Enrollment
787
South Dakota · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 466693000623
Spearfish High School - 01 — Spearfish, SD
Federal NCES profile for Spearfish High School - 01, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 30/100.
👥 Class size 28
📚 AP courses 25
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 21
📋 Attendance 47
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: Spearfish School District 40-2 · South Dakota
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)
44.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.1:1
vs 13.5:1 South Dakota avg
+34% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
6.5%
vs 28.8% South Dakota avg
-77% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Spearfish High School - 01 compares with South Dakota 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
Spearfish High School - 01 reports 787 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 44.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 18.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 34% above the South Dakota 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: 6.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 77% below the South Dakota average and 87% below the national baseline. The school offers 5 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 394 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 21.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Spearfish School District 40-2 spends $11,695 per pupil district-wide, below the South Dakota average of $16,140 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 56.5% from local sources (property taxes), 31.6% from the state, and 11.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 30/100 (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 Spearfish High School - 01 compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against South Dakota state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs South Dakota | South Dakota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.1:1 | ▲ 34% | 13.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 6.5% | ▼ 77% | 28.8% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 787 | top 97% | — | — |
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
6.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 77% below the South Dakota average of 28.8%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
18.1:1
students per teacher
— 34% above state mean
Top 90% in South Dakota — lower ratio than 10% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
21.1%
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
$11,695
per pupil, district-wide
— below South Dakota avg of $16,140
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 394 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
18
in-school suspensions + 10 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 787 Top 97% in South Dakota — larger than 3% of 698 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 44.0
Students per teacher 18.1:1 +34% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 6.5% -77% vs state
NCES ID 466693000623
Student demographics
White 85.8%
Hispanic or Latino 4.6%
Two or More 3.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native 3.0%
Asian 1.4%
African American 1.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 85.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 5
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 394:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 21.1%
In-school suspensions 18
Out-of-school suspensions 10
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Spearfish School District 40-2, which includes Spearfish High School - 01.
$11,695
Per student
-28%
vs South Dakota
Avg $16,140
-40%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 56.5%
State 31.6%
Federal 11.9%
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
- 553
- Students per teacher
- 13.8:1
- Enrollment
- 545
- Students per teacher
- 15:1
- Enrollment
- 322
- Students per teacher
- 11:1
- Enrollment
- 168
- Students per teacher
- 12:1
- Enrollment
- 21
- Students per teacher
- 7.3:1
Similar high schools in Spearfish
1 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 Spearfish High School - 01
How many students attend Spearfish High School - 01?
Spearfish High School - 01 has 787 students enrolled. It is a high school in Spearfish, SD.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Spearfish High School - 01?
The student-teacher ratio at Spearfish High School - 01 is 18.1:1, which is 34% higher than the South Dakota average of 13.5:1 and 14% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Spearfish High School - 01?
6.5% of students at Spearfish High School - 01 are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Dakota average of 28.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Spearfish High School - 01?
The largest demographic group at Spearfish High School - 01 is White at 85.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Spearfish, SD.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Spearfish High School - 01?
Spearfish High School - 01 has a Resource Investment Index of 30/100 (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.