An equity score of 44/100 ranks Liberal #153 of 252 districts in Kansas (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $12,351 per pupil, Liberal ranks #257 of 286 Kansas districts by per-pupil spending (Kansas districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
4,659
Total Enrollment
8
Schools
$12,351
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, Middle
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Liberal operates 8 public schools serving 4,659 students, placing it among the smaller districts in Kansas. The school portfolio breaks down into 4 elementary, 2 middle, 1 high, 1 combined 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 Seward County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $12,351 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, among the bottom 29 of 286 Kansas districts by per-pupil spending. See how Kansas compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 14.3% local, 75.9% state, and 9.8% 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 44/100, ranked #153 of 252 in Kansas 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 8 schools offering Advanced Placement (7 AP courses district-wide), a 448.4:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 41.1% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 87.2% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% White, 1.2% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Macarthur Elementary School, with a diversity index of 35.9/100.
Its largest campus is Liberal Sr High, enrolling 1,421 students (31% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Meadowlark Elementary School, at 362 students, a 4x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Liberal Sr High accounts for 30.5% of all Liberal student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Liberal-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the largest entity. Grade band: high. The share measures enrollment concentration only; it does not establish how the district allocates programs, capital, or staff. Enrollment-weighted aggregates give this entity more weight than any smaller peer, while an unweighted entity average treats every record equally.
Liberal school enrollment varies 3.9× across entities
Liberal school enrollment ranges from 362 students (lowest) to 1,421 students (highest), a spread of 1,059 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.
The reported share sits between 62.5% and 75%, above a simple majority but below the highest descriptive band used here. Title I operates under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015), but its statutory allocation uses additional LEA-level counts and rules not represented by this average. This percentage is an economic-need context measure; it does not establish a Title I award, show dollars received, or describe how funds are distributed among campuses.
Liberal student-counselor ratio is 448:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)
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 Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Liberal chronic absenteeism rate is 41.1% — high (typically associated with higher-than-average disruption; recent CRDC data showed elevated rates persisting after pandemic-era schooling changes)
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 Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Liberal has 8 schools, including 1 high, 1 combined, 2 middle, 4 elementary. Total enrollment is 4,659 students.
How much does Liberal spend per student?
Liberal spends $12,351 per student. The district has an equity score of 44/100, ranking #153 in Kansas.
What is the demographic composition of Liberal?
Liberal students are 87.2% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% White, 1.2% African American, 1.1% Asian, averaged across 8 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Liberal?
Liberal has an equity score of 44/100, ranking #153 out of 252 districts in Kansas.