Enrollment
727
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Thief River Falls, MN
Challenger Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Challenger Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 43/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 273885002451
👥 S:T ratio 49
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 47
📋 Attendance 45
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Challenger Elementary earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Minnesota median.
- #1 of 4
- public schools in Thief River Falls · Resource Index
- 43
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.8:1
- students per teacher
- 32.4%
- free-lunch eligible
Challenger Elementary has class sizes near the Minnesota median. Computed live against every Minnesota school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Challenger Elementary ranks #1 of 4 public schools in Thief River Falls, MN.
School address
District: Thief River Falls School District · Minnesota
NCES ID 273885002451 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
57.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.8:1
vs 15.8:1 Minnesota avg
-19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
32.4%
vs 42.8% Minnesota avg
-24% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Challenger Elementary compares with Minnesota and U.S. medians
What stands out at Challenger Elementary
Challenger Elementary is a large combined-grade school in Thief River Falls, Minnesota, enrolling 727 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.8:1 puts it in the smaller third of Minnesota schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 32.4% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 727 puts it in the larger third of Minnesota schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,334 scored Minnesota schools.
Against 361 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #125.
Its student body is predominantly White (81% of enrollment) (diversity index 34/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 267 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 22.1% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Thief River Falls School District also operates Lincoln Senior High (521 students) and Franklin Middle (454 students) alongside Challenger 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 Challenger Elementary compares
Challenger Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Minnesota and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Minnesota | Minnesota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.8:1 | ▼ 19% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 32.4% | ▼ 24% | 42.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 727 | top 12% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.8:1
Leaner classes than 68% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
727
Bigger than 82% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
32.4%
free-lunch eligible
- 24% below the Minnesota average of 42.8%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
12.8:1
students per teacher
- 19% below state mean
Top 35% in Minnesota - lower ratio than 65% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
22.1%
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
$12,756
per pupil, district-wide
- below Minnesota avg of $15,270
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.7 FTE
Per 267 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.1 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 80.6%
Hispanic or Latino 10.6%
Two or More 6.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.2%
Asian 0.6%
African American 0.4%
Largest group: White at 80.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 33.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 33.5, Challenger Elementary is less mixed than the Minnesota school average of 42.8.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Thief River Falls School District, which includes Challenger Elementary.
$12,756
Per student
-16%
vs Minnesota
Avg $15,270
-23%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 23.9%
State 63.2%
Federal 12.9%
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 Challenger Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Senior High | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Franklin Middle | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Northwest Area Learning Center | Smaller | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Challenger Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 521
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 454
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Resource Index
- 22/100
- Enrollment
- 23
- Students per teacher
- 23:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Minnesota, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~727 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~12.8:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Challenger Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Challenger Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Thief River Falls 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 Challenger Elementary
How many students attend Challenger Elementary?
Challenger Elementary has 727 students enrolled. It is a public school in Thief River Falls, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Challenger Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Challenger Elementary is 12.8:1, which is 19% lower than the Minnesota average of 15.8:1 and 18% 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 Challenger Elementary?
32.4% of students at Challenger Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Minnesota average of 42.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Challenger Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Challenger Elementary is White at 80.6% of enrollment, in Thief River Falls, MN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Challenger Elementary?
Challenger Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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 Challenger Elementary rank among public schools in Thief River Falls?
By Resource Investment Index, Challenger Elementary ranks #1 of 4 public schools in Thief River Falls, MN. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Thief River Falls on the city page.
Is Challenger Elementary a good school?
Challenger Elementary earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Minnesota 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 Thief River Falls School District?
Besides Challenger Elementary, Thief River Falls School District also operates Lincoln Senior High (521 students), Franklin Middle (454 students), and Northwest Area Learning Center (23 students). See the Thief River Falls School District district page for the complete list.
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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.