Enrollment
585
Florida · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Lake City, FL
Columbia City Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Columbia City Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 39/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 120036002102
👥 S:T ratio 35
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 52
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Columbia City Elementary School earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Florida median.
- #2 of 12
- schools in Lake City · Resource Index
- 39
- Resource Index · Typical
- 16.3:1
- students per teacher
- 56.3%
- free-lunch eligible
Columbia City Elementary School has class sizes near the Florida median. Computed live against every Florida school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Columbia City Elementary School ranks #2 of 12 schools in Lake City, FL.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
36.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.3:1
vs 17.8:1 Florida avg
-8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
56.3%
vs 52.0% Florida avg
+8% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Columbia City Elementary School compares with Florida and U.S. medians
What stands out at Columbia City Elementary School
Columbia City Elementary School is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Lake City, Florida, enrolling 585 students.
At 16.3:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Florida median, within a few percentage points of the 17.8:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 56.3% lands close to the Florida typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 585 students, its enrollment sits close to the Florida median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 3,996 scored Florida schools.
Against 943 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #240.
Its student body is led by White (74%) and Hispanic or Latino (12%) (diversity index 42/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 585 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 19.1% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 26.9% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Columbia also operates Columbia High School (1,711 students) and Fort White High School (1,101 students) alongside Columbia City 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 Columbia City Elementary School compares
Columbia City Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Florida and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Florida | Florida avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.3:1 | ▼ 8% | 17.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 56.3% | ▲ 8% | 52.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 585 | top 51% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
16.3:1
Leaner classes than 36% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
585
Bigger than 71% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
56.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 8% above the Florida average of 52.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
16.3:1
students per teacher
- 8% below state mean
Top 48% in Florida - lower ratio than 52% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
19.1%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$10,799
per pupil, district-wide
- below Florida avg of $11,167
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 585 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
25
in-school suspensions + 19 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.5 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
White 74.4%
Hispanic or Latino 12.1%
Two or More 6.7%
African American 6.3%
Asian 0.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 74.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 42.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 42.3, Columbia City Elementary School is less mixed than the Florida school average of 52.3.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Columbia, which includes Columbia City Elementary School.
$10,799
Per student
-3%
vs Florida
Avg $11,167
-35%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 20.7%
State 52.5%
Federal 26.9%
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 Columbia City Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Fort White High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Belmont Academy | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Lake City Middle School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Westside Elementary School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Columbia City Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,711
- Students per teacher
- 21.1:1
- Resource Index
- 29/100
- Enrollment
- 1,101
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 828
- Students per teacher
- 20.2:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 809
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Resource Index
- 30/100
- Enrollment
- 695
- Students per teacher
- 18.3:1
- Resource Index
- 35/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Florida, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~585 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Columbia City Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Columbia City Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Columbia'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 Columbia City Elementary School
How many students attend Columbia City Elementary School?
Columbia City Elementary School has 585 students enrolled. It is a public school in Lake City, FL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Columbia City Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Columbia City Elementary School is 16.3:1, which is 8% lower than the Florida average of 17.8:1 and 4% higher 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 Columbia City Elementary School?
56.3% of students at Columbia City Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Florida average of 52.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Columbia City Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Columbia City Elementary School is White at 74.4% of enrollment, in Lake City, FL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Columbia City Elementary School?
Columbia City Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 39/100 (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 Columbia City Elementary School rank among schools in Lake City?
By Resource Investment Index, Columbia City Elementary School ranks #2 of 12 schools in Lake City, FL. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Lake City on the city page.
Is Columbia City Elementary School a good school?
Columbia City Elementary School earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Florida 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 Columbia?
Besides Columbia City Elementary School, Columbia also operates Columbia High School (1,711 students), Fort White High School (1,101 students), and Belmont Academy (828 students). See the Columbia 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.