Enrollment
1,509
Ohio · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 390450401962
Westerville-South High School — Westerville, OH
Federal NCES profile for Westerville-South High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 41/100.
👥 Class size 34
📚 AP courses 65
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 25
📋 Attendance 9
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: Westerville City · Ohio
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)
91.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.6:1
vs 18.3:1 Ohio avg
-9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
32.1%
vs 31.6% Ohio avg
+2% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Westerville-South High School compares with Ohio 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
Westerville-South High School reports 1,509 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 91.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.6:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 9% below the Ohio state mean of 18.3:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 4% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 32.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 2% above the Ohio average and 38% below the national baseline. The school offers 13 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 377 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 36.2% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Westerville City spends $17,511 per pupil district-wide, above the Ohio average of $16,867 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 68.1% from local sources (property taxes), 22.7% from the state, and 9.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (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 Westerville-South High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Ohio state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Ohio | Ohio avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.6:1 | ▼ 9% | 18.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 32.1% | ▲ 2% | 31.6% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,509 | 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
32.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 2% above the Ohio average of 31.6%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
16.6:1
students per teacher
— 9% below state mean
Top 41% in Ohio — lower ratio than 59% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
36.2%
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
$17,511
per pupil, district-wide
— above Ohio avg of $16,867
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 377 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
101
in-school suspensions + 64 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 3 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,509 Top 98% in Ohio — larger than 2% of 3,586 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 91.0
Students per teacher 16.6:1 -9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 32.1% +2% vs state
NCES ID 390450401962
Student demographics
White 43.0%
African American 31.4%
Hispanic or Latino 10.5%
Two or More 9.8%
Asian 5.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: White at 43.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 13
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 4.0
Students per counselor 377:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 36.2%
In-school suspensions 101
Out-of-school suspensions 64
Expulsions 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Westerville City, which includes Westerville-South High School.
$17,511
Per student
+4%
vs Ohio
Avg $16,867
-10%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 68.1%
State 22.7%
Federal 9.3%
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
- 1,587
- Students per teacher
- 17.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,485
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
- Enrollment
- 702
- Students per teacher
- 15:1
- Enrollment
- 613
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Enrollment
- 609
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
Similar high schools in Westerville
2 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 Westerville-South High School
How many students attend Westerville-South High School?
Westerville-South High School has 1,509 students enrolled. It is a high school in Westerville, OH.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Westerville-South High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Westerville-South High School is 16.6:1, which is 9% lower than the Ohio average of 18.3:1 and 4% higher 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 Westerville-South High School?
32.1% of students at Westerville-South High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Ohio average of 31.6%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Westerville-South High School?
The largest demographic group at Westerville-South High School is White at 43.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in Westerville, OH.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Westerville-South High School?
Westerville-South High School has a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (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.