Enrollment
303
Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 080453006370 Charter school
The Vanguard School (High) — Colorado Springs, CO
Federal NCES profile for The Vanguard School (High), including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 51/100.
👥 Class size 57
📚 AP courses 75
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
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
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)
30.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.7:1
vs 16.9:1 Colorado avg
-37% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
11.8%
vs 38.5% Colorado avg
-69% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How The Vanguard School (High) compares with Colorado 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
The Vanguard School (High) reports 303 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 30.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 10.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 37% below the Colorado state mean of 16.9:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 33% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 11.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 69% below the Colorado average and 77% below the national baseline. The school offers 15 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 1165 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1.
On the finance side, the surrounding Harrison School District No. 2 in the County of El Paso an spends $17,595 per pupil district-wide, below the Colorado average of $20,949 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 24.7% from local sources (property taxes), 60.0% from the state, and 15.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (C-), calculated from 4 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 The Vanguard School (High) compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Colorado state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Colorado | Colorado avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.7:1 | ▼ 37% | 16.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 11.8% | ▼ 69% | 38.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 303 | top 39% | — | — |
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
11.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 69% below the Colorado average of 38.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
10.7:1
students per teacher
— 37% below state mean
Top 8% in Colorado — lower ratio than 92% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Funding equity
$17,595
per pupil, district-wide
— below Colorado avg of $20,949
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.3 FTE
Per 1165 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 16 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 5.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 303 Top 39% in Colorado — larger than 61% of 1,923 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 30.0
Students per teacher 10.7:1 -37% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 11.8% -69% vs state
NCES ID 080453006370
Student demographics
White 48.8%
Hispanic or Latino 25.7%
Two or More 12.2%
Asian 9.2%
African American 3.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 48.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 15
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.3
Students per counselor 1165:1
Discipline & special education
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 16
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Harrison School District No. 2 in the County of El Paso an, which includes The Vanguard School (High).
$17,595
Per student
-16%
vs Colorado
Avg $20,949
-10%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 24.7%
State 60.0%
Federal 15.3%
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
- 1,089
- Students per teacher
- 19.7:1
- Enrollment
- 949
- Students per teacher
- 17.1:1
- Enrollment
- 843
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Enrollment
- 764
- Students per teacher
- 19.1:1
- Enrollment
- 595
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
Similar high schools in Colorado Springs
6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Pine Creek High School
Standard public school
1,875 students 18.2:1 students per teacher
Doherty High School
Standard public school
1,715 students 22.3:1 students per teacher
Liberty High School
Standard public school
1,526 students 18.3:1 students per teacher
Vista Ridge High School
Standard public school
1,473 students 22.7:1 students per teacher
Sand Creek High School
Standard public school
1,426 students 22.5:1 students per teacher
Rampart High School
Standard public school
1,305 students 16.9:1 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 The Vanguard School (High)
How many students attend The Vanguard School (High)?
The Vanguard School (High) has 303 students enrolled. It is a high school in COLORADO SPRINGS, CO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at The Vanguard School (High)?
The student-teacher ratio at The Vanguard School (High) is 10.7:1, which is 37% lower than the Colorado average of 16.9:1 and 33% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at The Vanguard School (High)?
11.8% of students at The Vanguard School (High) are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of The Vanguard School (High)?
The largest demographic group at The Vanguard School (High) is White at 48.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in COLORADO SPRINGS, CO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for The Vanguard School (High)?
The Vanguard School (High) has a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (C-) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.