Elementary school (grades K-5) · Phoenix, AZ

Brunson-Lee Elementary School

Federal NCES profile for Brunson-Lee Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 20/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 040105003142
0/100100/10020/100
👥 S:T ratio
31
🌟 Gifted program
30
📋 Attendance
0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Brunson-Lee Elementary School earns 20/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Arizona median.

#82 of 116
elementary schools in Phoenix · Resource Index
20
Resource Index · Lower
17.2:1
students per teacher
87.8%
free-lunch eligible

Brunson-Lee Elementary School has class sizes near the Arizona median. Computed live against every Arizona school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Brunson-Lee Elementary School ranks #82 of 116 elementary schools in Phoenix, AZ.

Enrollment

412

Arizona · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

24.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

17.2:1

vs 17:1 Arizona avg

+1% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

87.8%

vs 48.3% Arizona avg

+82% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Brunson-Lee Elementary School compares with Arizona and U.S. medians

Slightly above state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Brunson-Lee Elementary School

Brunson-Lee Elementary School is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Phoenix, Arizona, enrolling 412 students.

At 17.2:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Arizona median, within a few percentage points of the 17:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.

Economic need is high: 87.8% of students qualify for free meals, 82% above the Arizona average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.

With 412 students, its enrollment sits close to the Arizona median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,064 scored Arizona schools.

Among 158 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Arizona schools statewide, it ranks #121, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (69%) and African American (17%) (diversity index 49/100).

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 73.1% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Its district draws 17.8% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Among Phoenix's elementary schools, it stands alongside Academy of Math and Science Avondale (1,175 students): Brunson-Lee Elementary School is smaller than that campus by headcount.

Balsz Elementary District (4268) also operates Pat Tillman Middle School (598 students) and David Crockett Elementary School (466 students) alongside Brunson-Lee Elementary 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 Brunson-Lee Elementary School compares

Brunson-Lee Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Arizona and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Arizona Arizona avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 17.2:1 ▲ 1% 17:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 87.8% ▲ 82% 48.3% 51.7%
Enrollment 412 top 50% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

17.2:1
Leaner classes than 29% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
412
Bigger than 49% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
87.8%
free-lunch eligible - 82% above the Arizona average of 48.3%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
17.2:1
students per teacher - 1% above state mean
Top 56% in Arizona - lower ratio than 44% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
73.1%
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
$13,090
per pupil, district-wide - below Arizona avg of $13,145
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
4
in-school suspensions + 20 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 5.8 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

Hispanic or Latino 68.7%
African American 17.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 7.5%
Two or More 2.9%
White 2.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.7%
Asian 0.2%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 68.7% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 49.1/100

Simpson diversity index - at 49.1, Brunson-Lee Elementary School is about as mixed as the Arizona school average of 47.2.

Programs

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Balsz Elementary District (4268), which includes Brunson-Lee Elementary School.

$13,090
Per student
0%
vs Arizona
Avg $13,145
-21%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 49.3%
State 32.8%
Federal 17.8%

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 Brunson-Lee Elementary School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Pat Tillman Middle School Larger Similar economic need Lower S:T ratio
David Crockett Elementary School Similar size Similar economic need Lower S:T ratio
Griffith Elementary School Similar size Similar economic need Lower S:T ratio
Orangedale Early Learning Center Smaller Lower economic need Similar S:T ratio
Balsz Online Academy (B.O.a.) Smaller No free-lunch data No ratio data

Comparisons are relative to Brunson-Lee Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Balsz Elementary District (4268) · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools in Phoenix

6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.

Similar elementary schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Arizona, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Brunson-Lee Elementary School's federal record.

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 Brunson-Lee Elementary School

How many students attend Brunson-Lee Elementary School?

Brunson-Lee Elementary School has 412 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Phoenix, AZ.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Brunson-Lee Elementary School?

The student-teacher ratio at Brunson-Lee Elementary School is 17.2:1, which is 1% higher than the Arizona average of 17:1 and 10% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Brunson-Lee Elementary School?

87.8% of students at Brunson-Lee Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arizona average of 48.3%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Brunson-Lee Elementary School?

The largest demographic group at Brunson-Lee Elementary School is Hispanic or Latino at 68.7% of enrollment, in Phoenix, AZ.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Brunson-Lee Elementary School?

Brunson-Lee Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 20/100 (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).

How does Brunson-Lee Elementary School rank among elementary schools in Phoenix?

By Resource Investment Index, Brunson-Lee Elementary School ranks #82 of 116 elementary schools in Phoenix, AZ. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Phoenix on the city page.

Is Brunson-Lee Elementary School a good school?

Brunson-Lee Elementary School earns 20/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Arizona 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 Balsz Elementary District (4268)?

Besides Brunson-Lee Elementary School, Balsz Elementary District (4268) also operates Pat Tillman Middle School (598 students), David Crockett Elementary School (466 students), and Griffith Elementary School (422 students). See the Balsz Elementary District (4268) district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.