Enrollment
638
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · St. Joseph, MO
Carden Park Elem
Federal NCES profile for Carden Park Elem, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 42/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 292706003250
👥 S:T ratio 34
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 36
📋 Attendance 28
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Carden Park Elem earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 90% of Missouri schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Missouri schools.
- 42
- Resource Index · Typical
- 16.4:1
- large classes for Missouri
- 99.5%
- free-lunch eligible
- 638
- students enrolled
Carden Park Elem has class sizes larger than 90% of Missouri schools. Computed live against every Missouri school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: St. Joseph · Missouri
NCES ID 292706003250 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
39.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.4:1
vs 12.8:1 Missouri avg
+28% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
99.5%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
+116% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Carden Park Elem compares with Missouri and U.S. medians
What stands out at Carden Park Elem
Carden Park Elem is a high-poverty, large elementary school in St. Joseph, Missouri, enrolling 638 students.
Class loads run heavy: 16.4:1 is larger than about 90% of Missouri schools and 28% above the 12.8:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Economic need is high: 99.5% of students qualify for free meals, 116% above the Missouri average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
Enrollment of 638 puts it in the larger third of Missouri schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,313 scored Missouri schools.
Against 111 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #42.
Its student body is led by White (53%) and Hispanic or Latino (21%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 64/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 319 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 29.0% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 18.8% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
St. Joseph also operates Central High (1,733 students) and Benton High (682 students) alongside Carden Park Elem.
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 Carden Park Elem compares
Carden Park Elem on the metrics families compare, against Missouri and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.4:1 | ▲ 28% | 12.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 99.5% | ▲ 116% | 46.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 638 | top 13% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
16.4:1
Leaner classes than 35% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
638
Bigger than 76% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
99.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 116% above the Missouri average of 46.1%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
16.4:1
students per teacher
- 28% above state mean
Top 90% in Missouri - lower ratio than 10% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
29.0%
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
$11,308
per pupil, district-wide
- below Missouri avg of $12,931
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 319 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
24
in-school suspensions + 26 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.8 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 53.1%
Hispanic or Latino 21.2%
Two or More 16.3%
African American 6.0%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 2.7%
Asian 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: White at 53.1% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 64.2/100
Simpson diversity index - at 64.2, Carden Park Elem is more mixed than the Missouri school average of 31.0.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for St. Joseph, which includes Carden Park Elem.
$11,308
Per student
-13%
vs Missouri
Avg $12,931
-32%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 50.8%
State 30.4%
Federal 18.8%
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 Carden Park Elem Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Benton High | Similar size | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Lafayette High | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Oak Grove Elem | Similar size | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Bode Middle | Similar size | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Carden Park Elem's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,733
- Students per teacher
- 18.6:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
- Enrollment
- 682
- Students per teacher
- 15.5:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 644
- Students per teacher
- 12.4:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 502
- Students per teacher
- 9.3:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 488
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Resource Index
- 25/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Missouri, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~638 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~16.4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Carden Park Elem's federal record.
- Compare Carden Park Elem against another school. Compare schools
- St. Joseph'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 Carden Park Elem
How many students attend Carden Park Elem?
Carden Park Elem has 638 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in St. Joseph, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Carden Park Elem?
The student-teacher ratio at Carden Park Elem is 16.4:1, which is 28% higher than the Missouri average of 12.8:1 and 4% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Carden Park Elem?
99.5% of students at Carden Park Elem are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Carden Park Elem?
The largest demographic group at Carden Park Elem is White at 53.1% of enrollment, in St. Joseph, MO. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 64.2/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Carden Park Elem?
Carden Park Elem has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (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 Carden Park Elem a good school?
Carden Park Elem earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 90% of Missouri schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Missouri 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 St. Joseph?
Besides Carden Park Elem, St. Joseph also operates Central High (1,733 students), Benton High (682 students), and Lafayette High (644 students). See the St. Joseph 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.