Enrollment
395
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Wilmington, NC
Cape Fear Center for Inquiry
Federal NCES profile for Cape Fear Center for Inquiry, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 43/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 370010802534Charter school
👥 S:T ratio 44
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 21
📋 Attendance 78
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Cape Fear Center for Inquiry earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the North Carolina median.
- #13 of 24
- elementary schools in Wilmington · Resource Index
- 43
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14.1:1
- students per teacher
- 395
- students enrolled
Cape Fear Center for Inquiry has class sizes near the North Carolina median. Computed live against every North Carolina school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Cape Fear Center for Inquiry ranks #13 of 24 elementary schools in Wilmington, NC.
School address
District: Cape Fear Center for Inquiry · North Carolina
NCES ID 370010802534 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
28.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.1:1
vs 15.8:1 North Carolina avg
-11% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Cape Fear Center for Inquiry compares with North Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Cape Fear Center for Inquiry
Cape Fear Center for Inquiry is a mid-sized charter elementary school in Wilmington, North Carolina, enrolling 395 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 14.1:1 puts it in the smaller third of North Carolina schools by student-teacher ratio.
With 395 students, its enrollment sits close to the North Carolina median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,698 scored North Carolina schools.
Its student body is predominantly White (81% of enrollment) (diversity index 33/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 395 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Attendance holds up well here: only 8.6% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
Among Wilmington's elementary schools, it stands alongside Porters Neck Elementary (666 students): Cape Fear Center for Inquiry is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (14.1:1 vs 16.6:1).
Cape Fear Center for Inquiry is a single-school charter district, so Cape Fear Center for Inquiry operates independently rather than alongside district-mates.
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 Cape Fear Center for Inquiry compares
Cape Fear Center for Inquiry on the metrics families compare, against North Carolina and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.1:1 | ▼ 11% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 395 | top 64% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.1:1
Leaner classes than 56% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
395
Bigger than 47% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
14.1:1
students per teacher
- 11% below state mean
Top 36% in North Carolina - lower ratio than 64% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
8.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$10,627
per pupil, district-wide
- below North Carolina avg of $12,017
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 395 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.5 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 81.0%
African American 7.3%
Hispanic or Latino 6.6%
Two or More 3.0%
Asian 1.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: White at 81.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 33.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 33.3, Cape Fear Center for Inquiry is less mixed than the North Carolina school average of 56.1.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cape Fear Center for Inquiry, which includes Cape Fear Center for Inquiry.
$10,627
Per student
-12%
vs North Carolina
Avg $12,017
-36%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 38.1%
State 56.5%
Federal 5.4%
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.
Similar elementary schools in Wilmington
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Porters Neck Elementary
Standard public school
666 students 16.6:1 students per teacher
Ogden Elementary
Standard public school
619 students 16.3:1 students per teacher
Masonboro Elementary
Standard public school
564 students 16.1:1 students per teacher
Heyward C Bellamy Elem
Standard public school
533 students 14:1 students per teacher
The International School at Gregory
Standard public school
514 students 12.8:1 students per teacher
Edwin a Anderson Elementary
Standard public school
514 students 12.5:1 students per teacher
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of North Carolina, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~395 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~14.1:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Cape Fear Center for Inquiry's federal record.
- Compare Cape Fear Center for Inquiry against another school. Compare schools
- Cape Fear Center for Inquiry'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 Cape Fear Center for Inquiry
How many students attend Cape Fear Center for Inquiry?
Cape Fear Center for Inquiry has 395 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Wilmington, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Cape Fear Center for Inquiry?
The student-teacher ratio at Cape Fear Center for Inquiry is 14.1:1, which is 11% lower than the North Carolina average of 15.8:1 and 10% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Cape Fear Center for Inquiry?
The largest demographic group at Cape Fear Center for Inquiry is White at 81.0% of enrollment, in Wilmington, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Cape Fear Center for Inquiry?
Cape Fear Center for Inquiry has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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).
How does Cape Fear Center for Inquiry rank among elementary schools in Wilmington?
By Resource Investment Index, Cape Fear Center for Inquiry ranks #13 of 24 elementary schools in Wilmington, NC. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Wilmington on the city page.
Is Cape Fear Center for Inquiry a good school?
Cape Fear Center for Inquiry earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the North Carolina 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 Cape Fear Center for Inquiry?
None; Cape Fear Center for Inquiry is a single-school charter district, and Cape Fear Center for Inquiry is its only campus.
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.