Enrollment
390
South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 450111001550
Whale Branch Early College High — Seabrook, SC
Federal NCES profile for Whale Branch Early College High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 38/100.
👥 Class size 50
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 61
📋 Attendance 0
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: Beaufort 01 · South Carolina
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)
38.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.5:1
vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg
-13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 74.0% South Carolina avg
+35% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Whale Branch Early College High compares with South Carolina 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
Whale Branch Early College High reports 390 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 38.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 13% below the South Carolina state mean of 14.3:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 21% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 100.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 35% above the South Carolina average and 93% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 195 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 71.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Beaufort 01 spends $22,414 per pupil district-wide, above the South Carolina average of $17,182 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 56.5% from local sources (property taxes), 30.2% from the state, and 13.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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 Whale Branch Early College High compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against South Carolina state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs South Carolina | South Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.5:1 | ▼ 13% | 14.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 35% | 74.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 390 | top 28% | — | — |
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
100.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 35% above the South Carolina average of 74.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.5:1
students per teacher
— 13% below state mean
Top 24% in South Carolina — lower ratio than 76% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
71.0%
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
$22,414
per pupil, district-wide
— above South Carolina avg of $17,182
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 195 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
140
in-school suspensions + 99 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 35.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 61.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 2 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 390 Top 28% in South Carolina — larger than 72% of 1,215 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 38.0
Students per teacher 12.5:1 -13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 100.0% +35% vs state
NCES ID 450111001550
Student demographics
African American 81.8%
Hispanic or Latino 8.7%
White 6.4%
Two or More 2.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: African American at 81.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP program Not offered
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 195:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 71.0%
In-school suspensions 140
Out-of-school suspensions 99
Expulsions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Beaufort 01, which includes Whale Branch Early College High.
$22,414
Per student
+30%
vs South Carolina
Avg $17,182
+15%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 56.5%
State 30.2%
Federal 13.4%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,731
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,375
- Students per teacher
- 15.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,265
- Students per teacher
- 14.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,134
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Enrollment
- 1,104
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
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 Whale Branch Early College High
How many students attend Whale Branch Early College High?
Whale Branch Early College High has 390 students enrolled. It is a high school in Seabrook, SC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Whale Branch Early College High?
The student-teacher ratio at Whale Branch Early College High is 12.5:1, which is 13% lower than the South Carolina average of 14.3:1 and 21% lower 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 Whale Branch Early College High?
100.0% of students at Whale Branch Early College High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Whale Branch Early College High?
The largest demographic group at Whale Branch Early College High is African American at 81.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Seabrook, SC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Whale Branch Early College High?
Whale Branch Early College High has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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.