Enrollment
1,567
New York · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 360831000609
Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School — Copiague, NY
Federal NCES profile for Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 48/100.
👥 Class size 42
📚 AP courses 70
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 61
📋 Attendance 40
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: Copiague Union Free School District · New York
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)
105.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.5:1
vs 11.7:1 New York avg
+24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
54.1%
vs 56.2% New York avg
-4% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School compares with New York 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
Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School reports 1,567 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 105.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 24% above the New York 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 9% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 54.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 4% below the New York average and 4% above the national baseline. The school offers 14 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 196 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 24.2% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Copiague Union Free School District spends $29,238 per pupil district-wide, below the New York average of $29,727 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 37.9% from local sources (property taxes), 47.9% from the state, and 14.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (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 Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against New York state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs New York | New York avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.5:1 | ▲ 24% | 11.7:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 54.1% | ▼ 4% | 56.2% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,567 | 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
54.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 4% below the New York average of 56.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.5:1
students per teacher
— 24% above state mean
Top 86% in New York — lower ratio than 14% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
24.2%
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
$29,238
per pupil, district-wide
— below New York avg of $29,727
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors8.0 FTE
Per 196 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
106
in-school suspensions + 107 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 13.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 1,567 Top 98% in New York — larger than 2% of 4,812 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 105.0
Students per teacher 14.5:1 +24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 54.1% -4% vs state
NCES ID 360831000609
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 67.5%
African American 21.3%
White 8.2%
Asian 1.6%
Two or More 1.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 67.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 14
Counselors (FTE) 8.0
Students per counselor 196:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 24.2%
In-school suspensions 106
Out-of-school suspensions 107
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Copiague Union Free School District, which includes Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School.
$29,238
Per student
-2%
vs New York
Avg $29,727
+50%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 37.9%
State 47.9%
Federal 14.3%
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
- 1,081
- Students per teacher
- 11.9:1
- Enrollment
- 611
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Enrollment
- 465
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Enrollment
- 428
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Enrollment
- 427
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
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 Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School
How many students attend Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School?
Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School has 1,567 students enrolled. It is a high school in COPIAGUE, NY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School is 14.5:1, which is 24% higher than the New York average of 11.7:1 and 9% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School?
54.1% of students at Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the New York average of 56.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School?
The largest demographic group at Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School is Hispanic or Latino at 67.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in COPIAGUE, NY.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School?
Walter G O'Connell Copiague High School has a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (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.