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Melvern, Kansas - 3 schools
An equity score of 87/100 ranks Marais Des Cygnes Valley #5 of 250 districts in Kansas (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $19,482 per pupil, Marais Des Cygnes Valley ranks #29 of 285 Kansas districts by per-pupil spending (Kansas districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
203
Total Enrollment
3
Schools
$19,482
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Marais Des Cygnes Valley operates 3 public schools serving 203 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Kansas. The school portfolio breaks down into 1 combined, 1 high, 1 middle 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 Osage County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $19,482 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, among the top 29 of 285 Kansas districts by per-pupil spending. See how Kansas compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 21.8% local, 66.1% state, and 12.1% 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 87/100, ranked #5 of 250 in Kansas against a state average of 50, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
a 61.5:1 student-counselor ratio, that meets the ASCA-recommended benchmark, and 11.9% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 90.9% White, 3.3% Hispanic or Latino, 0.6% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Marais Des Cygnes Valley Elem, with a diversity index of 26.6/100.
Its largest campus is Marais Des Cygnes Valley Elem, enrolling 87 students (50% of the district's total enrollment).
Marais Des Cygnes Valley Elem accounts for 42.9% of all Marais Des Cygnes Valley student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Marais Des Cygnes Valley-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.
Marais Des Cygnes Valley school enrollment varies 2.5× across entities
Marais Des Cygnes Valley school enrollment ranges from 35 students (lowest) to 87 students (highest), a spread of 52 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.
Marais Des Cygnes Valley has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 53.0% 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). Areas above 75% eligibility receive concentration grants on top of the basic Title I formula. 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.
Marais Des Cygnes Valley student-counselor ratio is 62:1 — well below typical (typically associated with unusually small scale or exceptionally high per-unit investment)
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 Values this far below typical often correlate with unusually small scale or population characteristics rather than higher resource budgets per se — worth checking whether the underlying denominator is itself an outlier.
Marais Des Cygnes Valley chronic absenteeism rate is 11.9% — low (typically associated with lower-than-average attendance disruption; districts in this range often have attendance interventions, robust transportation, or smaller catchments that reduce barriers)
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 Lower values often correlate with smaller scale and population characteristics rather than higher resource budgets per se.
Marais Des Cygnes Valley has 3 schools, including 1 combined, 1 high, 1 middle. Total enrollment is 203 students.
How much does Marais Des Cygnes Valley spend per student?
Marais Des Cygnes Valley spends $19,482 per student. The district has an equity score of 87/100, ranking #5 in Kansas.
What is the demographic composition of Marais Des Cygnes Valley?
Marais Des Cygnes Valley students are 90.9% White, 3.3% Hispanic or Latino, 0.6% African American, averaged across 3 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Marais Des Cygnes Valley?
Marais Des Cygnes Valley has an equity score of 87/100, ranking #5 out of 250 districts in Kansas.