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IDEA PCS

Washington · DC · IDEA PCS · Public charter

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📋 At a glance

Programs & features
  • ✅ Dual-enrollment program (college credit while in HS)
Academic signals
  • 🎓 AP rigor: Bottom 40% of US high schools
  • 📝 SAT/ACT participation: Bottom 47% by test-taker volume
  • 🎓 4-yr grad rate: 82% (Bottom 29% of US high schools by 4-yr grad rate)

Composed from federal CRDC offerings, EDFacts ACGR, and other public data. Full breakdowns below.

💡

How IDEA PCS compares for families

Solid mid-tier academic profile.

  • LocallyDC trails the US average on NAEP 8th-grade math (−12 points). Stronger local schools matter even more.
  • vs Similar SchoolsThe closest comparables nearby: Ron Brown College Preparatory HS, The Monroe School, Cesar Chavez Public Charter Schools for Public Policy and 5 more. See the sidebar to compare side-by-side.

For Parents

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SAT / ACT participation

CRDC federal data · 2020-21

Bottom 47% by test-taker volume

50th 90th
SAT/ACT test-takers
60
11th-12th graders who took 1+ college admissions test
Test-taking intensity
17.1
takers per 100 students in grades 9-12
Compared against
18,426
US high schools reporting SAT/ACT participation

Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). Volume — not score — is what's reported here. A higher count means more students at this school are entering the college admissions pipeline. Note: 2020-21 was COVID-disrupted; some districts (especially those that stayed remote longer) report unusually low or zero takers.

🎓 4-year graduation rate · federal EDFacts

What % of students graduate on time?

Bottom 29% of US high schools by 4-yr grad rate

50th 90th
4-year graduation rate
82%
Range: 80–84%
4-year cohort size
71
Students in the 9th-grade entry class tracked over 4 years
Compared against
17,988
US high schools reporting 4-year ACGR

Source: federal EDFacts ACGR (Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate), 2019 vintage via Urban Institute. EDFacts publishes a range (low-high) to preserve privacy on small cohorts; we display the midpoint.

👩‍🏫 Teacher workforce · federal CRDC

Teacher experience & reliability

% inexperienced teachers (1st-2nd yr)
13.8%
Typical mix. Watch the trend — high turnover can compound.
% chronic teacher absence (≥10 days/yr)
34.5%
Elevated. Teacher absence directly affects classroom continuity and student outcomes.

Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2017-18 — the most recent vintage that publishes per-school teacher quality fields; the 2020-21 sweep had them suppressed). "Inexperienced" = teachers in their first or second year. "Chronic absence" = teachers absent 10+ days/year.

Chronic absenteeism

Share of students absent 15+ days
34.9%
Well above the national average (~16%). At this level, chronic absence becomes a leading driver of enrollment loss as families rotate to other schools.
Students absent 15+ days
122
Federal definition: absent (excused or unexcused) for at least 15 of ~180 school days — about 10% of the school year.

Why this matters to enrollment: Chronic absence is the most reliable early indicator that a student will leave a school — either by transferring out, dropping out, or matriculating to a charter or private alternative. At this level, today's absentees become next year's enrollment loss and the year-after's revenue loss. For school leaders: an Enrollment Trend Audit traces this dynamic forward →

Source: U.S. Department of Education, Civil Rights Data Collection 2020–2021. Rate = students chronically absent ÷ 2024 total enrollment.

Counselor capacity

Student : Counselor
88:1
Below the ASCA 250:1 recommendation — strong capacity for college planning, course selection, and student supports.
Counselor FTE
4.0
Full-time-equivalent school counselors on staff.
Teacher FTE
31
Full-time-equivalent classroom teachers.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, Civil Rights Data Collection 2020-2021. Counselor ratio = the school's most recent total enrollment ÷ counselor FTE. The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) recommends a 250:1 maximum; the US national median across schools with on-staff counselors is roughly 430:1.

Enrollment trend & projection

Total enrollment + grade 12, NCES Common Core of Data (2021–2024).

If the recent trend holds…

At its recent rate of +1.6%/year, projecting from 2024's 350 students:

2025
356
2027
367
2029
378

An extrapolation of the recent trajectory, not a forecast of the school's plans; ignores one-off shocks.

Revenue upside

At $33,821 per student in district revenue, the 28 students projected to be gained by 2029 represent ≈ $946,988/year in additional funding.

District total revenue ÷ enrollment, NCES F-33. Public funding largely follows enrollment, so a shrinking class is a recurring budget hit.

Nearby high schools — the local competition

The closest high schools families here also consider, and where their enrollment is heading.

SchoolTypeMilesHS enrollmentTrend
Ron Brown College Preparatory HS
Washington
Public 0.3 196 -2.5%
The Monroe School
Washington
Private 0.7 26
Cesar Chavez Public Charter Schools for Public Policy
Washington
Public · charter 0.7 218 -14.5%
Friendship PCS - Collegiate Academy
Washington
Public · charter 0.7 745 +13.9%
H.D. Woodson HS
Washington
Public 0.9 579 +21.1%
River Terrace Education Campus
Washington
Public 1.3 111 +14.4%
The SEED PCS of Washington DC
Washington
Public · charter 1.3 245 +2.1%
Maya Angelou PCS - HS
Washington
Public · charter 1.3 218 +29.8%

For Parents

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