Staffing & student-teacher ratios
A students-per-teacher ratio divides enrollment by teacher full-time equivalents. It is a staffing measure, not the size of a class.
Why a ratio is not class size
Teacher FTE counts every classroom teacher, including specialists, special education teachers and part-timers converted to full-time equivalents. Many of them do not lead a regular class all day, so actual classes are usually larger than the ratio suggests.
Ratios also move with school size, grades served and programs offered. A small rural school or a school with many special education students can have a low ratio for reasons that say nothing about quality.
Missing teacher counts
Some states do not report teacher counts for every school. NCES notes that Tennessee teacher counts are missing from the 2024–25 data. SchoolScope shows a ratio only when both enrollment and teachers are reported, and a state or district ratio only when nearly every school reported both.
Students per teacher FTE by state
| Group | Ratio | Bar |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Not reported | |
| Alaska | 18.6 | |
| Arizona | Not reported | |
| Arkansas | 12.5 | |
| California | 21.6 | |
| Colorado | 16.5 | |
| Connecticut | 12.2 | |
| Delaware | 14.8 | |
| District of Columbia | 10.9 | |
| Florida | 18.4 | |
| Georgia | 14.3 | |
| Hawaii | 14.2 | |
| Idaho | 18.0 | |
| Illinois | 13.4 | |
| Indiana | 15.4 | |
| Iowa | 14.2 | |
| Kansas | 13.7 | |
| Kentucky | 15.3 | |
| Louisiana | 13.7 | |
| Maine | 11.0 | |
| Maryland | 14.4 | |
| Massachusetts | 11.9 | |
| Michigan | 16.5 | |
| Minnesota | Not reported | |
| Mississippi | 14.1 | |
| Missouri | 12.6 | |
| Montana | 13.8 | |
| Nebraska | 13.7 | |
| Nevada | 20.0 | |
| New Hampshire | 11.3 | |
| New Jersey | 11.7 | |
| New Mexico | 13.6 | |
| New York | 11.5 | |
| North Carolina | 16.2 | |
| North Dakota | 11.6 | |
| Ohio | 17.3 | |
| Oklahoma | 16.2 | |
| Oregon | 18.2 | |
| Pennsylvania | 13.4 | |
| Rhode Island | 12.9 | |
| South Carolina | 14.1 | |
| South Dakota | 13.8 | |
| Tennessee | Not reported | |
| Texas | 15.0 | |
| Utah | 21.8 | |
| Vermont | 10.8 | |
| Virginia | Not reported | |
| Washington | 18.1 | |
| West Virginia | 13.4 | |
| Wisconsin | 13.7 | |
| Wyoming | 12.1 |
Sources for this page
- NCES CCD School Staff 2024–25, version 1a. File
ccd_sch_059_2425_l_1a_073025.zip, last checked 2026-11-06. - NCES CCD School Membership 2024–25, version 1a. File
ccd_sch_052_2425_l_1a_073025.zip, last checked 2026-11-06.
Figures are republished from official files without adjustment, except where a page says a value is summed or derived. See methodology and definitions & limitations. Spotted a problem? Report a data issue.