Enrollment
421
South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Cross, SC
Cross Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Cross Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 36/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 450117000157
👥 S:T ratio 20
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 16
📋 Attendance 38
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Cross Elementary earns 36/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 96% of South Carolina schools.
- 36
- Resource Index · Typical
- 20:1
- large classes for South Carolina
- 100.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 421
- students enrolled
Cross Elementary has class sizes larger than 96% of South Carolina schools. Computed live against every South Carolina school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Berkeley 01 · South Carolina
NCES ID 450117000157 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
21.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20:1
vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg
+40% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 74.0% South Carolina avg
+35% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Cross Elementary compares with South Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Cross Elementary
Cross Elementary is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Cross, South Carolina, enrolling 421 students.
Class loads run heavy: 20:1 is larger than about 96% of South Carolina schools and 40% above the 14.3:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 100.0% lands close to the South Carolina typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 421 puts it in the smaller third of South Carolina schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,214 scored South Carolina schools.
Among 347 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need South Carolina schools statewide, it ranks #269, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by African American (58%) and White (25%) (diversity index 59/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 421 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 24.7% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
The surrounding Berkeley 01 spends $11,201 per pupil, 23% below the South Carolina average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 1 expulsion at this campus for 2021-22.
Among Cross's public schools, it stands alongside Cross High (273 students): Cross Elementary is larger than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (20:1 vs 10.9:1).
Berkeley 01 also operates Stratford High (2,605 students) and Cane Bay High (2,412 students) alongside Cross Elementary.
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 Cross Elementary compares
Cross Elementary on the metrics families compare, against South Carolina and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs South Carolina | South Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20:1 | ▲ 40% | 14.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 35% | 74.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 421 | top 68% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
20:1
Leaner classes than 16% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
421
Bigger than 51% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
100.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 35% above the South Carolina average of 74.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
20:1
students per teacher
- 40% above state mean
Top 96% in South Carolina - lower ratio than 4% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
24.7%
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
$11,201
per pupil, district-wide
- below South Carolina avg of $14,558
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 421 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 33 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
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 58.2%
White 25.2%
Two or More 8.8%
Hispanic or Latino 6.9%
Asian 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.5%
Largest group: African American at 58.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 58.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 58.5, Cross Elementary is more mixed than the South Carolina school average of 52.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Berkeley 01, which includes Cross Elementary.
$11,201
Per student
-23%
vs South Carolina
Avg $14,558
-32%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 43.7%
State 43.0%
Federal 13.3%
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 Cross Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stratford High | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Cane Bay High | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Berkeley High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Goose Creek High | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Berkeley Middle | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Cross Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,605
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 2,412
- Students per teacher
- 19.9:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 2,047
- Students per teacher
- 23.8:1
- Resource Index
- 27/100
- Enrollment
- 1,973
- Students per teacher
- 17.6:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 1,477
- Students per teacher
- 24.2:1
- Resource Index
- 27/100
Similar other schools in Cross
1 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of South Carolina, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~421 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~20:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Cross Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Cross Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Berkeley 01'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 Cross Elementary
How many students attend Cross Elementary?
Cross Elementary has 421 students enrolled. It is a public school in Cross, SC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Cross Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Cross Elementary is 20:1, which is 40% higher than the South Carolina average of 14.3:1 and 27% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Cross Elementary?
100.0% of students at Cross Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Cross Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Cross Elementary is African American at 58.2% of enrollment, in Cross, SC. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 58.5/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Cross Elementary?
Cross Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 36/100 (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 Cross Elementary a good school?
Cross Elementary earns 36/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 96% of South Carolina 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 Berkeley 01?
Besides Cross Elementary, Berkeley 01 also operates Stratford High (2,605 students), Cane Bay High (2,412 students), and Berkeley High (2,047 students). See the Berkeley 01 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.