Enrollment
490
Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Alexandria, VA
Bren Mar Park Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Bren Mar Park Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 44/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 510126000073
👥 S:T ratio 46
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 2
📋 Attendance 60
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Bren Mar Park Elementary earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Virginia median.
- #32 of 42
- schools in Alexandria · Resource Index
- 44
- Resource Index · Typical
- 13.6:1
- students per teacher
- 45.2%
- free-lunch eligible
Bren Mar Park Elementary has class sizes near the Virginia median. Computed live against every Virginia school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Bren Mar Park Elementary ranks #32 of 42 schools in Alexandria, VA.
School address
District: Fairfax County Public Schools · Virginia
NCES ID 510126000073 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
36.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.6:1
vs 13.9:1 Virginia avg
-2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
45.2%
vs 57.6% Virginia avg
-22% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Bren Mar Park Elementary compares with Virginia and U.S. medians
What stands out at Bren Mar Park Elementary
Scale and staffing sit near the state mainstream
Bren Mar Park Elementary is neither an extreme outlier in enrollment nor in student-teacher ratio among Virginia schools. Its profile therefore turns on the other dimensions rather than on scale alone: economic need, counselor coverage, program access, attendance, and district finance. This middle placement is useful because it prevents the campus from being mislabeled as unusually large, small, crowded, or teacher-dense when the federal comparison does not support that claim.
The composite reveals a resource-side weakness
Bren Mar Park Elementary's free-meal eligibility sits closer to the broad Virginia middle than to an extreme, but its Resource Investment Index falls near the lower end of scored schools. That makes the composite itself the notable signal rather than student need. Inspecting the underlying factors matters here: a low score can result from thin counselor coverage, limited gifted access, attendance pressure, or heavier classroom staffing, and those are different operational problems.
Counselor caseload is the clearest capacity constraint
Bren Mar Park Elementary reports roughly 490 students for each counselor, well beyond the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark. Unlike total teacher staffing, that measure speaks specifically to academic planning, crisis response, and student guidance; a middle-range Resource Investment Index can conceal the bottleneck. The ratio is calculated from federal full-time-equivalent staffing and does not show how the district shares counselors across buildings or schedules their time.
Bren Mar Park Elementary is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Alexandria, Virginia, enrolling 490 students.
At 13.6:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Virginia median, within a few percentage points of the 13.9:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 45.2% lands close to the Virginia typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 490 students, its enrollment sits close to the Virginia median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,868 scored Virginia schools.
Among 191 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Virginia schools statewide, it ranks #166, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (44%) and White (20%) (diversity index 72/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 490 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
16.1% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
The surrounding Fairfax County Public Schools spends $17,977 per pupil, 23% above the Virginia average, a better-resourced district than most.
Among Alexandria's public schools, it stands alongside Hayfield Secondary (3,256 students): Bren Mar Park Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (13.6:1 vs 17.3:1).
Fairfax County Public Schools also operates Lake Braddock Secondary (4,411 students) and Robinson Secondary (3,710 students) alongside Bren Mar Park 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 Bren Mar Park Elementary compares
Bren Mar Park Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Virginia and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Virginia | Virginia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.6:1 | ▼ 2% | 13.9:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 45.2% | ▼ 22% | 57.6% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 490 | top 60% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13.6:1
Leaner classes than 61% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
490
Bigger than 60% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
45.2%
free-lunch eligible
- 22% below the Virginia average of 57.6%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
13.6:1
students per teacher
- 2% below state mean
Top 47% in Virginia - lower ratio than 53% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
16.1%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$17,977
per pupil, district-wide
- above Virginia avg of $14,649
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 490 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
6
in-school suspensions + 6 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 43.5%
White 20.4%
African American 18.8%
Asian 12.7%
Two or More 4.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.6%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 43.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 71.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 71.6, Bren Mar Park Elementary is more mixed than the Virginia school average of 53.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Fairfax County Public Schools, which includes Bren Mar Park Elementary.
$17,977
Per student
+23%
vs Virginia
Avg $14,649
+8%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 66.6%
State 23.3%
Federal 10.1%
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 Bren Mar Park Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Braddock Secondary | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Robinson Secondary | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Hayfield Secondary | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Chantilly High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| West Springfield High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Bren Mar Park Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 4,411
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Resource Index
- 57/100
- Enrollment
- 3,710
- Students per teacher
- 17.1:1
- Resource Index
- 54/100
- Enrollment
- 3,256
- Students per teacher
- 17.3:1
- Resource Index
- 53/100
- Enrollment
- 2,937
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
- Enrollment
- 2,799
- Students per teacher
- 18.5:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
Similar other schools in Alexandria
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Hayfield Secondary
Standard public school
3,256 students 17.3:1 students per teacher
Patrick Henry K-8 School
Standard public school
1,075 students 16.8:1 students per teacher
Parklawn Elementary
Standard public school
963 students 16.6:1 students per teacher
Mount Vernon Elementary
Standard public school
933 students 17.6:1 students per teacher
Hybla Valley Elementary
Standard public school
878 students 14.4:1 students per teacher
James K. Polk Elementary
Standard public school
804 students 15.2:1 students per teacher
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Virginia, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~490 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~13.6:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Bren Mar Park Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Bren Mar Park Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Fairfax County Public 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 Bren Mar Park Elementary
How many students attend Bren Mar Park Elementary?
Bren Mar Park Elementary has 490 students enrolled. It is a public school in Alexandria, VA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Bren Mar Park Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Bren Mar Park Elementary is 13.6:1, which is 2% lower than the Virginia average of 13.9:1 and 13% 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 Bren Mar Park Elementary?
45.2% of students at Bren Mar Park Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Virginia average of 57.6%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Bren Mar Park Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Bren Mar Park Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 43.5% of enrollment, in Alexandria, VA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 71.6/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Bren Mar Park Elementary?
Bren Mar Park Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, gifted-program reporting, counselor availability, chronic absenteeism. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Bren Mar Park Elementary rank among schools in Alexandria?
By Resource Investment Index, Bren Mar Park Elementary ranks #32 of 42 schools in Alexandria, VA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Alexandria on the city page.
What other schools are in Fairfax County Public Schools?
Besides Bren Mar Park Elementary, Fairfax County Public Schools also operates Lake Braddock Secondary (4,411 students), Robinson Secondary (3,710 students), and Hayfield Secondary (3,256 students). See the Fairfax County Public 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.