Enrollment
1,206
Wyoming · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 560147000580
Thunder Basin High School — Gillette, WY
Federal NCES profile for Thunder Basin High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 31/100.
👥 Class size 32
📚 AP courses 45
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 46
📋 Attendance 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
District: Campbell County School District #1 · Wyoming
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)
73.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.9:1
vs 11.7:1 Wyoming avg
+44% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
21.8%
vs 27.4% Wyoming avg
-20% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Thunder Basin High School compares with Wyoming 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
Thunder Basin High School reports 1,206 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 73.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 44% above the Wyoming state mean of 11.7:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 6% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 21.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 20% below the Wyoming average and 58% below the national baseline. The school offers 9 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 268 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 43.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Campbell County School District #1 spends $18,145 per pupil district-wide, below the Wyoming average of $24,788 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 58.0% from local sources (property taxes), 32.6% from the state, and 9.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (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 Thunder Basin High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Wyoming state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Wyoming | Wyoming avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.9:1 | ▲ 44% | 11.7:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 21.8% | ▼ 20% | 27.4% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,206 | top 98% | — | — |
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
21.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 20% below the Wyoming average of 27.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
16.9:1
students per teacher
— 44% above state mean
Top 95% in Wyoming — lower ratio than 5% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
43.4%
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
$18,145
per pupil, district-wide
— below Wyoming avg of $24,788
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors4.5 FTE
Per 268 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
247
in-school suspensions + 34 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 20.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 23.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 12 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,206 Top 98% in Wyoming — larger than 2% of 351 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 73.0
Students per teacher 16.9:1 +44% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 21.8% -20% vs state
NCES ID 560147000580
Student demographics
White 83.5%
Hispanic or Latino 12.1%
Two or More 1.4%
African American 1.1%
Asian 1.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 83.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 9
Counselors (FTE) 4.5
Students per counselor 268:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 43.4%
In-school suspensions 247
Out-of-school suspensions 34
Expulsions 12
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Campbell County School District #1, which includes Thunder Basin High School.
$18,145
Per student
-27%
vs Wyoming
Avg $24,788
-7%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 58.0%
State 32.6%
Federal 9.4%
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
- 1,212
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
- Enrollment
- 667
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Enrollment
- 589
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Enrollment
- 554
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Enrollment
- 413
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
Similar high schools in Gillette
2 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
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 Thunder Basin High School
How many students attend Thunder Basin High School?
Thunder Basin High School has 1,206 students enrolled. It is a high school in Gillette, WY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Thunder Basin High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Thunder Basin High School is 16.9:1, which is 44% higher than the Wyoming average of 11.7:1 and 6% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Thunder Basin High School?
21.8% of students at Thunder Basin High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Wyoming average of 27.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Thunder Basin High School?
The largest demographic group at Thunder Basin High School is White at 83.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in Gillette, WY.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Thunder Basin High School?
Thunder Basin High School has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (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.