Enrollment
72
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Chester, TX
Chester El
Federal NCES profile for Chester El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 56/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 481377000867
👥 S:T ratio 64
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 34
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Chester El earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 93% of Texas schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Texas schools.
- 56
- Resource Index · Higher
- 9:1
- small classes for Texas
- 57.7%
- free-lunch eligible
- 72
- students enrolled
Chester El has class sizes smaller than 93% of Texas schools. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
8.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
9:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
-39% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
57.7%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
-7% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Chester El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Chester El
Chester El is a higher-need, small combined-grade school in Chester, Texas, enrolling 72 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 9:1, Chester El is leaner than roughly 93% of Texas schools and 39% under the state's 14.7:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 57.7% lands close to the Texas typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
This is a small campus: fewer students than 94% of Texas schools, with 72 enrolled.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Against 97 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #48.
Its student body is predominantly White (93% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 13/100).
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 26.4% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district, Chester Isd, also runs Chester H S (123 students).
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 Chester El compares
Chester 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 | 9:1 | ▼ 39% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 57.7% | ▼ 7% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 72 | top 94% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
9:1
Leaner classes than 93% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
72
Bigger than 7% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
57.7%
free-lunch eligible
- 7% below the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
9:1
students per teacher
- 39% below state mean
Top 7% in Texas - lower ratio than 93% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
26.4%
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
$14,568
per pupil, district-wide
- above Texas avg of $13,644
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 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
White 93.1%
Hispanic or Latino 5.6%
African American 1.4%
Largest group: White at 93.1% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 13.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 13.0, Chester El is less mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Chester Isd, which includes Chester El.
$14,568
Per student
+7%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-12%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 28.9%
State 58.7%
Federal 12.4%
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 Chester El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chester H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Chester El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 123
- Students per teacher
- 9.5:1
- Resource Index
- 56/100
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 (~72 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Chester El's federal record.
- Compare Chester El against another school. Compare schools
- Chester 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 Chester El
How many students attend Chester El?
Chester El has 72 students enrolled. It is a public school in Chester, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Chester El?
The student-teacher ratio at Chester El is 9:1, which is 39% lower than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 43% 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 Chester El?
57.7% of students at Chester El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Chester El?
The largest demographic group at Chester El is White at 93.1% of enrollment, in Chester, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Chester El?
Chester El has a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Chester El a good school?
Chester El earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 93% of Texas schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most 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 Chester Isd?
Besides Chester El, Chester Isd also operates Chester H S (123 students). See the Chester 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.