania avg of $22,745
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 253 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 13 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 1,013 Top 91% in Pennsylvania — larger than 9% of 2,930 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 58.0
Students per teacher 18.2:1 +35% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 12.0% -79% vs state
NCES ID 422235002839
Student demographics
White 80.8%
Asian 7.7%
Hispanic or Latino 7.4%
African American 2.1%
Two or More 1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 80.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 18
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 4.0
Students per counselor 253:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 19.5%
In-school suspensions 1
Out-of-school suspensions 13
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Southern Lehigh Sd, which includes Southern Lehigh Shs.
$22,201
Per student
-2%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $22,745
+14%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 75.3%
State 20.8%
Federal 3.9%
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
- 702
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Enrollment
- 471
- Students per teacher
- 12.9:1
- Enrollment
- 445
- Students per teacher
- 16.6:1
- Enrollment
- 426
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
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 Southern Lehigh Shs
How many students attend Southern Lehigh Shs?
Southern Lehigh Shs has 1,013 students enrolled. It is a high school in Center Valley, PA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Southern Lehigh Shs?
The student-teacher ratio at Southern Lehigh Shs is 18.2:1, which is 35% higher than the Pennsylvania average of 13.5:1 and 14% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Southern Lehigh Shs?
12.0% of students at Southern Lehigh Shs are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Southern Lehigh Shs?
The largest demographic group at Southern Lehigh Shs is White at 80.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Center Valley, PA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Southern Lehigh Shs?
Southern Lehigh Shs has a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (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.