Enrollment
315
Washington · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 530285000458
Central Elementary — Ferndale, WA
Federal NCES profile for Central Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 52/100.
👥 Class size 46
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 37
📋 Attendance 53
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: Ferndale 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)
23.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.5:1
vs 17.8:1 Washington avg
-24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
57.6%
vs 45.0% Washington avg
+28% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Central 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 Elementary reports 315 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 23.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 13.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 24% 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 15% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 57.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 28% above the Washington average and 11% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 315 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 18.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Ferndale School District spends $33,691 per pupil district-wide, above the Washington average of $23,175 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 22.3% from local sources (property taxes), 63.5% from the state, and 14.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 52/100 (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 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 | 13.5:1 | ▼ 24% | 17.8:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 57.6% | ▲ 28% | 45.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 315 | top 39% | — | — |
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
57.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 28% 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
13.5:1
students per teacher
— 24% below state mean
Top 16% in Washington — lower ratio than 84% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
18.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$33,691
per pupil, district-wide
— above 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 315 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 7 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 315 Top 39% in Washington — larger than 61% of 2,465 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 23.0
Students per teacher 13.5:1 -24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 57.6% +28% vs state
NCES ID 530285000458
Student demographics
White 58.4%
Hispanic or Latino 24.4%
Two or More 9.2%
Asian 5.7%
African American 1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.6%
Largest group: White at 58.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 315:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 18.7%
In-school suspensions 2
Out-of-school suspensions 7
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Ferndale School District, which includes Central Elementary.
$33,691
Per student
+45%
vs Washington
Avg $23,175
+73%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 22.3%
State 63.5%
Federal 14.2%
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
- 1,325
- Students per teacher
- 18.9:1
- Enrollment
- 550
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Enrollment
- 496
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Enrollment
- 457
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Enrollment
- 440
- Students per teacher
- 13.8:1
Similar other schools in Ferndale
2 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) 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 Elementary
How many students attend Central Elementary?
Central Elementary has 315 students enrolled. It is a other school in Ferndale, WA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Central Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Central Elementary is 13.5:1, which is 24% lower than the Washington average of 17.8:1 and 15% 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 Elementary?
57.6% of students at Central Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Washington average of 45.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Central Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Central Elementary is White at 58.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Ferndale, WA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Central Elementary?
Central Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 52/100 (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.