Enrollment
281
Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Laporte, CO
Cache La Poudre Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Cache La Poudre Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 47/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 080399000525
👥 S:T ratio 38
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 44
📋 Attendance 38
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Cache La Poudre Elementary School earns 47/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Colorado median.
- 47
- Resource Index · Typical
- 15.6:1
- students per teacher
- 27.5%
- free-lunch eligible
- 281
- students enrolled
Cache La Poudre Elementary School has class sizes near the Colorado median. Computed live against every Colorado school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Poudre School District R-1 · Colorado
NCES ID 080399000525 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
18.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.6:1
vs 16.6:1 Colorado avg
-6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
27.5%
vs 38.5% Colorado avg
-29% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Cache La Poudre Elementary School compares with Colorado and U.S. medians
What stands out at Cache La Poudre Elementary School
Cache La Poudre Elementary School is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Laporte, Colorado, enrolling 281 students.
At 15.6:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Colorado median, within a few percentage points of the 16.6:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 27.5% of students eligible for free meals.
With 281 students, its enrollment sits close to the Colorado median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,922 scored Colorado schools.
Against 277 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #106.
Its student body is led by White (76%) and Hispanic or Latino (20%) (diversity index 37/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 281 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 24.6% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Poudre School District R-1 also operates Rocky Mountain High School (2,044 students) and Fossil Ridge High School (1,846 students) alongside Cache La Poudre 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 Cache La Poudre Elementary School compares
Cache La Poudre Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Colorado and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Colorado | Colorado avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.6:1 | ▼ 6% | 16.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 27.5% | ▼ 29% | 38.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 281 | top 65% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
15.6:1
Leaner classes than 41% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
281
Bigger than 30% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
27.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 29% below the Colorado average of 38.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15.6:1
students per teacher
- 6% below state mean
Top 48% in Colorado - lower ratio than 52% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
24.6%
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
$13,223
per pupil, district-wide
- below Colorado avg of $16,273
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 281 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.1 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 76.4%
Hispanic or Latino 20.4%
Two or More 2.5%
African American 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
Largest group: White at 76.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 37.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 37.4, Cache La Poudre Elementary School is less mixed than the Colorado school average of 47.1.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Poudre School District R-1, which includes Cache La Poudre Elementary School.
$13,223
Per student
-19%
vs Colorado
Avg $16,273
-20%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 57.5%
State 35.4%
Federal 7.1%
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 Cache La Poudre Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rocky Mountain High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Fossil Ridge High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Fort Collins High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Liberty Common Charter School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Timnath Middle-High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Cache La Poudre Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,044
- Students per teacher
- 19.7:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 1,846
- Students per teacher
- 18.5:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 1,836
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
- Resource Index
- 54/100
- Enrollment
- 1,516
- Students per teacher
- 20.8:1
- Resource Index
- 29/100
- Enrollment
- 1,456
- Students per teacher
- 28:1
- Resource Index
- 0/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Colorado, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~281 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Cache La Poudre Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Cache La Poudre Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Poudre School District R-1'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 Cache La Poudre Elementary School
How many students attend Cache La Poudre Elementary School?
Cache La Poudre Elementary School has 281 students enrolled. It is a public school in Laporte, CO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Cache La Poudre Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Cache La Poudre Elementary School is 15.6:1, which is 6% lower than the Colorado average of 16.6:1 and 1% 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 Cache La Poudre Elementary School?
27.5% of students at Cache La Poudre Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Cache La Poudre Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Cache La Poudre Elementary School is White at 76.4% of enrollment, in Laporte, CO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Cache La Poudre Elementary School?
Cache La Poudre Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 47/100 (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 Cache La Poudre Elementary School a good school?
Cache La Poudre Elementary School earns 47/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Colorado 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 Poudre School District R-1?
Besides Cache La Poudre Elementary School, Poudre School District R-1 also operates Rocky Mountain High School (2,044 students), Fossil Ridge High School (1,846 students), and Fort Collins High School (1,836 students). See the Poudre School District R-1 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.