Enrollment
502
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Elk River, MN
Spectrum High School
Federal NCES profile for Spectrum High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 32/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 270027603615Charter school
👥 S:T ratio 0
📚 AP courses 15
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 25
📋 Attendance 89
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Spectrum High School earns 32/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 94% of Minnesota schools.
- #4 of 5
- high schools in Elk River · Resource Index
- 32
- Resource Index · Typical
- 27.9:1
- large classes for Minnesota
- 11.7%
- free-lunch eligible
Spectrum High School has class sizes larger than 94% of Minnesota schools. Computed live against every Minnesota school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Spectrum High School ranks #4 of 5 high schools in Elk River, MN.
School address
District: Spectrum High School · Minnesota
NCES ID 270027603615 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
18.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
27.9:1
vs 15.8:1 Minnesota avg
+77% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
11.7%
vs 42.8% Minnesota avg
-73% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Spectrum High School compares with Minnesota and U.S. medians
What stands out at Spectrum High School
Spectrum High School is a lower-poverty, mid-sized charter high school in Elk River, Minnesota, enrolling 502 students.
Class loads run heavy: 27.9:1 is larger than about 94% of Minnesota schools and 77% above the 15.8:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 11.7% free-meal eligibility runs 73% below the Minnesota average.
Enrollment of 502 puts it in the larger third of Minnesota schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,334 scored Minnesota schools.
Against 290 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #180.
Its student body is predominantly White (85% of enrollment) (diversity index 28/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 3 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 375 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Attendance holds up well here: only 4.6% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
The surrounding Spectrum High School spends $9,695 per pupil, 37% below the Minnesota average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
Spectrum High School also operates Spectrum Middle School - Grades 7-8 (291 students) and Spectrum Middle School - Grade 6 (147 students) alongside Spectrum High School.
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 Spectrum High School compares
Spectrum High School on the metrics families compare, against Minnesota and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Minnesota | Minnesota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 27.9:1 | ▲ 77% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 11.7% | ▼ 73% | 42.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 502 | top 26% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
27.9:1
Leaner classes than 3% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
502
Bigger than 62% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
11.7%
free-lunch eligible
- 73% below the Minnesota average of 42.8%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
27.9:1
students per teacher
- 77% above state mean
Top 94% in Minnesota - lower ratio than 6% of state schools
Well above 20:1, one of the more stretched staffing loads nationally relative to enrollment.
Engagement
4.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 5%, comfortably under the pre-pandemic national baseline for chronic absenteeism.
Funding equity
$9,695
per pupil, district-wide
- below Minnesota avg of $15,270
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.3 FTE
Per 375 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
9
in-school suspensions + 9 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.6 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 84.5%
Hispanic or Latino 6.6%
Two or More 4.6%
African American 2.6%
Asian 1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 84.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 27.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 27.9, Spectrum High School is less mixed than the Minnesota school average of 42.8.
Programs
AP courses offered 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Spectrum High School, which includes Spectrum High School.
$9,695
Per student
-37%
vs Minnesota
Avg $15,270
-42%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 5.0%
State 92.0%
Federal 2.9%
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.
How Spectrum High School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spectrum Middle School - Grades 7-8 | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Spectrum Middle School - Grade 6 | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Spectrum High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 291
- Students per teacher
- 32.3:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 147
- Students per teacher
- 29.4:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Minnesota, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~502 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Spectrum High School's federal record.
- Compare Spectrum High School against another school. Compare schools
- Spectrum High School'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 Spectrum High School
How many students attend Spectrum High School?
Spectrum High School has 502 students enrolled. It is a high school in Elk River, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Spectrum High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Spectrum High School is 27.9:1, which is 77% higher than the Minnesota average of 15.8:1 and 78% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Spectrum High School?
11.7% of students at Spectrum High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Minnesota average of 42.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Spectrum High School?
The largest demographic group at Spectrum High School is White at 84.5% of enrollment, in Elk River, MN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Spectrum High School?
Spectrum High School has a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (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 Spectrum High School rank among high schools in Elk River?
By Resource Investment Index, Spectrum High School ranks #4 of 5 high schools in Elk River, MN. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all high schools in Elk River on the city page.
Is Spectrum High School a good school?
Spectrum High School earns 32/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 94% of Minnesota schools. 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 Spectrum High School?
Besides Spectrum High School, Spectrum High School also operates Spectrum Middle School - Grades 7-8 (291 students) and Spectrum Middle School - Grade 6 (147 students). See the Spectrum High School 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.