Enrollment
402
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 484296013654
Tomball Star Academy — Tomball, TX
Federal NCES profile for Tomball Star Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 42/100.
👥 Class size 44
📚 AP courses 20
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 76
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: Tomball Isd · Texas
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)
24.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14:1
vs 14.6:1 Texas avg
-4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
25.5%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
-59% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Tomball Star Academy compares with Texas 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
Tomball Star Academy reports 402 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 24.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 4% below the Texas state mean of 14.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 12% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 25.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 59% below the Texas average and 51% below the national baseline. The school offers 4 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 13400 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 9.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Tomball Isd spends $13,875 per pupil district-wide, below the Texas average of $17,150 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 67.8% from local sources (property taxes), 23.1% from the state, and 9.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (D), 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 Tomball Star Academy compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Texas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14:1 | ▼ 4% | 14.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 25.5% | ▼ 59% | 61.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 402 | top 37% | — | — |
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
25.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 59% below the Texas average of 61.9%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
14:1
students per teacher
— 4% below state mean
Top 41% in Texas — lower ratio than 59% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
9.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$13,875
per pupil, district-wide
— below Texas avg of $17,150
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Per 13400 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
5
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 402 Top 37% in Texas — larger than 63% of 9,061 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 24.0
Students per teacher 14:1 -4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 25.5% -59% vs state
NCES ID 484296013654
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 36.3%
White 35.6%
Asian 17.2%
African American 6.0%
Two or More 4.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 36.3% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 4
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Students per counselor 13400:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 9.5%
In-school suspensions 5
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Tomball Isd, which includes Tomball Star Academy.
$13,875
Per student
-19%
vs Texas
Avg $17,150
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 67.8%
State 23.1%
Federal 9.1%
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
- 3,227
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
- Enrollment
- 3,213
- Students per teacher
- 17.7:1
- Enrollment
- 1,219
- Students per teacher
- 19.4:1
- Enrollment
- 1,179
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,015
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
Similar high schools in Tomball
3 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 Tomball Star Academy
How many students attend Tomball Star Academy?
Tomball Star Academy has 402 students enrolled. It is a high school in TOMBALL, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Tomball Star Academy?
The student-teacher ratio at Tomball Star Academy is 14:1, which is 4% lower than the Texas average of 14.6:1 and 12% 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 Tomball Star Academy?
25.5% of students at Tomball Star Academy are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Tomball Star Academy?
The largest demographic group at Tomball Star Academy is Hispanic or Latino at 36.3%. The school serves a diverse student body in TOMBALL, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Tomball Star Academy?
Tomball Star Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (D) 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.