Enrollment
700
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 192682001168
Clay Elementary — Altoona, IA
Federal NCES profile for Clay Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 41/100.
👥 Class size 29
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 65
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: Southeast Polk Comm School District · Iowa
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)
37.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.8:1
vs 15:1 Iowa avg
+19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
26.3%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
-28% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Clay Elementary compares with Iowa 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
Clay Elementary reports 700 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 37.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.8:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 19% above the Iowa state mean of 15:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 12% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 26.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 28% below the Iowa average and 49% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 700 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 14.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Southeast Polk Comm School District spends $17,121 per pupil district-wide, below the Iowa average of $17,211 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 37.9% from local sources (property taxes), 52.1% from the state, and 10.0% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D), 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 Clay Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Iowa state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.8:1 | ▲ 19% | 15:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 26.3% | ▼ 28% | 36.4% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 700 | top 92% | — | — |
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
26.3%
free-lunch eligible
— 28% below the Iowa average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17.8:1
students per teacher
— 19% above state mean
Top 89% in Iowa — lower ratio than 11% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
14.1%
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
$17,121
per pupil, district-wide
— below Iowa avg of $17,211
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 700 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 700 Top 92% in Iowa — larger than 8% of 1,326 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 37.0
Students per teacher 17.8:1 +19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 26.3% -28% vs state
NCES ID 192682001168
Student demographics
White 60.4%
Hispanic or Latino 14.9%
African American 14.0%
Two or More 7.6%
Asian 3.1%
Largest group: White at 60.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 700:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 14.1%
In-school suspensions 1
Out-of-school suspensions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Southeast Polk Comm School District, which includes Clay Elementary.
$17,121
Per student
-1%
vs Iowa
Avg $17,211
-12%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 37.9%
State 52.1%
Federal 10.0%
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
- 1,722
- Students per teacher
- 19:1
- Enrollment
- 1,112
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Enrollment
- 1,088
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
- Enrollment
- 523
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Enrollment
- 495
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
Similar other schools in Altoona
3 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 Clay Elementary
How many students attend Clay Elementary?
Clay Elementary has 700 students enrolled. It is a other school in Altoona, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Clay Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Clay Elementary is 17.8:1, which is 19% higher than the Iowa average of 15:1 and 12% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Clay Elementary?
26.3% of students at Clay Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Clay Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Clay Elementary is White at 60.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Altoona, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Clay Elementary?
Clay Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D) 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.