Enrollment
357
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 291229000489
Blue Hills Elem. — Independence, MO
Federal NCES profile for Blue Hills Elem., including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 50/100.
👥 Class size 39
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 29
📋 Attendance 63
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: Fort Osage R-I · Missouri
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
23.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.3:1
vs 12.9:1 Missouri avg
+19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
31.5%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
-32% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Blue Hills Elem. compares with Missouri and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Blue Hills Elem. reports 357 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 23.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 19% above the Missouri state mean of 12.9:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 4% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 31.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 32% below the Missouri average and 39% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 357 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 14.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Fort Osage R-I spends $15,543 per pupil district-wide, above the Missouri average of $15,248 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 47.4% from local sources (property taxes), 37.1% from the state, and 15.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (C-), calculated from 4 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Blue Hills Elem. compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Missouri state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.3:1 | ▲ 19% | 12.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 31.5% | ▼ 32% | 46.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 357 | top 57% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
31.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 32% below the Missouri average of 46.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15.3:1
students per teacher
— 19% above state mean
Top 83% in Missouri — lower ratio than 17% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
14.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$15,543
per pupil, district-wide
— above Missouri avg of $15,248
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 357 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 8 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 357 Top 57% in Missouri — larger than 43% of 2,321 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 23.0
Students per teacher 15.3:1 +19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 31.5% -32% vs state
NCES ID 291229000489
Student demographics
White 62.2%
Hispanic or Latino 16.0%
Two or More 11.2%
African American 7.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 2.5%
Asian 0.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: White at 62.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 357:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 14.8%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 8
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Fort Osage R-I, which includes Blue Hills Elem..
$15,543
Per student
+2%
vs Missouri
Avg $15,248
-20%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 47.4%
State 37.1%
Federal 15.6%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,545
- Students per teacher
- 18.5:1
- Enrollment
- 713
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Enrollment
- 675
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Enrollment
- 365
- Students per teacher
- 14.2:1
- Enrollment
- 327
- Students per teacher
- 12.4:1
Similar elementary schools in Independence
5 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Fire Prairie Middle
Standard public school
713 students 14.1:1 students per teacher
William Yates Elem.
Standard public school
463 students 13.4:1 students per teacher
Buckner Elem.
Standard public school
327 students 12.4:1 students per teacher
Elm Grove Elem.
Standard public school
305 students 12:1 students per teacher
Cler-Mont Elem.
Standard public school
298 students 13.3:1 students per teacher
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Blue Hills Elem.
How many students attend Blue Hills Elem.?
Blue Hills Elem. has 357 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in INDEPENDENCE, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Blue Hills Elem.?
The student-teacher ratio at Blue Hills Elem. is 15.3:1, which is 19% higher than the Missouri average of 12.9:1 and 4% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Blue Hills Elem.?
31.5% of students at Blue Hills Elem. are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Blue Hills Elem.?
The largest demographic group at Blue Hills Elem. is White at 62.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in INDEPENDENCE, MO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Blue Hills Elem.?
Blue Hills Elem. has a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (C-) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.