Enrollment
1,016
Louisiana · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 220054000434
Tara High School — Baton Rouge, LA
Federal NCES profile for Tara High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 29/100.
👥 Class size 26
📚 AP courses 35
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 49
📋 Attendance 4
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: East Baton Rouge Parish · Louisiana
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)
47.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.6:1
vs 18.6:1 Louisiana avg
+0% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
64.3%
vs 62.5% Louisiana avg
+3% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Tara High School compares with Louisiana 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
Tara High School reports 1,016 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 47.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 18.6:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 0% above the Louisiana state mean of 18.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 17% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 64.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 3% above the Louisiana average and 24% above the national baseline. The school offers 7 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 254 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 38.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding East Baton Rouge Parish spends $17,757 per pupil district-wide, below the Louisiana average of $17,870 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 54.2% from local sources (property taxes), 24.4% from the state, and 21.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 29/100 (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 Tara High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Louisiana state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Louisiana | Louisiana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.6:1 | ▼ 0% | 18.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 64.3% | ▲ 3% | 62.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,016 | top 94% | — | — |
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
64.3%
free-lunch eligible
— 3% above the Louisiana average of 62.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
18.6:1
students per teacher
— 0% above state mean
Top 61% in Louisiana — lower ratio than 39% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
38.3%
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
$17,757
per pupil, district-wide
— below Louisiana avg of $17,870
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 254 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
45
in-school suspensions + 229 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 27.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 50 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,016 Top 94% in Louisiana — larger than 6% of 1,330 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 47.0
Students per teacher 18.6:1 +0% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 64.3% +3% vs state
NCES ID 220054000434
Student demographics
African American 68.9%
Hispanic or Latino 23.8%
White 4.4%
Asian 1.5%
Two or More 1.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: African American at 68.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 7
Counselors (FTE) 4.0
Students per counselor 254:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 38.3%
In-school suspensions 45
Out-of-school suspensions 229
Expulsions 50
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for East Baton Rouge Parish, which includes Tara High School.
$17,757
Per student
-1%
vs Louisiana
Avg $17,870
-9%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 54.2%
State 24.4%
Federal 21.4%
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
- 1,593
- Students per teacher
- 19.8:1
- Enrollment
- 1,331
- Students per teacher
- 19.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,218
- Students per teacher
- 18.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,122
- Students per teacher
- 23.6:1
- Enrollment
- 888
- Students per teacher
- 173.8:1
Similar high schools in Baton Rouge
6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Baton Rouge Magnet High School
Standard public school
1,593 students 19.8:1 students per teacher
Central High School
Standard public school
1,529 students 17.3:1 students per teacher
Woodlawn High School
Standard public school
1,331 students 19.1:1 students per teacher
Liberty High School
Standard public school
1,218 students 18.3:1 students per teacher
Scotlandville Magnet High School
Standard public school
837 students 17:1 students per teacher
Broadmoor Senior High School
Standard public school
791 students 20:1 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 Tara High School
How many students attend Tara High School?
Tara High School has 1,016 students enrolled. It is a high school in Baton Rouge, LA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Tara High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Tara High School is 18.6:1, which is 0% higher than the Louisiana average of 18.6:1 and 17% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Tara High School?
64.3% of students at Tara High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Louisiana average of 62.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Tara High School?
The largest demographic group at Tara High School is African American at 68.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in Baton Rouge, LA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Tara High School?
Tara High School has a Resource Investment Index of 29/100 (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.