Every public school, district, and the headline NCES measures for North Dakota - 170 districts, drawn straight from federal records.
Compiled by PlainSchools, Education-data publisher
Scored 0-100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores - the same index shown on every school page, averaged across 498 scored North Dakota schools. Full methodology →
The state in one line
North Dakota runs 499 public schools across 170 districts, with a 11.8:1 average classroom and 28.2% of students on subsidized lunch.
499
public schools
170
school districts
11.8:1
avg student–teacher
28.2%
free/reduced lunch
How North Dakota ranks nationally
Per-pupil spending
$19,475
#16of 51 · highest-spending
Average student-teacher ratio
11.8:1
#4of 51 · lowest ratios
Public schools
499
#44of 51 · most schools
On subsidized lunch
28.2%
#39of 43 · highest share
North Dakota ranks #16 of 51 nationally on per-pupil spending and #4 of 51 on average student-teacher ratio, derived live by comparing it against every other state. Ranked among all 50 states + DC from NCES enrollment/staffing and the F-33 finance survey. Lunch share is an indicator of student need, not of quality.
What the NCES Data Says About North Dakota Schools
North Dakota operates 499 public K-12 schools organised into 170 independent school districts serving 118,286 students, per the National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data 2024-25. The largest district, Bismarck 1, enrolls 13,976 pupils across 29 schools at $14,558 per student, while smaller rural districts can run fewer than a dozen campuses. This fragmentation, inherited from century-old township governance patterns in many states, is why per-pupil spending, class sizes, and programme availability vary dramatically inside a single state boundary.
Statewide, the average student-teacher ratio is 11.8:1, a useful benchmark for comparing any individual district or school on PlainSchools. Free-lunch eligibility averages 28.2% across North Dakota public schools, a federal indicator of economic need that drives Title I funding allocations. The district table below is sortable by enrollment, school count, and per-pupil expenditure, the three fields that best predict a district's financial and demographic profile. For schools specifically, use the rankings links above to view per-category leaderboards covering spending, student-teacher ratio, best schools by composite quality score, chronic absenteeism, and funding-equity distribution within the state.
Every district figure here pulls from two distinct federal surveys: enrollment and demographic data come from the NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (school membership and directory), while per-pupil spending, teacher salaries, and federal/state/local revenue shares originate in the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey (FY 2022-23). Civil-rights indicators, gifted enrollment, AP course counts, counselor staffing, chronic absenteeism, in- and out-of-school suspensions, come from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Cross-referencing these three sources is what lets PlainSchools produce composite scores and equity rankings that single-source tools cannot.
North Dakota's average student-teacher ratio vs. every US state
Average students per teacher, state by state (lower means more staffing per student)
12Among the lowest ratioslower student-teacher ratio than 86% of 51 US states
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US states. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25
Federal data, transparent formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal survey data - enrollment, staffing, finance, and demographics from NCES. The diversity index and composite quality scores referenced on this page are PlainSchools' own transparent derived indices (not an official NCES rating), computed directly from those datasets with the exact formula disclosed on our methodology page; every input number traces to a cited source. These figures describe reported resource allocation across a large, varied state - a starting point for comparing districts and schools, not a substitute for reviewing a specific school's own record.
North Dakota per-pupil spending varies 9.4× across districts
Per-pupil spending in North Dakota ranges from $10,067 (lowest district) to $94,500 (highest), a spread of $84,433. That ratio is among the widest in the country and predicts large gaps in class size, programme availability, and counselor:student ratios that compound across a 12-year K-12 career. High-spending districts typically draw on higher property tax bases, a structural feature of state education finance under the federal Title I framework that sets the floor but not the ceiling.
Average North Dakota student-teacher ratio is 11.8:1 - low (typically associated with smaller schools or state-funded class-size reduction)
Student-teacher ratio is the simplest staffing metric reported on NCES Common Core of Data, but it does not capture push-in specialists, intervention staff, English Language Learner aides, special education co-teachers, or counseling and support staff. Lower ratios in this state often correlate with smaller per-school enrollments and rural geography rather than higher staffing budgets per se. Class-load comparisons are most meaningful at the district or school level, not the state aggregate.
North Dakota's public schools average a Simpson diversity index of 29.7/100, below the national average of 43.5. The index runs 0-100 from NCES race and ethnicity data, where higher means a more evenly mixed student body. It measures mix, not quality. See where North Dakota ranks in our national school-diversity analysis.
Data sourced from NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25, NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, and Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22.
Using the North Dakota data
North Dakota's 499 schools sit inside 170 districts - compare at the district level first.
District boundaries decide enrollment: shortlist 2-3 districts on spending, ratio, and size before comparing individual schools. Compare districts →
Check how North Dakota distributes money across its districts, funding equity varies more within states than between them. Funding equity →
Verify any school's federal record (enrollment, staffing, CRDC flags) before a visit or enrollment decision. Look up a school →
Figures are the federal record (CCD 2024-25, F-33 FY 2022-23, CRDC 2021-22) - they lag the current school year. PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score used in our rankings is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many public schools are in North Dakota?
North Dakota has 499 public schools across 170 school districts, serving 118,286 students.
What is the average student-teacher ratio in North Dakota?
The average student-teacher ratio in North Dakota public schools is 11.8:1. This varies by district, use the district table below to compare.
What percentage of North Dakota students qualify for free lunch?
28.2% of students in North Dakota qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, an indicator of economic need used for Title I funding.
What is the largest school district in North Dakota?
The largest school district in North Dakota is Bismarck 1 with 13,976 students across 29 schools.
Why does per-pupil spending vary so much across North Dakota districts?
North Dakota districts spend between $10,067 and $94,500 per pupil, a 9.4× range. This is a notable but not extreme spread. Most U.S. states fund schools through a mix of state aid (typically 40-60%), local property tax (30-50%), and federal Title I (5-15%); districts in higher property-value areas raise more per pupil from local taxes, while state aid is intended to partially equalise funding across districts. The federal F-33 finance survey reports actual current expenditures including instructional and support services.
Largest K-12 public schools by total students enrolled
students
Legacy High School
1,419
Legacy High School
1,419 students
100.0% of the leader · rank #1 · Bismarck, ND
Century High School
1,406
Century High School
1,406 students
99.1% of the leader · rank #2 · Bismarck, ND
West Fargo Sheyenne Hi…
1,400
West Fargo Sheyenne High School
1,400 students
98.7% of the leader · rank #3 · West Fargo, ND
West Fargo High School
1,380
West Fargo High School
1,380 students
97.3% of the leader · rank #4 · West Fargo, ND
Williston High School
1,370
Williston High School
1,370 students
96.5% of the leader · rank #5 · Williston, ND
Bismarck High School
1,367
Bismarck High School
1,367 students
96.3% of the leader · rank #6 · Bismarck, ND
Fargo Davies High School
1,277
Fargo Davies High School
1,277 students
90.0% of the leader · rank #7 · Fargo, ND
Red River High School
1,190
Red River High School
1,190 students
83.9% of the leader · rank #8 · Grand Forks, ND
What this shows The largest public schools in North Dakota by enrollment, often statewide virtual academies or large consolidated campuses, so size here reflects reach, not quality.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Common Core of Data (CCD) - Public school universe · 2023-2024 Public K-12 school enrollment, demographics, and operational data; collected annually by NCES from state education agencies.