Enrollment
270
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 370333002915
Wilmington Early College High — Castle Hayne, NC
Federal NCES profile for Wilmington Early College High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 43/100.
👥 Class size 15
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 46
📋 Attendance 76
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: New Hanover County Schools · North 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)
12.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
21.3:1
vs 16.4:1 North Carolina avg
+30% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
98.0%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
+48% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Wilmington Early College High compares with North 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
Wilmington Early College High reports 270 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 12.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 21.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 30% above the North Carolina state mean of 16.4:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 34% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 98.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 48% above the North Carolina average and 89% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 270 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 9.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding New Hanover County Schools spends $14,481 per pupil district-wide, above the North Carolina average of $13,042 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 29.4% from local sources (property taxes), 51.7% from the state, and 18.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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 Wilmington Early College High compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against North 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 North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 21.3:1 | ▲ 30% | 16.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 98.0% | ▲ 48% | 66.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 270 | top 19% | — | — |
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
98.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 48% above the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
21.3:1
students per teacher
— 30% above state mean
Top 94% in North Carolina — lower ratio than 6% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
9.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$14,481
per pupil, district-wide
— above North Carolina avg of $13,042
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 270 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 270 Top 19% in North Carolina — larger than 81% of 2,703 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 12.0
Students per teacher 21.3:1 +30% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 98.0% +48% vs state
NCES ID 370333002915
Student demographics
White 54.1%
African American 21.1%
Hispanic or Latino 17.8%
Two or More 4.1%
Asian 3.0%
Largest group: White at 54.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP program Not offered
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 270:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 9.6%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for New Hanover County Schools, which includes Wilmington Early College High.
$14,481
Per student
+11%
vs North Carolina
Avg $13,042
-26%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 29.4%
State 51.7%
Federal 18.8%
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
- 2,243
- Students per teacher
- 18.8:1
- Enrollment
- 2,082
- Students per teacher
- 19.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,893
- Students per teacher
- 20.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,437
- Students per teacher
- 15:1
- Enrollment
- 907
- Students per teacher
- 16.6:1
Similar high schools in Castle Hayne
1 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 Wilmington Early College High
How many students attend Wilmington Early College High?
Wilmington Early College High has 270 students enrolled. It is a high school in Castle Hayne, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Wilmington Early College High?
The student-teacher ratio at Wilmington Early College High is 21.3:1, which is 30% higher than the North Carolina average of 16.4:1 and 34% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Wilmington Early College High?
98.0% of students at Wilmington Early College High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Wilmington Early College High?
The largest demographic group at Wilmington Early College High is White at 54.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in Castle Hayne, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Wilmington Early College High?
Wilmington Early College High has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (D) 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.