Enrollment
537
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Dallas, TX
Charles Acton El
Federal NCES profile for Charles Acton El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 33/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 481764001521
👥 S:T ratio 33
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 28
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Charles Acton El earns 33/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 78% of Texas schools.
- #190 of 232
- schools in Dallas · Resource Index
- 33
- Resource Index · Typical
- 16.8:1
- large classes for Texas
- 79.4%
- free-lunch eligible
Charles Acton El has class sizes larger than 78% of Texas schools. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Charles Acton El ranks #190 of 232 schools in Dallas, TX.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
32.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.8:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
+14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
79.4%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+28% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Charles Acton El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Charles Acton El
Charles Acton El is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Dallas, Texas, enrolling 537 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 16.8:1 puts it in the larger third of Texas schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 79.4% of students eligible for free meals.
With 537 students, its enrollment sits close to the Texas median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Among 2,250 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Texas schools statewide, it ranks #1,692, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (51%) and African American (45%) (diversity index 54/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 537 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 28.9% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 15.7% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Duncanville Isd also operates Duncanville H S (4,399 students) and G W Kennemer Middle (795 students) alongside Charles Acton El.
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 Charles Acton El compares
Charles Acton El on the metrics families compare, against Texas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.8:1 | ▲ 14% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 79.4% | ▲ 28% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 537 | top 45% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
16.8:1
Leaner classes than 32% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
537
Bigger than 66% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
79.4%
free-lunch eligible
- 28% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
16.8:1
students per teacher
- 14% above state mean
Top 78% in Texas - lower ratio than 22% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
28.9%
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
$11,709
per pupil, district-wide
- below Texas avg of $13,644
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 537 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 27 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 5.0 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
Hispanic or Latino 50.8%
African American 44.9%
Two or More 3.4%
White 0.9%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 50.8% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 53.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 53.9, Charles Acton El is more mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Duncanville Isd, which includes Charles Acton El.
$11,709
Per student
-14%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 46.5%
State 37.9%
Federal 15.7%
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 Charles Acton El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duncanville H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| G W Kennemer Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| James R Bilhartz Jr El | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| William Lee Hastings El | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| William H Byrd Middle | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Charles Acton El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 4,399
- Students per teacher
- 19.3:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 795
- Students per teacher
- 11.9:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 541
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 529
- Students per teacher
- 17.1:1
- Resource Index
- 29/100
- Enrollment
- 517
- Students per teacher
- 12:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Texas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~537 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Charles Acton El's federal record.
- Compare Charles Acton El against another school. Compare schools
- Duncanville Isd'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 Charles Acton El
How many students attend Charles Acton El?
Charles Acton El has 537 students enrolled. It is a public school in Dallas, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Charles Acton El?
The student-teacher ratio at Charles Acton El is 16.8:1, which is 14% higher than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 7% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Charles Acton El?
79.4% of students at Charles Acton El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Charles Acton El?
The largest demographic group at Charles Acton El is Hispanic or Latino at 50.8% of enrollment, in Dallas, TX. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 53.9/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Charles Acton El?
Charles Acton El has a Resource Investment Index of 33/100 (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 Charles Acton El rank among schools in Dallas?
By Resource Investment Index, Charles Acton El ranks #190 of 232 schools in Dallas, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Dallas on the city page.
Is Charles Acton El a good school?
Charles Acton El earns 33/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 78% of Texas schools. 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 Duncanville Isd?
Besides Charles Acton El, Duncanville Isd also operates Duncanville H S (4,399 students), G W Kennemer Middle (795 students), and James R Bilhartz Jr El (541 students). See the Duncanville Isd 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.