Enrollment
447
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 291077000361
Central Elem. — Dexter, MO
Federal NCES profile for Central Elem., including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 55/100.
👥 Class size 50
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 11
📋 Attendance 90
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: Dexter R-Xi · Missouri
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)
36.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.5:1
vs 12.9:1 Missouri avg
-3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
44.6%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
-3% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Central Elem. compares with Missouri 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 Elem. reports 447 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 36.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 3% below the Missouri state mean of 12.9:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 21% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 44.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 3% below the Missouri average and 14% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 447 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 4.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Dexter R-Xi spends $11,250 per pupil district-wide, below the Missouri average of $15,248 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 46.0% from local sources (property taxes), 34.7% from the state, and 19.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 55/100 (C), 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 Elem. compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Missouri state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.5:1 | ▼ 3% | 12.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 44.6% | ▼ 3% | 46.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 447 | top 73% | — | — |
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
44.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 3% below the Missouri average of 46.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.5:1
students per teacher
— 3% below state mean
Top 45% in Missouri — lower ratio than 55% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
4.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$11,250
per pupil, district-wide
— below Missouri avg of $15,248
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 447 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
46
in-school suspensions + 44 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 10.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 20.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 447 Top 73% in Missouri — larger than 27% of 2,321 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 36.0
Students per teacher 12.5:1 -3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 44.6% -3% vs state
NCES ID 291077000361
Student demographics
White 91.7%
Hispanic or Latino 5.1%
Two or More 2.2%
African American 0.7%
Asian 0.2%
Largest group: White at 91.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 447:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 4.0%
In-school suspensions 46
Out-of-school suspensions 44
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Dexter R-Xi, which includes Central Elem..
$11,250
Per student
-26%
vs Missouri
Avg $15,248
-42%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 46.0%
State 34.7%
Federal 19.3%
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
- 553
- Students per teacher
- 14.3:1
- Enrollment
- 475
- Students per teacher
- 15.3:1
- Enrollment
- 441
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Enrollment
- 92
- Students per teacher
- 14.2:1
Similar elementary schools in Dexter
1 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
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 Elem.
How many students attend Central Elem.?
Central Elem. has 447 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in DEXTER, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Central Elem.?
The student-teacher ratio at Central Elem. is 12.5:1, which is 3% lower than the Missouri average of 12.9:1 and 21% 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 Elem.?
44.6% of students at Central Elem. are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Central Elem.?
The largest demographic group at Central Elem. is White at 91.7%. The school serves a diverse student body in DEXTER, MO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Central Elem.?
Central Elem. has a Resource Investment Index of 55/100 (C) 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.