Enrollment
495
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Eldon, IA
Cardinal Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Cardinal Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 48/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 190624001975
👥 S:T ratio 45
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 1
📋 Attendance 76
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Cardinal Elementary earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Iowa median.
- #3 of 3
- public schools in Eldon · Resource Index
- 48
- Resource Index · Typical
- 13.8:1
- students per teacher
- 58.8%
- free-lunch eligible
Cardinal Elementary has class sizes near the Iowa median. Computed live against every Iowa school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Cardinal Elementary ranks #3 of 3 public schools in Eldon, IA.
School address
District: Cardinal Comm School District · Iowa
NCES ID 190624001975 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
36.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.8:1
vs 14.8:1 Iowa avg
-7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
58.8%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
+62% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Cardinal Elementary compares with Iowa and U.S. medians
What stands out at Cardinal Elementary
Cardinal Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Eldon, Iowa, enrolling 495 students.
At 13.8:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Iowa median, within a few percentage points of the 14.8:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need is high: 58.8% of students qualify for free meals, 62% above the Iowa average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
Enrollment of 495 puts it in the larger third of Iowa schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,322 scored Iowa schools.
Against 157 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #32.
Its student body is predominantly White (89% of enrollment) (diversity index 21/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 495 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance holds up well here: only 9.7% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
Cardinal Comm School District also operates Cardinal Junior High (314 students) and Cardinal High School (270 students) alongside Cardinal Elementary.
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 Cardinal Elementary compares
Cardinal Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Iowa and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.8:1 | ▼ 7% | 14.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 58.8% | ▲ 62% | 36.4% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 495 | top 20% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13.8:1
Leaner classes than 59% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
495
Bigger than 61% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
58.8%
free-lunch eligible
- 62% above the Iowa average of 36.4%
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
13.8:1
students per teacher
- 7% below state mean
Top 47% in Iowa - lower ratio than 53% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
9.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$11,378
per pupil, district-wide
- below Iowa avg of $12,854
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 495 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
6
in-school suspensions + 5 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.2 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 88.7%
Hispanic or Latino 7.7%
Two or More 3.2%
African American 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 88.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 20.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 20.6, Cardinal Elementary is less mixed than the Iowa school average of 33.8.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cardinal Comm School District, which includes Cardinal Elementary.
$11,378
Per student
-11%
vs Iowa
Avg $12,854
-31%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 48.9%
State 39.0%
Federal 12.1%
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 Cardinal Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinal Junior High | Smaller | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Cardinal High School | Smaller | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Cardinal Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 314
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Resource Index
- 59/100
- Enrollment
- 270
- Students per teacher
- 12.9:1
- Resource Index
- 59/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Iowa, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~495 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Cardinal Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Cardinal Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Cardinal Comm School District'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 Cardinal Elementary
How many students attend Cardinal Elementary?
Cardinal Elementary has 495 students enrolled. It is a public school in Eldon, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Cardinal Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Cardinal Elementary is 13.8:1, which is 7% lower than the Iowa average of 14.8:1 and 12% 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 Cardinal Elementary?
58.8% of students at Cardinal Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Cardinal Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Cardinal Elementary is White at 88.7% of enrollment, in Eldon, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Cardinal Elementary?
Cardinal Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (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 Cardinal Elementary rank among public schools in Eldon?
By Resource Investment Index, Cardinal Elementary ranks #3 of 3 public schools in Eldon, IA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Eldon on the city page.
Is Cardinal Elementary a good school?
Cardinal Elementary earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Iowa 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 Cardinal Comm School District?
Besides Cardinal Elementary, Cardinal Comm School District also operates Cardinal Junior High (314 students) and Cardinal High School (270 students). See the Cardinal Comm School District 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.