Enrollment
852
Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 510183001617
Cool Spring Elementary — Mechanicsville, VA
Federal NCES profile for Cool Spring Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 50/100.
👥 Class size 35
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 94
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: Hanover County Public Schools · Virginia
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)
48.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.2:1
vs 14:1 Virginia avg
+16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
10.4%
vs 59.9% Virginia avg
-83% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Cool Spring Elementary compares with Virginia 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
Cool Spring Elementary reports 852 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 48.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 16% above the Virginia state mean of 14:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 2% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 10.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 83% below the Virginia average and 80% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 609 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 2.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Hanover County Public Schools spends $13,555 per pupil district-wide, below the Virginia average of $16,211 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 45.1% from local sources (property taxes), 43.1% from the state, and 11.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (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 Cool Spring Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Virginia state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Virginia | Virginia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.2:1 | ▲ 16% | 14:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 10.4% | ▼ 83% | 59.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 852 | top 80% | — | — |
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
10.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 83% below the Virginia average of 59.9%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
16.2:1
students per teacher
— 16% above state mean
Top 86% in Virginia — lower ratio than 14% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
2.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$13,555
per pupil, district-wide
— below Virginia avg of $16,211
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.4 FTE
Per 609 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
7
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 852 Top 80% in Virginia — larger than 20% of 1,869 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 48.0
Students per teacher 16.2:1 +16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 10.4% -83% vs state
NCES ID 510183001617
Student demographics
White 66.8%
Asian 13.4%
Two or More 9.3%
African American 6.8%
Hispanic or Latino 3.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: White at 66.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.4
Students per counselor 609:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 2.3%
In-school suspensions 7
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Hanover County Public Schools, which includes Cool Spring Elementary.
$13,555
Per student
-16%
vs Virginia
Avg $16,211
-30%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 45.1%
State 43.1%
Federal 11.8%
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
- 1,470
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Enrollment
- 1,349
- Students per teacher
- 15:1
- Enrollment
- 1,294
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,245
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,199
- Students per teacher
- 14.3:1
Similar other schools in Mechanicsville
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Kersey Creek Elementary
Standard public school
672 students 15.9:1 students per teacher
Rural Point Elementary
Standard public school
627 students 14.1:1 students per teacher
Laurel Meadow Elementary
Standard public school
591 students 13.2:1 students per teacher
Mechanicsville Elementary
Standard public school
572 students 12.8:1 students per teacher
Pearson'S Corner Elementary
Standard public school
571 students 15.5:1 students per teacher
Pole Green Elementary
Standard public school
527 students 14.1:1 students per teacher
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 Cool Spring Elementary
How many students attend Cool Spring Elementary?
Cool Spring Elementary has 852 students enrolled. It is a other school in Mechanicsville, VA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Cool Spring Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Cool Spring Elementary is 16.2:1, which is 16% higher than the Virginia average of 14:1 and 2% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Cool Spring Elementary?
10.4% of students at Cool Spring Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Virginia average of 59.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Cool Spring Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Cool Spring Elementary is White at 66.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Mechanicsville, VA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Cool Spring Elementary?
Cool Spring Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (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.