Sam Houston High School

Lake Charles · LA · Calcasieu Parish · Public


AP rigor: 90th percentile nationally 18 AP courses 96% 4-yr grad rate

A parent's read

  • 96% graduate on time. Nearly every student who starts 9th grade here finishes in four years — the strongest baseline signal a school can post.
  • Course rigor in the top 10% of US high schools. 18 AP courses plus advanced math and lab-science depth — measured against every high school in the country, not just the neighborhood.

Composed from this page's data — every claim is backed by a number in the sections below.

At a glance

Programs & features
  • 18 AP courses offered — Elite
  • Dual-enrollment program (college credit while in HS)
  • Gifted & talented program
  • 2 calculus classes · 3 physics · 17 chemistry
Academic signals
  • AP rigor: 90th percentile nationally
  • SAT/ACT participation: 93rd percentile by test-taker volume
  • 4-yr grad rate: 96% in 2019 (82nd percentile nationally)

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

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How Sam Houston High School compares for families

Standout academic depth by national standards.

  • ▸ StatewideAP rigor in the top 10% nationally with 18 AP courses.
  • ▸ LocallyLA trails the US average on NAEP 8th-grade math (−9 points). Stronger local schools matter even more.
  • ▸ vs Similar SchoolsThe closest comparables nearby: LaGrange High School, Washington/Marion Magnet High School, Alfred M. Barbe High School and 5 more. See the sidebar to compare side-by-side.

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Academic rigor

AP + advanced-course offerings

Elite — exceptional AP + advanced course breadth

90th percentile nationally

50th 90th ↑ this school
Less rigorMore rigorMost rigor
AP courses offered
18
Math ✓ · Science ✓
Students taking AP courses
100
≈9 per 100 students · uptake, not just offerings
Advanced math classes
14
2 calculus · 12 advanced
Lab science classes
20
3 physics · 17 chemistry
Other rigor signals
Dual-enrollment program
Gifted/talented program

Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). CRDC reports what's offered + enrolled — it doesn't collect AP exam pass rates (College Board owns that data and doesn't release it school-level).

SAT / ACT participation

CRDC federal data · 2020-21

93rd percentile by test-taker volume

50th 90th
SAT/ACT test-takers
529
11th-12th graders who took 1+ college admissions test
Test-taking intensity
46.4
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?

82nd percentile nationally

50th 90th
4-year graduation rate
96%
Single-point estimate
4-year cohort size
266
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)
7.2%
Strong: experienced corps. New teachers rotate through but most have ≥3 years in.
% chronic teacher absence (≥10 days/yr)
41.5%
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.

Federal Title I context

Mixed-income school

Below Title I eligibility threshold (FRPL < 35%)

34.3%
FRPL rate — % of students who qualify for the federal Free or Reduced-Price Lunch program. This is the underlying federal income-eligibility signal Title I designations are computed from (ESEA Sec. 1113).
0% (no FRPL) 35% TA · 40% Schoolwide 100% (universal FRPL)

25-34% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch. Below the federal Title I threshold but a meaningful share of the population is income-eligible for free lunch.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data, free/reduced-price lunch eligibility. The actual Title I designation is a district decision and may differ from eligibility — but the federal eligibility math is what we show here. We don't claim to assert whether the district formally chose to enroll this school in Title I.

Your state's public flagship

Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College

74%
admit rate
$11,954
in-state tuition/yr · $28,631 out-of-state
1150–1330
SAT 25–75 · ACT 24–29

The in-state tuition gap is the flagship's biggest draw — most in-state families pay far less than the out-of-state sticker. Average net price after aid runs about $19,151/yr. Admission odds depend on your student's GPA and test scores, not which high school they attend.

See the full Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College profile → Estimate your odds with your scores →

Source: IPEDS admissions, tuition & enrollment + College Scorecard net price. Flagship = the state's primary public research university.

Pay for college in Louisiana

Louisiana's public scholarships

Louisiana's TOPS pays public-college tuition by merit tier — the higher your core GPA and test score, the bigger the award. No income limit on any tier. Scores below are SAT / ACT.

Merit TOPS Opportunity
Public-college tuition
GPA: 2.50 core GPA Test: SAT 1030 / ACT 20 Income: No income limit

Entry tier — Louisiana public-college tuition for a 2.5 core GPA and SAT 1030 / ACT 20.

Official program details ↗
Merit TOPS Performance
Tuition + $400/yr stipend
GPA: 3.25 core GPA Test: SAT 1130 / ACT 23 Income: No income limit

Tuition plus a $400/yr stipend for a 3.25 core GPA and SAT 1130 / ACT 23.

Official program details ↗
Merit TOPS Honors
Tuition + $800/yr stipend
GPA: 3.50 core GPA Test: SAT 1260 / ACT 27 Income: No income limit

Tuition plus an $800/yr stipend for a 3.5 core GPA and SAT 1260 / ACT 27.

Official program details ↗
Merit TOPS Excellence
Tuition & fees up to $12,000/yr
GPA: 3.50 core GPA Test: SAT 1390 / ACT 31 Income: No income limit

Top tier (new for 2024-25): tuition and fees up to $12,000/yr for a 3.5 core GPA and SAT 1390 / ACT 31. (New top tier (class of 2024-25 onward).)

Official program details ↗
Merit TOPS Tech
Up to 2 years of technical / vocational tuition
GPA: 2.50 core GPA Test: SAT 920 / ACT 17 Income: No income limit

Career-technical tier — up to two years of vocational tuition for a 2.5 core GPA and SAT 920 / ACT 17. (For non-academic / career-technical programs.)

Official program details ↗

Eligibility rules change yearly — confirm with the official program before relying on it. Amounts are recent published figures; awards cover tuition/fees, not housing or books unless noted. Verified 2026-10-21.

Chronic absenteeism

Share of students absent 15+ days
38.1%
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
460
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.

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

Counselor capacity

Student : Counselor
380:1
Around the US median. Counselors are stretched but functional.
Counselor FTE
3.0
Full-time-equivalent school counselors on staff.
Teacher FTE
73
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

Grade 12 went from 288 in 2021 to 287 in 2024 — over 3 years.
-0.3%

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

If the recent trend holds…

At its recent rate of -1.9%/year, projecting from 2024's 1,141 students:

2025
1,120
2027
1,079
2029
1,039

≈ 102 fewer students by 2029 — a real revenue/relevance risk worth getting ahead of.

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

Revenue at risk

At $17,277 per student in district revenue, the 102 students projected to be lost by 2029 represent ≈ $1,762,254/year in funding at risk.

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

Most similar nearby high schools

The schools most like this one — same type, blended on distance and size — and where their enrollment is heading. These are the schools families here weigh against each other.

SchoolTypeMilesHS enrollmentTrend
LaGrange High School
Lake Charles
Public 7.3 881 +14.7%
Washington/Marion Magnet High School
Lake Charles
Public 4.1 597 +13.7%
Alfred M. Barbe High School
Lake Charles
Public 9.0 1,908 +3.1%
Lake Charles College Prep
Lake Charles
Public · charter 8.1 624 +20.7%
Sulphur High School
Sulphur
Public 10.7 1,911 +0.2%
Westlake High School
Westlake
Public 4.2 487 +2.3%
Iowa High School
Iowa
Public 12.3 593 -2.5%
South Beauregard High School
Longville
Public 18.6 506 +1.6%

At a glance

JSON · Using this page with an AI assistant

Sam Houston High School is a public high school in Lake Charles, LA, enrolling 1,141 students in grades 9-12 in 2024.

Enrollment is down 0% from 2021 to 2024.

It offers 18 AP courses, a course-rigor profile stronger than 90% of U.S. high schools, and has a dual-enrollment program (federal Civil Rights Data Collection).

529 students took the SAT or ACT in the most recent federal count, a participation level above 93% of U.S. high schools.

Its federal four-year graduation rate was about 96% in the latest EDFacts release.

It has about 380 students per school counselor.

38% of its students were chronically absent in 2020.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics (enrollment), the federal Civil Rights Data Collection and EDFacts, state education agencies where named, and the school's own published documents where named.

Questions families ask

How many AP courses does Sam Houston High School offer? Sam Houston High School offers 18 AP courses, a course-rigor profile stronger than 90% of U.S. high schools, and has a dual-enrollment program (federal Civil Rights Data Collection).

What is Sam Houston High School's graduation rate? Sam Houston High School's federal four-year graduation rate was about 96% in the latest EDFacts release.

How many students attend Sam Houston High School? Sam Houston High School is a public high school in Lake Charles, LA, enrolling 1,141 students in grades 9-12 in 2024.

Analysis: Test Prep Gurus (High School Reach, highschoolreach.com). These figures may be quoted with attribution to Test Prep Gurus.

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