Enrollment
290
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Bear Creek, NC
Bonlee School
Federal NCES profile for Bonlee School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 42/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 370075000305
👥 S:T ratio 45
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 42
📋 Attendance 10
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Bonlee School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the North Carolina median.
- 42
- Resource Index · Typical
- 13.8:1
- students per teacher
- 55.8%
- free-lunch eligible
- 290
- students enrolled
Bonlee School has class sizes near the North Carolina median. Computed live against every North Carolina school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Chatham County Schools · North Carolina
NCES ID 370075000305 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
21.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.8:1
vs 15.8:1 North Carolina avg
-13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
55.8%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
-15% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Bonlee School compares with North Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Bonlee School
Bonlee School is a higher-need, mid-sized elementary school in Bear Creek, North Carolina, enrolling 290 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 13.8:1 puts it in the smaller third of North Carolina schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 55.8% lands close to the North Carolina typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 290 puts it in the smaller third of North Carolina schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,698 scored North Carolina schools.
Against 252 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #157.
Its student body is led by White (69%) and Hispanic or Latino (19%) (diversity index 48/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 290 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 35.9% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Chatham County Schools also operates Seaforth High (1,088 students) and Jordan Matthews High (848 students) alongside Bonlee 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 Bonlee School compares
Bonlee School on the metrics families compare, against North Carolina and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.8:1 | ▼ 13% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 55.8% | ▼ 15% | 66.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 290 | top 78% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13.8:1
Leaner classes than 59% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
290
Bigger than 31% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
55.8%
free-lunch eligible
- 15% below the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
13.8:1
students per teacher
- 13% below state mean
Top 32% in North Carolina - lower ratio than 68% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
35.9%
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
$13,461
per pupil, district-wide
- above North Carolina avg of $12,017
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 290 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
33
in-school suspensions + 18 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 11.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 17.6 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 69.0%
Hispanic or Latino 19.0%
African American 9.3%
Two or More 2.8%
Largest group: White at 69.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 47.8/100
Simpson diversity index - at 47.8, Bonlee School is less mixed than the North Carolina school average of 56.1.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Chatham County Schools, which includes Bonlee School.
$13,461
Per student
+12%
vs North Carolina
Avg $12,017
-19%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 38.4%
State 46.9%
Federal 14.8%
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 Bonlee School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seaforth High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Jordan Matthews High | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Margaret B. Pollard Middle | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Chatham Grove Elementary | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Northwood High | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Bonlee School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,088
- Students per teacher
- 27.2:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 848
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 736
- Students per teacher
- 18.4:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 683
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 634
- Students per teacher
- 11.1:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
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.
Similar enrollment (~290 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~13.8:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Bonlee School's federal record.
- Compare Bonlee School against another school. Compare schools
- Chatham County Schools'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 Bonlee School
How many students attend Bonlee School?
Bonlee School has 290 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Bear Creek, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Bonlee School?
The student-teacher ratio at Bonlee School is 13.8:1, which is 13% lower than the North Carolina average of 15.8:1 and 12% 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 Bonlee School?
55.8% of students at Bonlee School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Bonlee School?
The largest demographic group at Bonlee School is White at 69.0% of enrollment, in Bear Creek, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Bonlee School?
Bonlee School has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (typical 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 Bonlee School a good school?
Bonlee School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the North Carolina 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 Chatham County Schools?
Besides Bonlee School, Chatham County Schools also operates Seaforth High (1,088 students), Jordan Matthews High (848 students), and Margaret B. Pollard Middle (736 students). See the Chatham County Schools 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.