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La Junta, Colorado - 4 schools
An equity score of 66/100 ranks East Otero School District No. R1 #27 of 142 districts in Colorado (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $13,362 per pupil, East Otero School District No. R1 ranks #112 of 180 Colorado districts by per-pupil spending (Colorado districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
1,355
Total Enrollment
4
Schools
$13,362
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, Elementary
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
East Otero School District No. R1 operates 4 public schools serving 1,355 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Colorado. The school portfolio breaks down into 2 combined, 2 elementary schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Otero County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $13,362 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 180 Colorado districts by per-pupil spending. See how Colorado compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 18.6% local, 58.7% state, and 22.7% federal, a state-revenue-heavy mix that insulates the district somewhat from local property-tax volatility, though it ties funding to state budget cycles. The district's equity score is 66/100, ranked #27 of 142 in Colorado against a state average of 50, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 4 schools offering Advanced Placement (2 AP courses district-wide), a 256.1:1 student-counselor ratio, somewhat above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 44.3% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 72.0% Hispanic or Latino, 25.0% White, 0.3% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is La Junta Primary School, with a diversity index of 42.4/100.
Its largest campus is La Junta Jr/Sr High School, enrolling 501 students (39% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Tiger Trades Academy, at 90 students, a 6x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
La Junta Jr/Sr High School accounts for 37.0% of all East Otero School District No. R1 student enrollment
That dominant concentration means East Otero School District No. R1-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: combined. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
East Otero School District No. R1 school enrollment varies 5.6× across entities
East Otero School District No. R1 school enrollment ranges from 90 students (lowest) to 501 students (highest), a spread of 411 students. That relatively narrow ratio reflects an unusually homogeneous campus portfolio, most districts have a wider mix of school sizes. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
East Otero School District No. R1 has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 72.4% of the population qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch
free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is the federal threshold for Title I funding allocations, established under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). Eligibility here is approaching the 75% concentration-grant threshold; it does not yet unlock the extra funding tier but sits meaningfully above the baseline 50% majority mark. Regions with eligibility this high typically draw a substantially larger federal funding share relative to their local tax base, which can either offset or reinforce existing gaps depending on allocation policy.
East Otero School District No. R1 student-counselor ratio is 256:1 — near the typical range (US average ~408) — within the typical range for U.S. public districts
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Variation between sub-units within East Otero School District No. R1 is typically wider than the East Otero School District No. R1-aggregate figure suggests.
East Otero School District No. R1 chronic absenteeism rate is 44.3% — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
Comparisons are relative to East Otero School District No. R1's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data and the F-33 Finance Survey.
Nearby Districts in Colorado
Top districts in the same state, compare side-by-side for enrollment, spending, and demographics.
How many schools are in East Otero School District No. R1?
East Otero School District No. R1 has 4 schools, including 2 combined, 2 elementary. Total enrollment is 1,355 students.
How much does East Otero School District No. R1 spend per student?
East Otero School District No. R1 spends $13,362 per student. The district has an equity score of 66/100, ranking #27 in Colorado.
What is the demographic composition of East Otero School District No. R1?
East Otero School District No. R1 students are 72.0% Hispanic or Latino, 25.0% White, 0.3% African American, 0.1% Asian, averaged across 4 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for East Otero School District No. R1?
East Otero School District No. R1 has an equity score of 66/100, ranking #27 out of 142 districts in Colorado.