Enrollment
364
Illinois · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Chicago, IL
Ariel Elem Community Academy
Federal NCES profile for Ariel Elem Community Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 27/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 170993001607
👥 S:T ratio 52
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 27
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Ariel Elem Community Academy earns 27/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 70% of Illinois schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Illinois schools.
- #254 of 394
- schools in Chicago · Resource Index
- 27
- Resource Index · Lower
- 12.1:1
- small classes for Illinois
- 364
- students enrolled
Ariel Elem Community Academy has class sizes smaller than 70% of Illinois schools. Computed live against every Illinois school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Ariel Elem Community Academy ranks #254 of 394 schools in Chicago, IL.
School address
District: City of Chicago Sd 299 · Illinois
NCES ID 170993001607 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
30.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.1:1
vs 14:1 Illinois avg
-14% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Ariel Elem Community Academy compares with Illinois and U.S. medians
What stands out at Ariel Elem Community Academy
Scale and staffing sit near the state mainstream
Ariel Elem Community Academy is neither an extreme outlier in enrollment nor in student-teacher ratio among Illinois schools. Its profile therefore turns on the other dimensions rather than on scale alone: economic need, counselor coverage, program access, attendance, and district finance. This middle placement is useful because it prevents the campus from being mislabeled as unusually large, small, crowded, or teacher-dense when the federal comparison does not support that claim.
Attendance is the dominant support signal
Ariel Elem Community Academy's 47.3% chronic-absence rate is more consequential than a generic staffing label: at least one quarter of students missed 10% or more of school days in the 2021-22 collection. That level can affect instruction, counseling demand, and continuity even when other reported resources look ordinary. The dataset records the scale of absence but not its causes, so it should prompt a current-year question rather than a conclusion about school management.
Ariel Elem Community Academy is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Chicago, Illinois, enrolling 364 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.1:1 puts it in the smaller third of Illinois schools by student-teacher ratio.
With 364 students, its enrollment sits close to the Illinois median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 3,845 scored Illinois schools.
Its student body is predominantly African American (96% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 8/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 364 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 47.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The surrounding City of Chicago Sd 299 spends $21,050 per pupil, 24% above the Illinois average, a better-resourced district than most.
Its district draws 17.4% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Among Chicago's public schools, it stands alongside Lane Technical High School (4,604 students): Ariel Elem Community Academy is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (12.1:1 vs 17.8:1).
City of Chicago Sd 299 also operates Lane Technical High School (4,604 students) and Taft High School (4,487 students) alongside Ariel Elem Community Academy.
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 Ariel Elem Community Academy compares
Ariel Elem Community Academy on the metrics families compare, against Illinois and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Illinois | Illinois avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.1:1 | ▼ 14% | 14:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 364 | top 51% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.1:1
Leaner classes than 75% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
364
Bigger than 42% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
12.1:1
students per teacher
- 14% below state mean
Top 30% in Illinois - lower ratio than 70% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
47.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$21,050
per pupil, district-wide
- above Illinois avg of $17,042
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 364 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Student demographics
African American 95.9%
Hispanic or Latino 3.0%
Two or More 0.8%
White 0.3%
Largest group: African American at 95.9% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 7.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 7.9, Ariel Elem Community Academy is less mixed than the Illinois school average of 38.9.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for City of Chicago Sd 299, which includes Ariel Elem Community Academy.
$21,050
Per student
+24%
vs Illinois
Avg $17,042
+27%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 52.8%
State 29.9%
Federal 17.4%
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 Ariel Elem Community Academy Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lane Technical High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Taft High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Curie Metropolitan High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Kenwood Academy High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Young Magnet High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Ariel Elem Community Academy's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 4,604
- Students per teacher
- 17.8:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 4,487
- Students per teacher
- 16.7:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
- Enrollment
- 3,099
- Students per teacher
- 16.1:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 2,268
- Students per teacher
- 18.6:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 2,223
- Students per teacher
- 17.5:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
Similar other schools in Chicago
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Lane Technical High School
Standard public school
4,604 students 17.8:1 students per teacher
Taft High School
Standard public school
4,487 students 16.7:1 students per teacher
Kenwood Academy High School
Standard public school
2,268 students 18.6:1 students per teacher
Young Magnet High School
Standard public school
2,223 students 17.5:1 students per teacher
Disney Elem Magnet School
Standard public school
1,384 students 15.2:1 students per teacher
Morgan Park High School
Standard public school
1,349 students 19:1 students per teacher
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Illinois, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~364 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~12.1:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Ariel Elem Community Academy's federal record.
- Compare Ariel Elem Community Academy against another school. Compare schools
- City of Chicago Sd 299'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 Ariel Elem Community Academy
How many students attend Ariel Elem Community Academy?
Ariel Elem Community Academy has 364 students enrolled. It is a public school in Chicago, IL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ariel Elem Community Academy?
The student-teacher ratio at Ariel Elem Community Academy is 12.1:1, which is 14% lower than the Illinois average of 14:1 and 23% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Ariel Elem Community Academy?
The largest demographic group at Ariel Elem Community Academy is African American at 95.9% of enrollment, in Chicago, IL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Ariel Elem Community Academy?
Ariel Elem Community Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 27/100 (lower reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, gifted-program reporting, counselor availability, chronic absenteeism. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Ariel Elem Community Academy rank among schools in Chicago?
By Resource Investment Index, Ariel Elem Community Academy ranks #254 of 394 schools in Chicago, IL. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Chicago on the city page.
What other schools are in City of Chicago Sd 299?
Besides Ariel Elem Community Academy, City of Chicago Sd 299 also operates Lane Technical High School (4,604 students), Taft High School (4,487 students), and Curie Metropolitan High School (3,099 students). See the City of Chicago Sd 299 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.