Enrollment
627
Alabama · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Sylacauga, AL
Sylacauga High School
Federal NCES profile for Sylacauga High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 43/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 010312001200
👥 S:T ratio 37
📚 AP courses 55
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 37
📋 Attendance 17
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Sylacauga High School earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 76% of Alabama schools.
- #2 of 7
- public schools in Sylacauga · Resource Index
- 43
- Resource Index · Typical
- 15.7:1
- small classes for Alabama
- 57.5%
- free-lunch eligible
Sylacauga High School has class sizes smaller than 76% of Alabama schools. Computed live against every Alabama school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Sylacauga High School ranks #2 of 7 public schools in Sylacauga, AL.
School address
District: Sylacauga City · Alabama
NCES ID 010312001200 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
40.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.7:1
vs 17.7:1 Alabama avg
-11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
57.5%
vs 58.8% Alabama avg
-2% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sylacauga High School compares with Alabama and U.S. medians
What stands out at Sylacauga High School
Sylacauga High School is a higher-need, mid-sized high school in Sylacauga, Alabama, enrolling 627 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 15.7:1 puts it in the smaller third of Alabama schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 57.5% lands close to the Alabama typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 627 puts it in the larger third of Alabama schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,365 scored Alabama schools.
Against 457 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #156.
Its student body is led by White (50%) and African American (41%) (diversity index 58/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 11 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 314 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 33.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 23.0% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Sylacauga City also operates Indian Valley Elementary School (477 students) and Nicholslawson Middle School (446 students) alongside Sylacauga 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 Sylacauga High School compares
Sylacauga High School on the metrics families compare, against Alabama and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Alabama | Alabama avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.7:1 | ▼ 11% | 17.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 57.5% | ▼ 2% | 58.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 627 | top 27% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
15.7:1
Leaner classes than 41% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
627
Bigger than 75% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
57.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 2% below the Alabama average of 58.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.7:1
students per teacher
- 11% below state mean
Top 24% in Alabama - lower ratio than 76% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
33.2%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$12,047
per pupil, district-wide
- below Alabama avg of $12,491
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 314 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
68
in-school suspensions + 28 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 10.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 15.3 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 50.2%
African American 40.5%
Hispanic or Latino 5.4%
Two or More 3.2%
Asian 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 50.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 58.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 58.0, Sylacauga High School is more mixed than the Alabama school average of 42.5.
Programs
AP courses offered 11
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Sylacauga City, which includes Sylacauga High School.
$12,047
Per student
-4%
vs Alabama
Avg $12,491
-27%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 23.5%
State 53.5%
Federal 23.0%
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.
How Sylacauga High School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indian Valley Elementary School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Nicholslawson Middle School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Pinecrest Elementary School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Sylacauga High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 477
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Resource Index
- 24/100
- Enrollment
- 446
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
- Enrollment
- 426
- Students per teacher
- 20.3:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Alabama, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~627 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~15.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Sylacauga High School's federal record.
- Compare Sylacauga High School against another school. Compare schools
- Sylacauga City'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 Sylacauga High School
How many students attend Sylacauga High School?
Sylacauga High School has 627 students enrolled. It is a high school in Sylacauga, AL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sylacauga High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Sylacauga High School is 15.7:1, which is 11% lower than the Alabama average of 17.7:1 and 0% higher than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Sylacauga High School?
57.5% of students at Sylacauga High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Alabama average of 58.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sylacauga High School?
The largest demographic group at Sylacauga High School is White at 50.2% of enrollment, in Sylacauga, AL. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 58.0/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sylacauga High School?
Sylacauga High School has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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 Sylacauga High School rank among public schools in Sylacauga?
By Resource Investment Index, Sylacauga High School ranks #2 of 7 public schools in Sylacauga, AL. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Sylacauga on the city page.
Is Sylacauga High School a good school?
Sylacauga High School earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 76% of Alabama 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 Sylacauga City?
Besides Sylacauga High School, Sylacauga City also operates Indian Valley Elementary School (477 students), Nicholslawson Middle School (446 students), and Pinecrest Elementary School (426 students). See the Sylacauga City 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.