Enrollment
374
Arkansas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Cotter, AR
Amanda Gist Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Amanda Gist Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 50/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 050468000193
👥 S:T ratio 48
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 25
📋 Attendance 57
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Amanda Gist Elementary School earns 50/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Arkansas median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Arkansas schools.
- 50
- Resource Index · Higher
- 12.9:1
- students per teacher
- 100.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 374
- students enrolled
Amanda Gist Elementary School has class sizes near the Arkansas median. Computed live against every Arkansas school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Cotter School District · Arkansas
NCES ID 050468000193 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
29.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.9:1
vs 13.6:1 Arkansas avg
-5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 59.2% Arkansas avg
+69% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Amanda Gist Elementary School compares with Arkansas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Amanda Gist Elementary School
Amanda Gist Elementary School is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Cotter, Arkansas, enrolling 374 students.
At 12.9:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Arkansas median, within a few percentage points of the 13.6:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 100.0% of students eligible for free meals.
With 374 students, its enrollment sits close to the Arkansas median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,066 scored Arkansas schools.
Against 163 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #52.
Its student body is predominantly White (95% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 10/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 374 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
17.4% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
Its district draws 21.1% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Its district, Cotter School District, also runs Cotter High School (324 students).
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Amanda Gist Elementary School compares
Amanda Gist Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Arkansas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Arkansas | Arkansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.9:1 | ▼ 5% | 13.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 69% | 59.2% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 374 | top 54% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.9:1
Leaner classes than 68% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
374
Bigger than 43% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
100.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 69% above the Arkansas average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.9:1
students per teacher
- 5% below state mean
Top 41% in Arkansas - lower ratio than 59% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
17.4%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$10,605
per pupil, district-wide
- below Arkansas avg of $12,251
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 374 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
18
in-school suspensions + 5 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 94.9%
Hispanic or Latino 1.9%
Two or More 1.3%
African American 1.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 94.9% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 9.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 9.9, Amanda Gist Elementary School is less mixed than the Arkansas school average of 40.4.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cotter School District, which includes Amanda Gist Elementary School.
$10,605
Per student
-13%
vs Arkansas
Avg $12,251
-36%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 24.7%
State 54.2%
Federal 21.1%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Amanda Gist Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cotter High School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Amanda Gist Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 324
- Students per teacher
- 5.5:1
- Resource Index
- 56/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Arkansas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~374 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~12.9:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Amanda Gist Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Amanda Gist Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Cotter School District's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Amanda Gist Elementary School
How many students attend Amanda Gist Elementary School?
Amanda Gist Elementary School has 374 students enrolled. It is a public school in Cotter, AR.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Amanda Gist Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Amanda Gist Elementary School is 12.9:1, which is 5% lower than the Arkansas average of 13.6:1 and 18% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Amanda Gist Elementary School?
100.0% of students at Amanda Gist Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arkansas average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Amanda Gist Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Amanda Gist Elementary School is White at 94.9% of enrollment, in Cotter, AR.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Amanda Gist Elementary School?
Amanda Gist Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Amanda Gist Elementary School a good school?
Amanda Gist Elementary School earns 50/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Arkansas median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Arkansas schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Cotter School District?
Besides Amanda Gist Elementary School, Cotter School District also operates Cotter High School (324 students). See the Cotter School District district page for the complete list.
Related tools
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. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.