Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal
records, no number is typed in by an editor. District totals are aggregated directly from the schools reporting under this district in the source records. See our
editorial standards & corrections policy, the
methodology behind these numbers, or
report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.
Independence, Missouri - 9 schools
An equity score of 49/100 ranks Fort Osage R-I #222 of 432 districts in Missouri (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $11,979 per pupil, Fort Osage R-I ranks #269 of 549 Missouri districts by per-pupil spending (Missouri districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
4,846
Total Enrollment
9
Schools
$11,979
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, Combined
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Fort Osage R-I operates 9 public schools serving 4,846 students, placing it among the smaller districts in Missouri. The school portfolio breaks down into 5 elementary, 2 combined, 1 high, 1 middle schools, a compact enough portfolio that families can compare every campus directly before they move, rent, or enrol. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Jackson County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $11,979 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the upper half of 549 Missouri districts by per-pupil spending. See how Missouri compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 47.4% local, 37.1% state, and 15.6% federal, a balanced mix across local, state, and federal sources, spreading budget risk across funding cycles rather than concentrating it in one. The district's equity score is 49/100, ranked #222 of 432 in Missouri against a state average of 50, in line with the typical spread seen across the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 9 schools offering Advanced Placement (14 AP courses district-wide), a 341.5:1 student-counselor ratio, well above the ASCA benchmark though still under the roughly 408:1 national average, and 23.8% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 64.3% White, 14.8% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Indian Trails Elem., with a diversity index of 61.7/100.
Its largest campus is Fort Osage High, enrolling 1,545 students (33% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Early Childhood Ctr., at 133 students, a 12x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Fort Osage High accounts for 31.9% of all Fort Osage R-I student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Fort Osage R-I-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: high. 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.
Fort Osage R-I school enrollment varies 12× across entities
Fort Osage R-I school enrollment ranges from 133 students (lowest) to 1,545 students (highest), a spread of 1,412 students. That spread reflects typical mixed-portfolio variation between specialty programs and large neighbourhood schools. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Fort Osage R-I student-counselor ratio is 342:1 — 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 Fort Osage R-I is typically wider than the Fort Osage R-I-aggregate figure suggests.
Fort Osage R-I chronic absenteeism rate is 23.8% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
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 Variation between sub-units within Fort Osage R-I is typically wider than the Fort Osage R-I-aggregate figure suggests.
Fort Osage R-I has 9 schools, including 1 high, 5 elementary, 1 middle, 2 combined. Total enrollment is 4,846 students.
How much does Fort Osage R-I spend per student?
Fort Osage R-I spends $11,979 per student. The district has an equity score of 49/100, ranking #222 in Missouri.
What is the demographic composition of Fort Osage R-I?
Fort Osage R-I students are 64.3% White, 14.8% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% African American, 0.3% Asian, averaged across 9 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Fort Osage R-I?
Fort Osage R-I has an equity score of 49/100, ranking #222 out of 432 districts in Missouri.