Enrollment
276
Louisiana · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 220162001253
West St. Mary High School — Baldwin, LA
Federal NCES profile for West St. Mary High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 28/100.
👥 Class size 0
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 45
📋 Attendance 13
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: St. Mary Parish · Louisiana
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)
12.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
28.5:1
vs 18.6:1 Louisiana avg
+53% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
81.0%
vs 62.5% Louisiana avg
+30% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How West St. Mary High School compares with Louisiana 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
West St. Mary High School reports 276 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 12.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 28.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 53% above the Louisiana state mean of 18.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 79% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 81.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 30% above the Louisiana average and 56% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 276 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 34.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding St. Mary Parish spends $13,817 per pupil district-wide, below the Louisiana average of $17,870 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 42.2% from local sources (property taxes), 40.8% from the state, and 17.0% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 28/100 (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 West St. Mary High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Louisiana state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Louisiana | Louisiana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 28.5:1 | ▲ 53% | 18.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 81.0% | ▲ 30% | 62.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 276 | top 22% | — | — |
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
81.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 30% above the Louisiana average of 62.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
28.5:1
students per teacher
— 53% above state mean
Top 97% in Louisiana — lower ratio than 3% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
34.8%
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
$13,817
per pupil, district-wide
— below Louisiana avg of $17,870
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 276 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
88
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 31.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 33.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 276 Top 22% in Louisiana — larger than 78% of 1,330 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 12.0
Students per teacher 28.5:1 +53% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 81.0% +30% vs state
NCES ID 220162001253
Student demographics
African American 75.0%
White 15.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 4.0%
Two or More 2.2%
Hispanic or Latino 1.4%
Asian 0.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.7%
Largest group: African American at 75.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP program Not offered
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 276:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 34.8%
In-school suspensions 88
Out-of-school suspensions 4
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for St. Mary Parish, which includes West St. Mary High School.
$13,817
Per student
-23%
vs Louisiana
Avg $17,870
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 42.2%
State 40.8%
Federal 17.0%
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
- 650
- Students per teacher
- 20.9:1
- Enrollment
- 601
- Students per teacher
- 18.5:1
- Enrollment
- 469
- Students per teacher
- 21.4:1
- Enrollment
- 439
- Students per teacher
- 26.6:1
- Enrollment
- 429
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
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 West St. Mary High School
How many students attend West St. Mary High School?
West St. Mary High School has 276 students enrolled. It is a high school in Baldwin, LA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at West St. Mary High School?
The student-teacher ratio at West St. Mary High School is 28.5:1, which is 53% higher than the Louisiana average of 18.6:1 and 79% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at West St. Mary High School?
81.0% of students at West St. Mary High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Louisiana average of 62.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of West St. Mary High School?
The largest demographic group at West St. Mary High School is African American at 75.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in Baldwin, LA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for West St. Mary High School?
West St. Mary High School has a Resource Investment Index of 28/100 (F) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.