Enrollment
259
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Belle, MO
Belle Elem.
Federal NCES profile for Belle Elem., including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 59/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 290000100048
👥 S:T ratio 51
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 48
📋 Attendance 66
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Belle Elem. earns 59/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Missouri median.
- 59
- Resource Index · Higher
- 12.3:1
- students per teacher
- 98.2%
- free-lunch eligible
- 259
- students enrolled
Belle Elem. has class sizes near the Missouri median. Computed live against every Missouri school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Maries Co. R-Ii · Missouri
NCES ID 290000100048 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
21.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.3:1
vs 12.8:1 Missouri avg
-4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
98.2%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
+113% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Belle Elem. compares with Missouri and U.S. medians
What stands out at Belle Elem.
Belle Elem. is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Belle, Missouri, enrolling 259 students.
At 12.3:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Missouri median, within a few percentage points of the 12.8:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need is high: 98.2% of students qualify for free meals, 113% above the Missouri average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
With 259 students, its enrollment sits close to the Missouri median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 2,313 scored Missouri schools.
Among 183 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Missouri schools statewide, it ranks #8, a top-tier result once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly White (97% of enrollment) (diversity index 6/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 259 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
13.5% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
The surrounding Maries Co. R-Ii spends $9,486 per pupil, 27% below the Missouri average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
Its district draws 19.6% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Maries Co. R-Ii also operates Belle High (228 students) and Maries Co. Middle (193 students) alongside Belle Elem..
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 Belle Elem. compares
Belle Elem. on the metrics families compare, against Missouri and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.3:1 | ▼ 4% | 12.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 98.2% | ▲ 113% | 46.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 259 | top 60% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.3:1
Leaner classes than 73% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
259
Bigger than 27% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
98.2%
free-lunch eligible
- 113% above the Missouri average of 46.1%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.3:1
students per teacher
- 4% below state mean
Top 44% in Missouri - lower ratio than 56% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
13.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$9,486
per pupil, district-wide
- below Missouri avg of $12,931
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 259 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 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 96.9%
Two or More 1.9%
African American 0.8%
Hispanic or Latino 0.4%
Largest group: White at 96.9% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 6.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 6.1, Belle Elem. is less mixed than the Missouri school average of 31.0.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Maries Co. R-Ii, which includes Belle Elem..
$9,486
Per student
-27%
vs Missouri
Avg $12,931
-43%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 48.0%
State 32.3%
Federal 19.6%
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 Belle Elem. Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belle High | Similar size | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Maries Co. Middle | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Belle Elem.'s own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 228
- Students per teacher
- 10.9:1
- Resource Index
- 55/100
- Enrollment
- 193
- Students per teacher
- 10.7:1
- Resource Index
- 56/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Missouri, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~259 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~12.3:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Belle Elem.'s federal record.
- Compare Belle Elem. against another school. Compare schools
- Maries Co. R-Ii'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 Belle Elem.
How many students attend Belle Elem.?
Belle Elem. has 259 students enrolled. It is a public school in Belle, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Belle Elem.?
The student-teacher ratio at Belle Elem. is 12.3:1, which is 4% lower than the Missouri average of 12.8:1 and 22% 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 Belle Elem.?
98.2% of students at Belle Elem. are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Belle Elem.?
The largest demographic group at Belle Elem. is White at 96.9% of enrollment, in Belle, MO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Belle Elem.?
Belle Elem. has a Resource Investment Index of 59/100 (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 Belle Elem. a good school?
Belle Elem. earns 59/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Missouri median. 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 Maries Co. R-Ii?
Besides Belle Elem., Maries Co. R-Ii also operates Belle High (228 students) and Maries Co. Middle (193 students). See the Maries Co. R-Ii 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.