Enrollment
927
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Epworth, IA
Western Dubuque High School
Federal NCES profile for Western Dubuque High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 42/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 193135001832
👥 S:T ratio 35
📚 AP courses 25
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 38
📋 Attendance 42
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Western Dubuque High School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 80% of Iowa schools. It is also one of the largest schools in Iowa.
- 42
- Resource Index · Typical
- 16.3:1
- large classes for Iowa
- 18.9%
- free-lunch eligible
- 927
- students enrolled
Western Dubuque High School has class sizes larger than 80% of Iowa schools. Computed live against every Iowa school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Western Dubuque Comm School District · Iowa
NCES ID 193135001832 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
57.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.3:1
vs 14.8:1 Iowa avg
+10% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
18.9%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
-48% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Western Dubuque High School compares with Iowa and U.S. medians
What stands out at Western Dubuque High School
Western Dubuque High School is a lower-poverty, large high school in Epworth, Iowa, enrolling 927 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 16.3:1 puts it in the larger third of Iowa schools by student-teacher ratio.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 18.9% free-meal eligibility runs 48% below the Iowa average.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in Iowa, bigger than 95% of state schools at 927 students.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,322 scored Iowa schools.
Against 96 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #30.
Its student body is predominantly White (93% of enrollment) (diversity index 13/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 5 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 309 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 23.4% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Western Dubuque Comm School District also operates Drexler Middle School (639 students) and Peosta Elementary School (425 students) alongside Western Dubuque High School.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Western Dubuque High School compares
Western Dubuque High School on the metrics families compare, against Iowa and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.3:1 | ▲ 10% | 14.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 18.9% | ▼ 48% | 36.4% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 927 | top 5% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
16.3:1
Leaner classes than 36% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
927
Bigger than 90% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
18.9%
free-lunch eligible
- 48% below the Iowa average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
16.3:1
students per teacher
- 10% above state mean
Top 80% in Iowa - lower ratio than 20% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
23.4%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$11,657
per pupil, district-wide
- below Iowa avg of $12,854
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 309 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 41 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 93.2%
Hispanic or Latino 3.0%
Two or More 2.2%
African American 1.2%
Asian 0.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 93.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 13.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 13.0, Western Dubuque High School is less mixed than the Iowa school average of 33.8.
Programs
AP courses offered 5
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Western Dubuque Comm School District, which includes Western Dubuque High School.
$11,657
Per student
-9%
vs Iowa
Avg $12,854
-30%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 42.9%
State 46.7%
Federal 10.4%
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.
How Western Dubuque High School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drexler Middle School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Peosta Elementary School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Cascade Junior-Senior High School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Epworth Elementary School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Dyersville Elementary School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Western Dubuque High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 639
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 425
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 392
- Students per teacher
- 13.1:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 360
- Students per teacher
- 12.9:1
- Resource Index
- 53/100
- Enrollment
- 322
- Students per teacher
- 11.5:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Iowa, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~927 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~16.3:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Western Dubuque High School's federal record.
- Compare Western Dubuque High School against another school. Compare schools
- Western Dubuque Comm School District's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Western Dubuque High School
How many students attend Western Dubuque High School?
Western Dubuque High School has 927 students enrolled. It is a high school in Epworth, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Western Dubuque High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Western Dubuque High School is 16.3:1, which is 10% higher than the Iowa average of 14.8:1 and 4% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Western Dubuque High School?
18.9% of students at Western Dubuque High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Western Dubuque High School?
The largest demographic group at Western Dubuque High School is White at 93.2% of enrollment, in Epworth, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Western Dubuque High School?
Western Dubuque High School has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Western Dubuque High School a good school?
Western Dubuque High School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 80% of Iowa schools. It is also one of the largest schools in Iowa. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Western Dubuque Comm School District?
Besides Western Dubuque High School, Western Dubuque Comm School District also operates Drexler Middle School (639 students), Peosta Elementary School (425 students), and Cascade Junior-Senior High School (392 students). See the Western Dubuque Comm School District district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.