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Welcome to the Palmerton Area HS community. What's one thing that would make Palmerton Area HS even better?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
478
High
DISTRICT 323 · STATE 738
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·PALMERTON AREA SD·NCES 421836004734
Palmerton Area High School
3525 Fireline Rd, Palmerton, PA 18071 · (610) 826-3155 · Carbon County
GRADES 09–12HIGH31-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL478 STUDENTS
B+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 67% of Pennsylvania public high schools
- B+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- BBeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Pennsylvania public high schools
Student : Teacher
11.6:1
41 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 11.6:1 · STATE 12.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
42%
199 students
DISTRICT 49% · STATE 75%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other high schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 9 | 127 | 27% |
| Grade 10 | 110 | 23% |
| Grade 11 | 120 | 25% |
| Grade 12 | 121 | 25% |
Student demographics
23%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 22% · STATE 59% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
School pathway
Feeds from
Based on grade levels within Palmerton Area SD. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
PSSA + Keystone 2024-25 . % Proficient or AdvancedEnglish Language Arts
73.5%
PA avg 51.1% . +4.5pp since 2023
Math
52.6%
PA avg 43.0% . +4.3pp since 2023
What this means: On the PSSA + Keystone, Pennsylvania's statewide test, about 74 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 53 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Pennsylvania schools, those numbers are about 51 and 43. Reading and writing scores are up about 5 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 4 points.
PSSA + Keystone results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 73.5% | 52.6% |
| 2023-24 | 69.0% | 48.3% |
% Proficient or Advanced, all students and all tested grades.
Source: PSSA + Keystone. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
59.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
59.8%
based on PA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-0.0pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 60% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 60% typical for Pennsylvania schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Pennsylvania's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Palmerton Area High School
Palmerton Area High School's state test result (59.7% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palmerton Area High School this school | 478 | 41.6% | 59.7% |
| Schuylkill Haven SHS Schuylkill Haven | 455 | 42.9% | 44.2% |
| Susquenita High School Duncannon | 490 | 40.8% | 40.9% |
| Kutztown Area SHS Kutztown | 420 | 39.0% | 73.0% |
| Eastern York High School Wrightsville | 640 | 44.8% | 68.7% |
| Lakeland JSHS Scott Township | 623 | 43.3% | 49.9% |
Matched among Pennsylvania high schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Palmerton Area High School ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In Pennsylvania | In Carbon County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 59.7% | #175 of 576 | #2 of 6 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 52.6% | #179 of 626 ▲ 10 | #2 of 6 no change |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 73.5% | #123 of 626 ▲ 74 | #1 of 6 ▲ 1 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 478 | #422 of 713 | #4 of 6 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 11.6:1 | #100 of 601 | N/A |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 22.9% | #358 of 604 | N/A |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 41.6% | #442 of 619 | #5 of 6 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +2.4% | #180 of 221 | N/A |
Ranked against other public high schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
478
+11 (+2%) vs 2020
-17% since 1990-91, when it was 573
Student : Teacher
11.6:1
was 12.0:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 478 | 41.3 | 11.6:1 | 42% (199) |
| 2023-24 | 504 | 40.2 | 12.5:1 | 39% (199) |
| 2022-23 | 482 | 40.4 | 11.9:1 | 31% (149) |
| 2020-21 | 467 | 39 | 12.0:1 | 24% (114) |
| 2017-18 | 467 | 34.4 | 13.6:1 | 27% (124) |
| 2015-16 | 451 | 33 | 13.7:1 | 29% (132) |
| 2010-11 | 552 | 35 | 15.8:1 | 20% (110) |
| 2000-01 | 575 | 32 | 18.0:1 | 21% (121) |
| 1990-91 | 573 | 31 | 18.5:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Palmerton Area High School.
Since 2017-18: students up 2% (467 to 478); teachers up 20% (34.4 to 41.3).
About Palmerton Area High School
Federal records list Palmerton Area High School as a high school in Palmerton, Pennsylvania. The school covers grades 9 through 12 and reported 478 students in 2024-25. Across high schools in Pennsylvania, the average enrollment is about 738.
The 5 schools of Palmerton Area SD, including Palmerton Area High School, enroll 1,616 students.
The share of White students at Palmerton Area High School is 87%. Next come 10% Hispanic. In Carbon County overall, the White share is about 89%. The diversity index for Palmerton Area High School is 23%. For US public schools as a whole it is 70%.
Palmerton Area High School has 41.3 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of about 11.6:1. High schools in Pennsylvania have an average ratio of 12.8:1. Eligibility for free or reduced-price lunch, often used to gauge student poverty, is 42%. That rate is below the 65% average among public schools in Carbon County.
Palmerton Area High School holds a B+ allk12 Grade, placing it above 67% of Pennsylvania public high schools.
A school with Palmerton Area High School's lunch-eligibility share in Pennsylvania is predicted to score 59.8%. Palmerton Area High School scores 59.7%, within a point of that line.
In the surrounding county, Carbon County, the median household earns about $67,554 a year, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 19%, and roughly 8% of residents are in poverty. Carbon County has 18 public schools with about 8,111 students, including Palmerton Area High School.
Measured in a straight line, Palmerton Area Junior High School is less than a tenth of a mile from Palmerton Area High School. Around the school, 7 other public schools are within five miles. Of 8 schools in the immediate area with test results, Palmerton Area High School ranks 3rd on average proficiency.
NCES describes the area around Palmerton Area High School as Town: Fringe, meaning in a town close to an urbanized area.
Enrollment at Palmerton Area High School was 467 in 2020-21 and 478 in 2024-25, a change of less than 3%.
You can use this page to share news and ask questions about open houses, carpools, and field trips. You can also rate the school on this page.
Carbon County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
65,382
Census ACS
Median income
$67,554
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
19%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
8%
Below federal line
Schools in county
18
8,111 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Palmerton Area SD
- S S Palmer Elementary SchoolElementary · 399 students
- Towamensing Elementary SchoolElementary · 328 students
- Palmerton Area Junior High SchoolMiddle · 261 students
- Parkside Education CenterElementary · 150 students
Other schools in Palmerton
- S S Palmer Elementary SchoolElementary · 399 students
- Palmerton Area Junior High SchoolMiddle · 261 students
- Parkside Education CenterElementary · 150 students
Nearby schools
- Palmerton Area Junior High School0.0 mi · 261
- Parkside Education Center0.6 mi · 150
- S S Palmer Elementary School0.6 mi · 399
- Slatington Elementary School3.2 mi · 487
- Northern Lehigh SHS3.5 mi · 502
- Northern Lehigh Middle School3.6 mi · 238
Frequently asked questions
About Palmerton Area High SchoolHow many students attend Palmerton Area High School?
Palmerton Area High School enrolls approximately 478 students in grades 09-12.
Is Palmerton Area High School an elementary, middle, or high school?
Palmerton Area High School is a high school covering grades 09-12.
How many teachers does Palmerton Area High School have?
Palmerton Area High School employs 41 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 11.6:1.
What is the student diversity at Palmerton Area High School?
Student demographics at Palmerton Area High School are roughly 87% White, 10% Hispanic, 1% Black, 0% Asian, 2% Two or more.
What district is Palmerton Area High School in?
Palmerton Area High School is part of Palmerton Area SD.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.