Enrollment
615
Arkansas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 050493000243
Dardanelle Primary School — Dardanelle, AR
Federal NCES profile for Dardanelle Primary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 35/100.
👥 Class size 34
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 39
📋 Attendance 37
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: Dardanelle School District · Arkansas
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)
37.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.6:1
vs 13.6:1 Arkansas avg
+22% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
54.4%
vs 59.2% Arkansas avg
-8% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Dardanelle Primary School compares with Arkansas 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
Dardanelle Primary School reports 615 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 37.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.6:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 22% above the Arkansas state mean of 13.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 4% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 54.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 8% below the Arkansas average and 5% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 308 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 25.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Dardanelle School District spends $12,056 per pupil district-wide, below the Arkansas average of $14,269 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 19.2% from local sources (property taxes), 62.7% from the state, and 18.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F), 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 Dardanelle Primary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Arkansas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Arkansas | Arkansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.6:1 | ▲ 22% | 13.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 54.4% | ▼ 8% | 59.2% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 615 | top 82% | — | — |
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
54.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 8% below the Arkansas average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
16.6:1
students per teacher
— 22% above state mean
Top 76% in Arkansas — lower ratio than 24% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
25.4%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$12,056
per pupil, district-wide
— below Arkansas avg of $14,269
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 308 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
15
in-school suspensions + 7 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 2 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 615 Top 82% in Arkansas — larger than 18% of 1,069 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 37.0
Students per teacher 16.6:1 +22% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 54.4% -8% vs state
NCES ID 050493000243
Student demographics
White 62.4%
Hispanic or Latino 29.6%
Two or More 5.4%
African American 1.8%
Asian 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: White at 62.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 308:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 25.4%
In-school suspensions 15
Out-of-school suspensions 7
Expulsions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Dardanelle School District, which includes Dardanelle Primary School.
$12,056
Per student
-16%
vs Arkansas
Avg $14,269
-38%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 19.2%
State 62.7%
Federal 18.2%
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
- 686
- Students per teacher
- 7.4:1
- Enrollment
- 500
- Students per teacher
- 14.2:1
- Enrollment
- 315
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
Similar elementary schools in Dardanelle
1 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
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 Dardanelle Primary School
How many students attend Dardanelle Primary School?
Dardanelle Primary School has 615 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in DARDANELLE, AR.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Dardanelle Primary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Dardanelle Primary School is 16.6:1, which is 22% higher than the Arkansas average of 13.6:1 and 4% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Dardanelle Primary School?
54.4% of students at Dardanelle Primary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arkansas average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Dardanelle Primary School?
The largest demographic group at Dardanelle Primary School is White at 62.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in DARDANELLE, AR.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Dardanelle Primary School?
Dardanelle Primary School has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F) 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.