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In fall 2019, the percentage of students who attended high-poverty schools was highest for Black students (45 percent), followed by Hispanic students (43 percent), American Indian/Alaska Native students (37 percent), and Pacific Islander students (25 percent). This percentage was lowest for White students (8 percent), Asian students (14 percent), and students of Two or more races (17 percent).
In the United States,1 the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides eligible students with free or reduced-price lunch (FRPL). The percentage of students in a school who are eligible provides a substitute measure for the concentration of low-income students. In this indicator, public schools2 (including both traditional and charter) are divided into categories by FRPL eligibility.3 Low-poverty schools are defined as public schools where 25.0 percent or less of the students are eligible for FRPL. Mid-low poverty schools are those where 25.1 to 50.0 percent of the students are eligible for FRPL. Mid-high poverty schools are those where 50.1 to 75.0 percent of the students are eligible for FRPL. High-poverty schools are those where more than 75.0 percent of the students are eligible for FRPL. In fall 2019, about 12.3 million students attended high-poverty schools.
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NOTE: Data are for the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Low-poverty schools are defined as public schools where 25.0 percent or less of the students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch (FRPL); mid-low poverty schools are those where 25.1 to 50.0 percent of the students are eligible for FRPL; mid-high poverty schools are those where 50.1 to 75.0 percent of the students are eligible for FRPL; and high-poverty schools are those where more than 75.0 percent of the students are eligible for FRPL. Data include students whose NSLP eligibility has been determined through direct certification, which is a “process conducted by the states and by local educational agencies (LEAs) to certify eligible children for free meals without the need for household applications” (https://www.fns.usda.gov/direct-certification-national-school-lunch-program-report-congress-state-implementation-progress-1). For more information on eligibility for FRPL and its relationship to poverty, see the NCES blog post “Free or reduced price lunch: A proxy for poverty?” Schools with missing FRPL data are not included in this figure. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Detail may not sum to 100 percent because of rounding and because schools with missing FRPL data are not included in this figure. Although rounded numbers are displayed, the figures are based on unrounded data.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data (CCD), “Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe Survey,” 2019–20; and Education Demographic and Geographic Estimates (EDGE), “Public School File,” 2019–20. See Digest of Education Statistics 2021, table 216.60.
NOTE: Data are for the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Low-poverty schools are defined as public schools where 25.0 percent or less of the students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch (FRPL); mid-low poverty schools are those where 25.1 to 50.0 percent of the students are eligible for FRPL; mid-high poverty schools are those where 50.1 to 75.0 percent of the students are eligible for FRPL; and high-poverty schools are those where more than 75.0 percent of the students are eligible for FRPL. Data include students whose NSLP eligibility has been determined through direct certification, which is a “process conducted by the states and by local educational agencies (LEAs) to certify eligible children for free meals without the need for household applications” (https://www.fns.usda.gov/direct-certification-national-school-lunch-program-report-congress-state-implementation-progress-1). For more information on eligibility for FRPL and its relationship to poverty, see the NCES blog post “Free or reduced price lunch: A proxy for poverty?” Schools with missing FRPL data are not included in this figure. Detail may not sum to 100 percent because of rounding and because schools with missing FRPL data are not included in this figure. Although rounded numbers are displayed, the figures are based on unrounded data.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data (CCD), “Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe Survey,” 2019–20; and Education Demographic and Geographic Estimates (EDGE), “Public School File,” 2019–20. See Digest of Education Statistics 2021, table 216.60.
1 The United States is defined as the 50 states and the District of Columbia in this indicator.
2 In fall 2019, information on school poverty level was not available for less than 1 percent of public school students. This included schools for which information on FRPL was missing and schools that did not participate in the NSLP.
3 Students with household incomes under 185 percent of the poverty threshold are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch under the NSLP. In addition, some groups of children—such as foster children, children participating in the Head Start and Migrant Education programs, and children receiving services under the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act—are assumed to be categorically eligible to participate in the NSLP. Data include students whose NSLP eligibility has been determined through direct certification, which is a “process conducted by the states and by local educational agencies (LEAs) to certify eligible children for free meals without the need for household applications” (https://www.fns.usda.gov/direct-certification-national-school-lunch-program-report-congress-state-implementation-progress-1). Also, under the Community Eligibility option, some nonpoor children who attend school in a low-income area may participate if the district decides that it would be more efficient to provide free lunch to all children in the school. For more information, see https://www.fns.usda.gov/nslp.
4 The percentage of students of Two or more races who attended mid-high poverty schools was also higher than the national average, although both rounded to 26 percent.
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