Enrollment
735
Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 510313002588
Buckland Mills Elementary — Gainesville, VA
Federal NCES profile for Buckland Mills Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 49/100.
👥 Class size 26
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 27
📋 Attendance 72
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: Prince William County Public Schools · Virginia
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)
42.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.5:1
vs 14:1 Virginia avg
+32% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
23.0%
vs 59.9% Virginia avg
-62% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Buckland Mills Elementary compares with Virginia 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
Buckland Mills Elementary reports 735 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 42.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 18.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 32% above the Virginia state mean of 14:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 16% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 23.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 62% below the Virginia average and 56% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 368 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 11.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Prince William County Public Schools spends $15,984 per pupil district-wide, below the Virginia average of $16,211 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 47.2% from local sources (property taxes), 44.1% from the state, and 8.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 49/100 (D), 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 Buckland Mills Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Virginia state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Virginia | Virginia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.5:1 | ▲ 32% | 14:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 23.0% | ▼ 62% | 59.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 735 | top 71% | — | — |
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
23.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 62% below the Virginia average of 59.9%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
18.5:1
students per teacher
— 32% above state mean
Top 98% in Virginia — lower ratio than 2% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
11.4%
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
$15,984
per pupil, district-wide
— below Virginia avg of $16,211
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 368 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
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
Enrollment 735 Top 71% in Virginia — larger than 29% of 1,869 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 42.0
Students per teacher 18.5:1 +32% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 23.0% -62% vs state
NCES ID 510313002588
Student demographics
White 34.0%
Asian 29.4%
African American 15.1%
Hispanic or Latino 12.8%
Two or More 8.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Largest group: White at 34.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 368:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 11.4%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Prince William County Public Schools, which includes Buckland Mills Elementary.
$15,984
Per student
-1%
vs Virginia
Avg $16,211
-18%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 47.2%
State 44.1%
Federal 8.6%
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
- 2,956
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
- Enrollment
- 2,898
- Students per teacher
- 17.5:1
- Enrollment
- 2,661
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Enrollment
- 2,648
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Enrollment
- 2,524
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
Similar other schools in Gainesville
2 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
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 Buckland Mills Elementary
How many students attend Buckland Mills Elementary?
Buckland Mills Elementary has 735 students enrolled. It is a other school in Gainesville, VA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Buckland Mills Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Buckland Mills Elementary is 18.5:1, which is 32% higher than the Virginia average of 14:1 and 16% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Buckland Mills Elementary?
23.0% of students at Buckland Mills Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Virginia average of 59.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Buckland Mills Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Buckland Mills Elementary is White at 34.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in Gainesville, VA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Buckland Mills Elementary?
Buckland Mills Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 49/100 (D) 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.