Enrollment
40
Utah · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Big Water, UT
Big Water School
Federal NCES profile for Big Water School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 17/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 490048000887
👥 S:T ratio 20
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Big Water School earns 17/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Utah median. It is also one of the smallest schools in Utah.
- 17
- Resource Index · Lower
- 20:1
- students per teacher
- 25.6%
- free-lunch eligible
- 40
- students enrolled
Big Water School has class sizes near the Utah median. Computed live against every Utah school reporting to NCES.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
2.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20:1
vs 21.4:1 Utah avg
-7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
25.6%
vs 28.0% Utah avg
-9% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Big Water School compares with Utah and U.S. medians
What stands out at Big Water School
Big Water School is a small elementary school in Big Water, Utah, enrolling 40 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 20:1 puts it in the smaller third of Utah schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 25.6% lands close to the Utah typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
This is a small campus: fewer students than 95% of Utah schools, with 40 enrolled.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,065 scored Utah schools.
Among 18 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Utah schools statewide, it ranks #16, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by White (73%) and Hispanic or Latino (10%) (diversity index 45/100).
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 70.0% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The surrounding Kane District spends $11,781 per pupil, 20% above the Utah average, a better-resourced district than most.
Kane District also operates Kanab School (523 students) and Kanab High (322 students) alongside Big Water School.
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 Water School compares
Big Water School on the metrics families compare, against Utah and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Utah | Utah avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20:1 | ▼ 7% | 21.4:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 25.6% | ▼ 9% | 28.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 40 | top 95% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
20:1
Leaner classes than 16% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
40
Bigger than 5% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
25.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 9% below the Utah average of 28.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
20:1
students per teacher
- 7% below state mean
Top 38% in Utah - lower ratio than 62% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
70.0%
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
$11,781
per pupil, district-wide
- above Utah avg of $9,792
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
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 72.5%
Hispanic or Latino 10.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 10.0%
Two or More 5.0%
African American 2.5%
Largest group: White at 72.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 45.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 45.1, Big Water School is more mixed than the Utah school average of 40.9.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Kane District, which includes Big Water School.
$11,781
Per student
+20%
vs Utah
Avg $9,792
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 44.9%
State 46.3%
Federal 8.8%
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 Water School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kanab School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Kanab High | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Valley School | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Kanab Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Valley High | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Big Water School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 523
- Students per teacher
- 22.7:1
- Resource Index
- 12/100
- Enrollment
- 322
- Students per teacher
- 23:1
- Resource Index
- 27/100
- Enrollment
- 162
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
- Resource Index
- 25/100
- Enrollment
- 160
- Students per teacher
- 20:1
- Resource Index
- 17/100
- Enrollment
- 154
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Utah, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~40 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~20:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Big Water School's federal record.
- Compare Big Water School against another school. Compare schools
- Kane 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 Water School
How many students attend Big Water School?
Big Water School has 40 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Big Water, UT.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Big Water School?
The student-teacher ratio at Big Water School is 20:1, which is 7% lower than the Utah average of 21.4:1 and 27% higher 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 Big Water School?
25.6% of students at Big Water School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Utah average of 28.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Big Water School?
The largest demographic group at Big Water School is White at 72.5% of enrollment, in Big Water, UT.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Big Water School?
Big Water School has a Resource Investment Index of 17/100 (lower reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Big Water School a good school?
Big Water School earns 17/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Utah median. It is also one of the smallest schools in Utah. 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 Kane District?
Besides Big Water School, Kane District also operates Kanab School (523 students), Kanab High (322 students), and Valley School (162 students). See the Kane 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.