Enrollment
606
Alabama · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Clay, AL
Clay Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Clay Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 37/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 010192000696
👥 S:T ratio 29
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 50
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Clay Elementary School earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Alabama median.
- 37
- Resource Index · Typical
- 17.8:1
- students per teacher
- 41.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 606
- students enrolled
Clay Elementary School has class sizes near the Alabama median. Computed live against every Alabama school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Jefferson County · Alabama
NCES ID 010192000696 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
34.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.8:1
vs 17.7:1 Alabama avg
+1% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
41.0%
vs 58.8% Alabama avg
-30% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Clay Elementary School compares with Alabama and U.S. medians
What stands out at Clay Elementary School
Clay Elementary School is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Clay, Alabama, enrolling 606 students.
At 17.8:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Alabama median, within a few percentage points of the 17.7:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 41.0% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 606 puts it in the larger third of Alabama schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,365 scored Alabama schools.
Against 319 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #206.
Its student body is led by African American (62%) and White (19%) (diversity index 56/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 606 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 20.1% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 17.6% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Jefferson County also operates Claychalkville High School (1,377 students) and Mcadory High School (1,259 students) alongside Clay Elementary School.
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 Clay Elementary School compares
Clay Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Alabama and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Alabama | Alabama avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.8:1 | ▲ 1% | 17.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 41.0% | ▼ 30% | 58.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 606 | top 29% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17.8:1
Leaner classes than 26% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
606
Bigger than 73% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
41.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 30% below the Alabama average of 58.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
17.8:1
students per teacher
- 1% above state mean
Top 56% in Alabama - lower ratio than 44% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
20.1%
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
$11,497
per pupil, district-wide
- below Alabama avg of $12,491
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 606 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
14
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.5 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
African American 62.2%
White 18.5%
Hispanic or Latino 10.2%
Two or More 8.4%
Asian 0.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: African American at 62.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 56.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 56.1, Clay Elementary School is more mixed than the Alabama school average of 42.5.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Jefferson County, which includes Clay Elementary School.
$11,497
Per student
-8%
vs Alabama
Avg $12,491
-31%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 28.2%
State 54.2%
Federal 17.6%
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 Clay Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Claychalkville High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Mcadory High School | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Hueytown High School | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Shades Valley High School | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Gardendale High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Clay Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,377
- Students per teacher
- 18.6:1
- Resource Index
- 19/100
- Enrollment
- 1,259
- Students per teacher
- 19.1:1
- Resource Index
- 30/100
- Enrollment
- 1,200
- Students per teacher
- 23.5:1
- Resource Index
- 16/100
- Enrollment
- 1,094
- Students per teacher
- 18.5:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 1,076
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Resource Index
- 25/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Alabama, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~606 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~17.8:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Clay Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Clay Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Jefferson County'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 Clay Elementary School
How many students attend Clay Elementary School?
Clay Elementary School has 606 students enrolled. It is a public school in Clay, AL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Clay Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Clay Elementary School is 17.8:1, which is 1% higher than the Alabama average of 17.7:1 and 13% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Clay Elementary School?
41.0% of students at Clay Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Alabama average of 58.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Clay Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Clay Elementary School is African American at 62.2% of enrollment, in Clay, AL. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 56.1/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Clay Elementary School?
Clay Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (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).
Is Clay Elementary School a good school?
Clay Elementary School earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Alabama 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 Jefferson County?
Besides Clay Elementary School, Jefferson County also operates Claychalkville High School (1,377 students), Mcadory High School (1,259 students), and Hueytown High School (1,200 students). See the Jefferson County 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.