Enrollment
398
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Carthage, MO
Columbian Elem.
Federal NCES profile for Columbian Elem., including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 56/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 290746000204
👥 S:T ratio 57
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 20
📋 Attendance 79
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Columbian Elem. earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 75% of Missouri schools.
- #4 of 5
- elementary schools in Carthage · Resource Index
- 56
- Resource Index · Higher
- 10.8:1
- small classes for Missouri
- 81.0%
- free-lunch eligible
Columbian Elem. has class sizes smaller than 75% of Missouri schools. Computed live against every Missouri school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Columbian Elem. ranks #4 of 5 elementary schools in Carthage, MO.
School address
District: Carthage R-Ix · Missouri
NCES ID 290746000204 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
37.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.8:1
vs 12.8:1 Missouri avg
-16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
81.0%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
+76% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Columbian Elem. compares with Missouri and U.S. medians
What stands out at Columbian Elem.
Columbian Elem. is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Carthage, Missouri, enrolling 398 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 10.8:1 puts it in the smaller third of Missouri schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 81.0% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 398 puts it in the larger third of Missouri schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 2,313 scored Missouri schools.
Against 31 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #5.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (66%) and White (30%) (diversity index 47/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 398 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Attendance holds up well here: only 8.5% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
Its district draws 17.3% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Carthage R-Ix also operates Carthage High School (1,626 students) and Carthage Jr. High (773 students) alongside Columbian Elem..
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 Columbian Elem. compares
Columbian Elem. on the metrics families compare, against Missouri and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.8:1 | ▼ 16% | 12.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 81.0% | ▲ 76% | 46.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 398 | top 35% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
10.8:1
Leaner classes than 84% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
398
Bigger than 47% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
81.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 76% above the Missouri average of 46.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
10.8:1
students per teacher
- 16% below state mean
Top 25% in Missouri - lower ratio than 75% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
8.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$11,140
per pupil, district-wide
- below Missouri avg of $12,931
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 398 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
14
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.3 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
Hispanic or Latino 66.3%
White 29.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.5%
Two or More 1.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.5%
African American 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 66.3% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 47.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 47.1, Columbian Elem. is more mixed than the Missouri school average of 31.0.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Carthage R-Ix, which includes Columbian Elem..
$11,140
Per student
-14%
vs Missouri
Avg $12,931
-33%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 36.2%
State 46.4%
Federal 17.3%
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 Columbian Elem. Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carthage High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Carthage Jr. High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Carthage Intermediate Center | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Fairview Elem. | Similar size | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Carthage 6th Grade Center | Similar size | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Columbian Elem.'s own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,626
- Students per teacher
- 18.3:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 773
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 664
- Students per teacher
- 12.3:1
- Resource Index
- 55/100
- Enrollment
- 444
- Students per teacher
- 11.7:1
- Resource Index
- 58/100
- Enrollment
- 377
- Students per teacher
- 12.2:1
- Resource Index
- 53/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Missouri, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~398 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~10.8:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Columbian Elem.'s federal record.
- Compare Columbian Elem. against another school. Compare schools
- Carthage R-Ix'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 Columbian Elem.
How many students attend Columbian Elem.?
Columbian Elem. has 398 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Carthage, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Columbian Elem.?
The student-teacher ratio at Columbian Elem. is 10.8:1, which is 16% lower than the Missouri average of 12.8:1 and 31% lower 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 Columbian Elem.?
81.0% of students at Columbian Elem. are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Columbian Elem.?
The largest demographic group at Columbian Elem. is Hispanic or Latino at 66.3% of enrollment, in Carthage, MO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Columbian Elem.?
Columbian Elem. has a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (higher 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 Columbian Elem. rank among elementary schools in Carthage?
By Resource Investment Index, Columbian Elem. ranks #4 of 5 elementary schools in Carthage, MO. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Carthage on the city page.
Is Columbian Elem. a good school?
Columbian Elem. earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 75% of Missouri schools. 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 Carthage R-Ix?
Besides Columbian Elem., Carthage R-Ix also operates Carthage High School (1,626 students), Carthage Jr. High (773 students), and Carthage Intermediate Center (664 students). See the Carthage R-Ix 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.