Enrollment
186
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Buffalo Lake, MN
Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 46/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 270002300288
👥 S:T ratio 54
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 63
📋 Attendance 38
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary earns 46/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 73% of Minnesota schools.
- 46
- Resource Index · Typical
- 11.6:1
- small classes for Minnesota
- 51.2%
- free-lunch eligible
- 186
- students enrolled
Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary has class sizes smaller than 73% of Minnesota schools. Computed live against every Minnesota school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart · Minnesota
NCES ID 270002300288 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
16.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.6:1
vs 15.8:1 Minnesota avg
-27% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
51.2%
vs 42.8% Minnesota avg
+20% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary compares with Minnesota and U.S. medians
What stands out at Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary
Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Buffalo Lake, Minnesota, enrolling 186 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11.6:1 puts it in the smaller third of Minnesota schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 51.2% of students eligible for free meals.
With 186 students, its enrollment sits close to the Minnesota median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 2,334 scored Minnesota schools.
Against 171 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #45.
Its student body is led by White (77%) and Hispanic or Latino (16%) (diversity index 38/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 186 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 24.7% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district, Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart, also runs Buffalo Lake-Hector Secondary (245 students).
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 Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary compares
Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Minnesota and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Minnesota | Minnesota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.6:1 | ▼ 27% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 51.2% | ▲ 20% | 42.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 186 | top 58% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.6:1
Leaner classes than 79% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
186
Bigger than 18% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
51.2%
free-lunch eligible
- 20% above the Minnesota average of 42.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
11.6:1
students per teacher
- 27% below state mean
Top 27% in Minnesota - lower ratio than 73% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
24.7%
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
$12,299
per pupil, district-wide
- below Minnesota avg of $15,270
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 186 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
- 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 76.9%
Hispanic or Latino 16.1%
Two or More 5.9%
African American 1.1%
Largest group: White at 76.9% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 37.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 37.9, Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary is less mixed than the Minnesota school average of 42.8.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart, which includes Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary.
$12,299
Per student
-19%
vs Minnesota
Avg $15,270
-26%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 23.4%
State 66.3%
Federal 10.3%
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 Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Lake-Hector Secondary | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 245
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Minnesota, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~186 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11.6:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart'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 Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary
How many students attend Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary?
Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary has 186 students enrolled. It is a public school in Buffalo Lake, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary is 11.6:1, which is 27% lower than the Minnesota average of 15.8:1 and 26% 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 Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary?
51.2% of students at Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Minnesota average of 42.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary is White at 76.9% of enrollment, in Buffalo Lake, MN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary?
Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (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 Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary a good school?
Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary earns 46/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 73% of Minnesota schools. 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 Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart?
Besides Buffalo Lake-Hector Elementary, Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart also operates Buffalo Lake-Hector Secondary (245 students). See the Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart 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.