Enrollment
618
Montana · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Whitefish, MT
Whitefish High School
Federal NCES profile for Whitefish High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 37/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 302779000775
👥 S:T ratio 41
📚 AP courses 40
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 59
📋 Attendance 13
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Whitefish High School earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 74% of Montana schools. It is also one of the largest schools in Montana.
- #3 of 5
- public schools in Whitefish · Resource Index
- 37
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14.7:1
- large classes for Montana
- 618
- students enrolled
Whitefish High School has class sizes larger than 74% of Montana schools. Computed live against every Montana school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Whitefish High School ranks #3 of 5 public schools in Whitefish, MT.
School address
District: Whitefish H S · Montana
NCES ID 302779000775 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
42.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.7:1
vs 11.8:1 Montana avg
+25% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Whitefish High School compares with Montana and U.S. medians
What stands out at Whitefish High School
Whitefish High School is a large high school in Whitefish, Montana, enrolling 618 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 14.7:1 puts it in the larger third of Montana schools by student-teacher ratio.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in Montana, bigger than 96% of state schools at 618 students.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 826 scored Montana schools.
Its student body is predominantly White (95% of enrollment) (diversity index 11/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 8 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage is strong, about 206 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 35.0% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The surrounding Whitefish H S spends $14,111 per pupil, 27% below the Montana average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
Whitefish H S operates only this one school, so Whitefish High School has no district-mates to compare against locally. At 618 students, it is also among the largest single-school districts in Montana, well beyond the enrollment of a typical standalone charter.
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 Whitefish High School compares
Whitefish High School on the metrics families compare, against Montana and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Montana | Montana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.7:1 | ▲ 25% | 11.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 618 | top 4% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.7:1
Leaner classes than 50% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
618
Bigger than 74% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
14.7:1
students per teacher
- 25% above state mean
Top 74% in Montana - lower ratio than 26% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
35.0%
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
$14,111
per pupil, district-wide
- below Montana avg of $19,282
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 206 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
9
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.6 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 94.5%
Two or More 2.1%
Hispanic or Latino 1.8%
African American 0.6%
Asian 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 94.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 10.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 10.6, Whitefish High School is less mixed than the Montana school average of 23.6.
Programs
AP courses offered 8
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Whitefish H S, which includes Whitefish High School.
$14,111
Per student
-27%
vs Montana
Avg $19,282
-15%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 60.3%
State 30.3%
Federal 9.4%
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.
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Montana, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~618 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~14.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Whitefish High School's federal record.
- Compare Whitefish High School against another school. Compare schools
- Whitefish H S'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 Whitefish High School
How many students attend Whitefish High School?
Whitefish High School has 618 students enrolled. It is a high school in Whitefish, MT.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Whitefish High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Whitefish High School is 14.7:1, which is 25% higher than the Montana average of 11.8:1 and 6% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Whitefish High School?
The largest demographic group at Whitefish High School is White at 94.5% of enrollment, in Whitefish, MT.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Whitefish High School?
Whitefish High School has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (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).
How does Whitefish High School rank among public schools in Whitefish?
By Resource Investment Index, Whitefish High School ranks #3 of 5 public schools in Whitefish, MT. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Whitefish on the city page.
Is Whitefish High School a good school?
Whitefish High School earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 74% of Montana schools. It is also one of the largest schools in Montana. 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 Whitefish H S?
None reported; Whitefish H S operates only Whitefish High School as a public school district in NCES's records.
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.