Enrollment
355
Washington · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 530294000471
Central Avenue Elementary — Tacoma, WA
Federal NCES profile for Central Avenue Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 37/100.
👥 Class size 39
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 29
📋 Attendance 48
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: Franklin Pierce School District · Washington
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
25.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.2:1
vs 17.8:1 Washington avg
-15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
50.9%
vs 45.0% Washington avg
+13% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Central Avenue Elementary compares with Washington and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Central Avenue Elementary reports 355 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 25.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 15% below the Washington state mean of 17.8:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 4% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 50.9% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 13% above the Washington average and 2% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 355 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 20.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Franklin Pierce School District spends $21,076 per pupil district-wide, below the Washington average of $23,175 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 22.0% from local sources (property taxes), 64.5% from the state, and 13.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (F), calculated from 4 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Central Avenue Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Washington state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Washington | Washington avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.2:1 | ▼ 15% | 17.8:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 50.9% | ▲ 13% | 45.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 355 | top 45% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
50.9%
free-lunch eligible
— 13% above the Washington average of 45.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.2:1
students per teacher
— 15% below state mean
Top 33% in Washington — lower ratio than 67% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
20.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$21,076
per pupil, district-wide
— below Washington avg of $23,175
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 355 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
7
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 355 Top 45% in Washington — larger than 55% of 2,465 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 25.0
Students per teacher 15.2:1 -15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 50.9% +13% vs state
NCES ID 530294000471
Student demographics
White 34.6%
Hispanic or Latino 29.9%
Two or More 12.1%
African American 10.7%
Asian 10.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.8%
Largest group: White at 34.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 355:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 20.8%
In-school suspensions 7
Out-of-school suspensions 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Franklin Pierce School District, which includes Central Avenue Elementary.
$21,076
Per student
-9%
vs Washington
Avg $23,175
+8%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 22.0%
State 64.5%
Federal 13.5%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 989
- Students per teacher
- 16.1:1
- Enrollment
- 977
- Students per teacher
- 17.8:1
- Enrollment
- 831
- Students per teacher
- 16.6:1
- Enrollment
- 804
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Enrollment
- 483
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
Similar elementary schools in Tacoma
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Fife Elementary School
Standard public school
866 students 16.4:1 students per teacher
Clover Creek Elementary
Standard public school
617 students 16.6:1 students per teacher
Katherine G. Johnson Elementary School
Standard public school
592 students 17.5:1 students per teacher
Naches Trail Elementary
Standard public school
519 students 13.5:1 students per teacher
Crescent Heights Elementary School
Standard public school
451 students 16.5:1 students per teacher
Harvard Elementary
Standard public school
445 students 13.6:1 students per teacher
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Central Avenue Elementary
How many students attend Central Avenue Elementary?
Central Avenue Elementary has 355 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Tacoma, WA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Central Avenue Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Central Avenue Elementary is 15.2:1, which is 15% lower than the Washington average of 17.8:1 and 4% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Central Avenue Elementary?
50.9% of students at Central Avenue Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Washington average of 45.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Central Avenue Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Central Avenue Elementary is White at 34.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in Tacoma, WA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Central Avenue Elementary?
Central Avenue Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (F) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.