Enrollment
277
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Charlotte, NC
Aristotle Preparatory Academy
Federal NCES profile for Aristotle Preparatory Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 29/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 370035003296Charter school
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 29
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Aristotle Preparatory Academy earns 29/100 on the Resource Investment Index on federal resource data.
- #51 of 59
- elementary schools in Charlotte · Resource Index
- 29
- Resource Index · Lower
- 74.9%
- free-lunch eligible
- 277
- students enrolled
By Resource Investment Index, Aristotle Preparatory Academy ranks #51 of 59 elementary schools in Charlotte, NC.
School address
District: Aristotle Preparatory Academy · North Carolina
NCES ID 370035003296 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
1.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Free-lunch eligible
74.9%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
+13% vs state
What stands out at Aristotle Preparatory Academy
The composite reveals a resource-side weakness
Aristotle Preparatory Academy's free-meal eligibility sits closer to the broad North Carolina middle than to an extreme, but its Resource Investment Index falls near the lower end of scored schools. That makes the composite itself the notable signal rather than student need. Inspecting the underlying factors matters here: a low score can result from thin counselor coverage, limited gifted access, attendance pressure, or heavier classroom staffing, and those are different operational problems.
Attendance is the dominant support signal
Aristotle Preparatory Academy's 28.5% 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.
Aristotle Preparatory Academy is a higher-need, mid-sized charter elementary school in Charlotte, North Carolina, enrolling 277 students.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 74.9% lands close to the North Carolina typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 277 puts it in the smaller third of North Carolina schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index trails 92% of the 2,698 North Carolina schools with a score on record, one of the lower results on this measure.
Among 133 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need North Carolina schools statewide, it ranks #129, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by African American (75%) and Hispanic or Latino (16%) (diversity index 41/100).
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 28.5% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 18.7% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Among Charlotte's elementary schools, it stands alongside South Academy of International Languages (1,259 students): Aristotle Preparatory Academy is smaller than that campus by headcount.
Aristotle Preparatory Academy is a single-school charter district, so Aristotle Preparatory Academy operates independently rather than alongside district-mates.
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 Aristotle Preparatory Academy compares
Aristotle Preparatory Academy on the metrics families compare, against North Carolina and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free-lunch eligible | 74.9% | ▲ 13% | 66.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 277 | top 80% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
277
Bigger than 29% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
74.9%
free-lunch eligible
- 13% above the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Engagement
28.5%
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
$12,289
per pupil, district-wide
- above North Carolina avg of $12,017
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
14
in-school suspensions + 30 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 15.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Student demographics
African American 74.7%
Hispanic or Latino 15.5%
Two or More 5.8%
White 2.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
Largest group: African American at 74.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 41.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 41.4, Aristotle Preparatory Academy is less mixed than the North Carolina school average of 56.1.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Aristotle Preparatory Academy, which includes Aristotle Preparatory Academy.
$12,289
Per student
+2%
vs North Carolina
Avg $12,017
-26%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 23.8%
State 57.5%
Federal 18.7%
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.
Similar elementary schools in Charlotte
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
South Academy of International Languages
Standard public school
1,259 students 16.4:1 students per teacher
Rea Farms Steam Academy
Standard public school
1,098 students 16.9:1 students per teacher
Mallard Creek Stem Academy
Standard public school
961 students 15.8:1 students per teacher
Palisades Park Elementary
Standard public school
940 students 18.8:1 students per teacher
Unity Classical Charter School
Standard public school
928 students 40.3:1 students per teacher
Collinswood Language Academy
Standard public school
893 students 17.2:1 students per teacher
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of North Carolina, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Aristotle Preparatory Academy's federal record.
- Compare Aristotle Preparatory Academy against another school. Compare schools
- Aristotle Preparatory Academy'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 Aristotle Preparatory Academy
How many students attend Aristotle Preparatory Academy?
Aristotle Preparatory Academy has 277 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Charlotte, NC.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Aristotle Preparatory Academy?
74.9% of students at Aristotle Preparatory Academy are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Aristotle Preparatory Academy?
The largest demographic group at Aristotle Preparatory Academy is African American at 74.7% of enrollment, in Charlotte, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Aristotle Preparatory Academy?
Aristotle Preparatory Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 29/100 (lower reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 2 factors: gifted-program reporting, chronic absenteeism. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology). Limited indicators were available, so the index reflects partial data.
How does Aristotle Preparatory Academy rank among elementary schools in Charlotte?
By Resource Investment Index, Aristotle Preparatory Academy ranks #51 of 59 elementary schools in Charlotte, NC. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Charlotte on the city page.
What other schools are in Aristotle Preparatory Academy?
None; Aristotle Preparatory Academy is a single-school charter district, and Aristotle Preparatory Academy is its only campus.
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.