Enrollment
1,473
Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 080387006408
Vista Ridge High School — Colorado Springs, CO
Federal NCES profile for Vista Ridge High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 35/100.
👥 Class size 9
📚 AP courses 35
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 25
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: El Paso County Colorado School District 49 · Colorado
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)
70.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
22.7:1
vs 16.9:1 Colorado avg
+34% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
21.4%
vs 38.5% Colorado avg
-44% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Vista Ridge High School 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
Vista Ridge High School reports 1,473 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 70.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 22.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 34% above the Colorado state mean of 16.9:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 43% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 21.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 44% below the Colorado average and 59% below the national baseline. The school offers 7 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 374 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1.
On the finance side, the surrounding El Paso County Colorado School District 49 spends $11,710 per pupil district-wide, below the Colorado average of $20,949 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 23.9% from local sources (property taxes), 67.4% from the state, and 8.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F), 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 Vista Ridge High School 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 | 22.7:1 | ▲ 34% | 16.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 21.4% | ▼ 44% | 38.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,473 | top 96% | — | — |
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
21.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 44% 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
22.7:1
students per teacher
— 34% above state mean
Top 95% in Colorado — lower ratio than 5% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Funding equity
$11,710
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
Counselors3.9 FTE
Per 374 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
43
in-school suspensions + 77 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 8.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 8 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,473 Top 96% in Colorado — larger than 4% of 1,923 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 70.0
Students per teacher 22.7:1 +34% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 21.4% -44% vs state
NCES ID 080387006408
Student demographics
White 46.6%
Hispanic or Latino 28.9%
Two or More 11.5%
African American 7.8%
Asian 4.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 46.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 7
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.9
Students per counselor 374:1
Discipline & special education
In-school suspensions 43
Out-of-school suspensions 77
Expulsions 8
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for El Paso County Colorado School District 49, which includes Vista Ridge High School.
$11,710
Per student
-44%
vs Colorado
Avg $20,949
-40%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 23.9%
State 67.4%
Federal 8.8%
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
- 6,693
- Students per teacher
- 31.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,697
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,426
- Students per teacher
- 22.5:1
- Enrollment
- 1,172
- Students per teacher
- 23.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,162
- Students per teacher
- 18.3:1
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
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
Mesa Ridge High School
Standard public school
1,304 students 19.8:1 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 Vista Ridge High School
How many students attend Vista Ridge High School?
Vista Ridge High School has 1,473 students enrolled. It is a high school in COLORADO SPRINGS, CO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Vista Ridge High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Vista Ridge High School is 22.7:1, which is 34% higher than the Colorado average of 16.9:1 and 43% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Vista Ridge High School?
21.4% of students at Vista Ridge High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Vista Ridge High School?
The largest demographic group at Vista Ridge High School is White at 46.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in COLORADO SPRINGS, CO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Vista Ridge High School?
Vista Ridge High School has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F) 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.