SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP.

FAIRMONT, Minnesota — 4 schools

112
Total Enrollment
4
Schools
$72,211
Per-Pupil Spending
Other
School Types

District-Level NCES Analysis

SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP. operates 4 public schools serving 112 students, placing it among the smaller districts in Minnesota. The school portfolio breaks down into 4 other schools, giving families a clear picture of grade-band coverage before they move, rent, or enrol. Aggregated across those campuses, enrollment totals 94 pupils using the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2022-23 release, and the district is geographically located in Martin County County.

Per-pupil expenditure runs $72,211 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, which aggregates every revenue and spending line reported under federal accounting standards. The funding mix is 43.9% local, 35.2% state, and 20.9% federal — a breakdown that matters because districts leaning heavily on local revenue are more exposed to property-tax swings, while higher federal shares typically track Title I concentration.

a 47:1 student-counselor ratio that meets the ASCA-recommended benchmark, and 100.0% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 71.7% White, 18.6% Hispanic or Latino, 2.9% African American across the district's schools.

Southern Plains Area Learning Cntr. accounts for 50.0% of all SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP. student enrollment

That concentration — well above the 8.4% national median for largest-entity share — means SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP.-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: other. 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.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data NCES Common Core of Data

SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP. school enrollment varies 9.4× across entities

SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP. school enrollment ranges from 5 students (lowest) to 47 students (highest), a spread of 42 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.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data NCES Common Core of Data

SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP. has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 72.9% 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.

Source: ESSA Title I Part A; ED EDFacts file system ESSA Title I Part A; ED EDFacts file system

SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP. student-counselor ratio is 47:1 — low (typically associated with meeting or exceeding the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) recommended 250:1 benchmark, which correlates with stronger college and career counseling capacity)

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 Lower values often correlate with smaller scale and population characteristics rather than higher resource budgets per se.

Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection NCES Civil Rights Data Collection

SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP. chronic absenteeism rate is 100.0% — 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.

Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22 NCES Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22

Where does the funding come from?

20.9%
Federal
35.2%
State
43.9%
Local

Local Rent Costs

Fair Market Rents in Martin County county, where this district is located.

$671
Studio/mo
$803
1 BR/mo
$973
2 BR/mo
$1,283
3 BR/mo
$1,288
4 BR/mo

Student Demographics

Average demographic composition across 4 schools in SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP..

White 71.7%
Hispanic or Latino 18.6%
African American 2.9%
Multiracial 6.8%

Source: NCES CCD School Membership 2024-25.

Programs & Resources

47:1
Student-Counselor Ratio
100.0%
Chronically Absent

Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22.

Schools in SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP.

School Enrollment
Southern Plains Area Learning Cntr.
47
Southern Plains Bridges
23
Southern Plains Education Coop.
19
Positive Approach to Learning
5

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Frequently Asked Questions

How many schools are in SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP.?

SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP. has 4 schools, including 4 other. Total enrollment is 112 students.

How much does SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP. spend per student?

SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP. spends $72,211 per student.

What is the average rent near SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP.?

The HUD Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom in Martin County County is $N/A/month (2026). This affects housing affordability for families in the district.

What is the demographic composition of SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP.?

SOUTHERN PLAINS EDUCATION COOP. students are 71.7% White, 18.6% Hispanic or Latino, 2.9% African American, averaged across 4 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.

Federal data Last updated 2026 Free public data

Coverage

50 states + DC

Full national footprint

Update cadence

Quarterly

Refreshed within 30 days of upstream release

Source agency

Federal

Authoritative data, no third-party aggregation

Page reliability score 94.0%
Industry baseline

Composite score weighing source authority, update freshness, and methodological transparency. 1.0 = full federal-source coverage with documented methodology and recent update.