Enrollment
410
Washington · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 530111000192
Chester Elementary School — Spokane Valley, WA
Federal NCES profile for Chester Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 65/100.
👥 Class size 42
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 59
📋 Attendance 88
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: Central Valley 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)
29.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.4:1
vs 17.8:1 Washington avg
-19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
20.3%
vs 45.0% Washington avg
-55% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Chester Elementary School 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
Chester Elementary School reports 410 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 29.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 19% 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 9% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 20.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 55% below the Washington average and 61% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 205 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 4.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Central Valley School District spends $17,566 per pupil district-wide, below the Washington average of $23,175 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 20.0% from local sources (property taxes), 65.2% from the state, and 14.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 65/100 (B-), 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 Chester Elementary School 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 | 14.4:1 | ▼ 19% | 17.8:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 20.3% | ▼ 55% | 45.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 410 | top 54% | — | — |
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
20.3%
free-lunch eligible
— 55% below the Washington average of 45.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
14.4:1
students per teacher
— 19% below state mean
Top 24% in Washington — lower ratio than 76% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
4.9%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$17,566
per pupil, district-wide
— below Washington avg of $23,175
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 205 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
9
in-school suspensions + 30 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 9.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 410 Top 54% in Washington — larger than 46% of 2,465 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 29.0
Students per teacher 14.4:1 -19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 20.3% -55% vs state
NCES ID 530111000192
Student demographics
White 77.6%
Hispanic or Latino 8.0%
Two or More 7.3%
Asian 2.4%
African American 2.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 2.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 77.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 205:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 4.9%
In-school suspensions 9
Out-of-school suspensions 30
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Central Valley School District, which includes Chester Elementary School.
$17,566
Per student
-24%
vs Washington
Avg $23,175
-10%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 20.0%
State 65.2%
Federal 14.8%
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
- 1,575
- Students per teacher
- 20.7:1
- Enrollment
- 1,410
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,380
- Students per teacher
- 18.3:1
- Enrollment
- 668
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Enrollment
- 644
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
Similar other schools in Spokane Valley
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Sunrise Elementary
Standard public school
644 students 15.8:1 students per teacher
Opportunity Elementary
Standard public school
631 students 13.5:1 students per teacher
Adams Elementary
Standard public school
376 students 11.9:1 students per teacher
Ponderosa Elementary
Standard public school
344 students 13.4:1 students per teacher
Central Valley Early Learning Center
Special-education school
325 students 49.8:1 students per teacher
University Elementary School
Standard public school
291 students 12.1:1 students per teacher
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 Chester Elementary School
How many students attend Chester Elementary School?
Chester Elementary School has 410 students enrolled. It is a other school in Spokane Valley, WA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Chester Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Chester Elementary School is 14.4:1, which is 19% lower than the Washington average of 17.8:1 and 9% 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 Chester Elementary School?
20.3% of students at Chester Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Washington average of 45.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Chester Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Chester Elementary School is White at 77.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in Spokane Valley, WA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Chester Elementary School?
Chester Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 65/100 (B-) 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.