Enrollment
1,211
Nevada · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 320048000246
Sparks High School — Sparks, NV
Federal NCES profile for Sparks High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 34/100.
👥 Class size 11
📚 AP courses 75
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 52
📋 Attendance 0
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: Washoe County School District · Nevada
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)
59.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
22.2:1
vs 22.6:1 Nevada avg
-2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
95.1%
vs 76.8% Nevada avg
+24% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sparks High School compares with Nevada 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
Sparks High School reports 1,211 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 59.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 22.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 2% below the Nevada state mean of 22.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 40% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 95.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 24% above the Nevada average and 84% above the national baseline. The school offers 15 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 242 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 56.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Washoe County School District spends $14,973 per pupil district-wide, below the Nevada average of $18,421 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 19.8% from local sources (property taxes), 68.2% from the state, and 12.0% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (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 Sparks High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Nevada state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Nevada | Nevada avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 22.2:1 | ▼ 2% | 22.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 95.1% | ▲ 24% | 76.8% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,211 | top 88% | — | — |
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
95.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 24% above the Nevada average of 76.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
22.2:1
students per teacher
— 2% below state mean
Top 70% in Nevada — lower ratio than 30% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
56.6%
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
$14,973
per pupil, district-wide
— below Nevada avg of $18,421
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors5.0 FTE
Per 242 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
166
in-school suspensions + 189 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 13.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 29.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 3 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,211 Top 88% in Nevada — larger than 12% of 742 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 59.0
Students per teacher 22.2:1 -2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 95.1% +24% vs state
NCES ID 320048000246
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 78.4%
White 11.3%
Two or More 3.0%
African American 2.5%
Asian 2.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 1.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.1%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 78.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 15
Counselors (FTE) 5.0
Students per counselor 242:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 56.6%
In-school suspensions 166
Out-of-school suspensions 189
Expulsions 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Washoe County School District, which includes Sparks High School.
$14,973
Per student
-19%
vs Nevada
Avg $18,421
-23%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 19.8%
State 68.2%
Federal 12.0%
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
- 2,307
- Students per teacher
- 24.6:1
- Enrollment
- 2,131
- Students per teacher
- 23.9:1
- Enrollment
- 2,092
- Students per teacher
- 25.2:1
- Enrollment
- 2,008
- Students per teacher
- 25.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,741
- Students per teacher
- 24.9:1
Similar high schools in Sparks
2 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
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 Sparks High School
How many students attend Sparks High School?
Sparks High School has 1,211 students enrolled. It is a high school in SPARKS, NV.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sparks High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Sparks High School is 22.2:1, which is 2% lower than the Nevada average of 22.6:1 and 40% higher than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Sparks High School?
95.1% of students at Sparks High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Nevada average of 76.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sparks High School?
The largest demographic group at Sparks High School is Hispanic or Latino at 78.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in SPARKS, NV.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sparks High School?
Sparks High School has a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (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.