Enrollment
378
Mississippi · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 280117000148
Columbia Elementary School — Columbia, MS
Federal NCES profile for Columbia Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 54/100.
👥 Class size 50
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 24
📋 Attendance 71
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: Columbia School District · Mississippi
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)
27.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.5:1
vs 13.4:1 Mississippi avg
-7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 80.5% Mississippi avg
+24% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Columbia Elementary School compares with Mississippi 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
Columbia Elementary School reports 378 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 27.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 7% below the Mississippi state mean of 13.4:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 21% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 100.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 24% above the Mississippi average and 93% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 378 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 11.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Columbia School District spends $15,503 per pupil district-wide, above the Mississippi average of $13,402 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 30.3% from local sources (property taxes), 41.7% from the state, and 28.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 54/100 (C-), 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 Columbia Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Mississippi state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Mississippi | Mississippi avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.5:1 | ▼ 7% | 13.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 24% | 80.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 378 | top 43% | — | — |
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
100.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 24% above the Mississippi average of 80.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.5:1
students per teacher
— 7% below state mean
Top 33% in Mississippi — lower ratio than 67% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
11.6%
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
$15,503
per pupil, district-wide
— above Mississippi avg of $13,402
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 378 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
26
in-school suspensions + 55 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 21.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 378 Top 43% in Mississippi — larger than 57% of 877 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 27.0
Students per teacher 12.5:1 -7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 100.0% +24% vs state
NCES ID 280117000148
Student demographics
White 53.4%
African American 40.2%
Two or More 4.2%
Hispanic or Latino 1.6%
Asian 0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 53.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 378:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 11.6%
In-school suspensions 26
Out-of-school suspensions 55
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Columbia School District, which includes Columbia Elementary School.
$15,503
Per student
+16%
vs Mississippi
Avg $13,402
-20%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 30.3%
State 41.7%
Federal 28.1%
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
- 484
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
- Enrollment
- 448
- Students per teacher
- 12.9:1
- Enrollment
- 329
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
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 Columbia Elementary School
How many students attend Columbia Elementary School?
Columbia Elementary School has 378 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Columbia, MS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Columbia Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Columbia Elementary School is 12.5:1, which is 7% lower than the Mississippi average of 13.4:1 and 21% 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 Columbia Elementary School?
100.0% of students at Columbia Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Mississippi average of 80.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Columbia Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Columbia Elementary School is White at 53.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Columbia, MS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Columbia Elementary School?
Columbia Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 54/100 (C-) 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.