Enrollment
387
Indiana · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 181170001873
Wheeler High School — Valparaiso, IN
Federal NCES profile for Wheeler High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 50/100.
👥 Class size 52
📚 AP courses 15
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 61
📋 Attendance 52
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: Union Township School Corp · Indiana
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)
36.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.1:1
vs 16.1:1 Indiana avg
-25% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
24.7%
vs 49.5% Indiana avg
-50% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Wheeler High School compares with Indiana 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
Wheeler High School reports 387 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 36.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 25% below the Indiana state mean of 16.1:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 24% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 24.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 50% below the Indiana average and 52% below the national baseline. The school offers 3 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 194 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 19.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Union Township School Corp spends $15,702 per pupil district-wide, above the Indiana average of $14,559 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 40.3% from local sources (property taxes), 53.7% from the state, and 6.0% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (C-), 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 Wheeler High School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Indiana state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Indiana | Indiana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.1:1 | ▼ 25% | 16.1:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 24.7% | ▼ 50% | 49.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 387 | top 38% | — | — |
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
24.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 50% below the Indiana average of 49.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
12.1:1
students per teacher
— 25% below state mean
Top 10% in Indiana — lower ratio than 90% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
19.4%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$15,702
per pupil, district-wide
— above Indiana avg of $14,559
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 194 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
19
in-school suspensions + 33 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 13.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 3 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 387 Top 38% in Indiana — larger than 62% of 1,865 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 36.0
Students per teacher 12.1:1 -25% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 24.7% -50% vs state
NCES ID 181170001873
Student demographics
White 80.4%
Hispanic or Latino 14.5%
Two or More 3.1%
African American 1.6%
Asian 0.5%
Largest group: White at 80.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 3
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 194:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 19.4%
In-school suspensions 19
Out-of-school suspensions 33
Expulsions 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Union Township School Corp, which includes Wheeler High School.
$15,702
Per student
+8%
vs Indiana
Avg $14,559
-19%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 40.3%
State 53.7%
Federal 6.0%
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
- 386
- Students per teacher
- 18.8:1
- Enrollment
- 333
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Enrollment
- 280
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
Similar high schools in Valparaiso
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 Wheeler High School
How many students attend Wheeler High School?
Wheeler High School has 387 students enrolled. It is a high school in Valparaiso, IN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Wheeler High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Wheeler High School is 12.1:1, which is 25% lower than the Indiana average of 16.1:1 and 24% 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 Wheeler High School?
24.7% of students at Wheeler High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Indiana average of 49.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Wheeler High School?
The largest demographic group at Wheeler High School is White at 80.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Valparaiso, IN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Wheeler High School?
Wheeler High School has a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (C-) 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.