Enrollment
483
South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 450375001082
Buffalo Elementary — Buffalo, SC
Federal NCES profile for Buffalo Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 51/100.
👥 Class size 51
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 3
📋 Attendance 79
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: Union 01 · South Carolina
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)
40.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.3:1
vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg
-14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 74.0% South Carolina avg
+35% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Buffalo Elementary compares with South Carolina 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
Buffalo Elementary reports 483 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 40.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 14% below the South Carolina state mean of 14.3:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 23% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 100.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 35% above the South Carolina average and 93% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 483 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 8.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Union 01 spends $12,593 per pupil district-wide, below the South Carolina average of $17,182 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 22.7% from local sources (property taxes), 53.3% from the state, and 24.0% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (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 Buffalo Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against South Carolina state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs South Carolina | South Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.3:1 | ▼ 14% | 14.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 35% | 74.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 483 | top 42% | — | — |
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
100.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 35% above the South Carolina average of 74.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.3:1
students per teacher
— 14% below state mean
Top 23% in South Carolina — lower ratio than 77% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
8.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$12,593
per pupil, district-wide
— below South Carolina avg of $17,182
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 483 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
14
in-school suspensions + 64 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 16.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 483 Top 42% in South Carolina — larger than 58% of 1,215 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 40.0
Students per teacher 12.3:1 -14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 100.0% +35% vs state
NCES ID 450375001082
Student demographics
White 45.3%
African American 34.6%
Two or More 15.3%
Hispanic or Latino 4.3%
Asian 0.4%
Largest group: White at 45.3% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 483:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 8.5%
In-school suspensions 14
Out-of-school suspensions 64
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Union 01, which includes Buffalo Elementary.
$12,593
Per student
-27%
vs South Carolina
Avg $17,182
-35%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 22.7%
State 53.3%
Federal 24.0%
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
- 1,024
- Students per teacher
- 21.4:1
- Enrollment
- 606
- Students per teacher
- 12.7:1
- Enrollment
- 557
- Students per teacher
- 15.5:1
- Enrollment
- 442
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
- Enrollment
- 430
- Students per teacher
- 13.8:1
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 Buffalo Elementary
How many students attend Buffalo Elementary?
Buffalo Elementary has 483 students enrolled. It is a other school in Buffalo, SC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Buffalo Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Buffalo Elementary is 12.3:1, which is 14% lower than the South Carolina average of 14.3:1 and 23% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Buffalo Elementary?
100.0% of students at Buffalo Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Buffalo Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Buffalo Elementary is White at 45.3%. The school serves a diverse student body in Buffalo, SC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Buffalo Elementary?
Buffalo Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (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.