Enrollment
362
Alaska · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Big Lake, AK
Big Lake Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Big Lake Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 18/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 020051000727
👥 S:T ratio 34
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 10
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Big Lake Elementary earns 18/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 70% of Alaska schools.
- 18
- Resource Index · Lower
- 16.5:1
- large classes for Alaska
- 74.1%
- free-lunch eligible
- 362
- students enrolled
Big Lake Elementary has class sizes larger than 70% of Alaska schools. Computed live against every Alaska school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District · Alaska
NCES ID 020051000727 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
22.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.5:1
vs 15.2:1 Alaska avg
+9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
74.1%
vs 61.5% Alaska avg
+20% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Big Lake Elementary compares with Alaska and U.S. medians
What stands out at Big Lake Elementary
Big Lake Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Big Lake, Alaska, enrolling 362 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 16.5:1 puts it in the larger third of Alaska schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 74.1% lands close to the Alaska typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 362 puts it in the larger third of Alaska schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index trails 95% of the 495 Alaska schools with a score on record, one of the lower results on this measure.
Among 24 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Alaska schools statewide, it ranks #23, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by White (61%) and Two or More (18%) (diversity index 58/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 453 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 71.0% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The surrounding Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District spends $16,171 per pupil, 51% below the Alaska average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District also operates Mat-Su Central School (2,780 students) and Colony High School (1,046 students) alongside Big Lake Elementary.
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 Big Lake Elementary compares
Big Lake Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Alaska and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Alaska | Alaska avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.5:1 | ▲ 9% | 15.2:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 74.1% | ▲ 20% | 61.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 362 | top 19% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
16.5:1
Leaner classes than 34% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
362
Bigger than 42% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
74.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 20% above the Alaska average of 61.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
16.5:1
students per teacher
- 9% above state mean
Top 70% in Alaska - lower ratio than 30% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
71.0%
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
$16,171
per pupil, district-wide
- below Alaska avg of $33,240
Close to the U.S. public-school average per-pupil spend.
Support staff
Counselors0.8 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
7
in-school suspensions + 8 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.1 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 60.8%
Two or More 18.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 11.0%
Hispanic or Latino 7.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 1.1%
Asian 0.8%
African American 0.6%
Largest group: White at 60.8% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 58.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 58.0, Big Lake Elementary is more mixed than the Alaska school average of 43.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District, which includes Big Lake Elementary.
$16,171
Per student
-51%
vs Alaska
Avg $33,240
-3%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 22.6%
State 62.7%
Federal 14.7%
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.
How Big Lake Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mat-Su Central School | Larger | No free-lunch data | No ratio data |
| Colony High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Wasilla High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Colony Middle School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Mat-Su Career & Tech Ed High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Big Lake Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,780
- Students per teacher
- -
- Resource Index
- 35/100
- Enrollment
- 1,046
- Students per teacher
- 19:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 816
- Students per teacher
- 17.7:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 771
- Students per teacher
- 21.4:1
- Resource Index
- 27/100
- Enrollment
- 705
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Alaska, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~362 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~16.5:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Big Lake Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Big Lake Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Matanuska-Susitna Borough 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 Big Lake Elementary
How many students attend Big Lake Elementary?
Big Lake Elementary has 362 students enrolled. It is a public school in Big Lake, AK.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Big Lake Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Big Lake Elementary is 16.5:1, which is 9% higher than the Alaska average of 15.2:1 and 5% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Big Lake Elementary?
74.1% of students at Big Lake Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Alaska average of 61.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Big Lake Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Big Lake Elementary is White at 60.8% of enrollment, in Big Lake, AK. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 58.0/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Big Lake Elementary?
Big Lake Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 18/100 (lower 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 Big Lake Elementary a good school?
Big Lake Elementary earns 18/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 70% of Alaska 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 Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District?
Besides Big Lake Elementary, Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District also operates Mat-Su Central School (2,780 students), Colony High School (1,046 students), and Wasilla High School (816 students). See the Matanuska-Susitna Borough 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.