Enrollment
1,771
South Dakota · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 465982000525
Stevens High School - 42 — Rapid City, SD
Federal NCES profile for Stevens High School - 42, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 25/100.
👥 Class size 24
📚 AP courses 50
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 20
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: Rapid City Area School District 51-4 · 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)
89.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.9:1
vs 13.5:1 South Dakota avg
+40% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
10.0%
vs 28.8% South Dakota avg
-65% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Stevens High School - 42 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
Stevens High School - 42 reports 1,771 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 89.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 18.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 40% 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 19% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 10.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 65% below the South Dakota average and 81% below the national baseline. The school offers 10 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 1771 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 32.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Rapid City Area School District 51-4 spends $11,988 per pupil district-wide, below the South Dakota average of $16,140 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 54.3% from local sources (property taxes), 26.7% from the state, and 18.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 25/100 (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 Stevens High School - 42 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 | 18.9:1 | ▲ 40% | 13.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 10.0% | ▼ 65% | 28.8% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,771 | top 99% | — | — |
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
10.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 65% 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
18.9:1
students per teacher
— 40% above state mean
Top 93% in South Dakota — lower ratio than 7% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
32.0%
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
$11,988
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
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 1771 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
121
in-school suspensions + 36 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 8.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 1,771 Top 99% in South Dakota — larger than 1% of 698 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 89.0
Students per teacher 18.9:1 +40% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 10.0% -65% vs state
NCES ID 465982000525
Student demographics
White 78.2%
Two or More 7.8%
Hispanic or Latino 7.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 4.3%
Asian 1.2%
African American 0.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: White at 78.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 10
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 1771:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 32.0%
In-school suspensions 121
Out-of-school suspensions 36
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Rapid City Area School District 51-4, which includes Stevens High School - 42.
$11,988
Per student
-26%
vs South Dakota
Avg $16,140
-38%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 54.3%
State 26.7%
Federal 18.9%
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
- 1,998
- Students per teacher
- 17.7:1
- Enrollment
- 618
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Enrollment
- 614
- Students per teacher
- 19.4:1
- Enrollment
- 613
- Students per teacher
- 14.6:1
- Enrollment
- 605
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
Similar high schools in Rapid City
4 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Central High School - 41
Standard public school
1,998 students 17.7:1 students per teacher
Rapid City High School - 45
Alternative education program
356 students 13.2:1 students per teacher
Rapid City Online High School - 92
Standard public school
73 students 53:1 students per teacher
Lincoln Building - 44
Special-education school
23 students 16:1 students per teacher
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 Stevens High School - 42
How many students attend Stevens High School - 42?
Stevens High School - 42 has 1,771 students enrolled. It is a high school in Rapid City, SD.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Stevens High School - 42?
The student-teacher ratio at Stevens High School - 42 is 18.9:1, which is 40% higher than the South Dakota average of 13.5:1 and 19% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Stevens High School - 42?
10.0% of students at Stevens High School - 42 are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Dakota average of 28.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Stevens High School - 42?
The largest demographic group at Stevens High School - 42 is White at 78.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in Rapid City, SD.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Stevens High School - 42?
Stevens High School - 42 has a Resource Investment Index of 25/100 (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.