Enrollment
200
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Dayton, IA
Dayton Center
Federal NCES profile for Dayton Center, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 54/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 199901902077
👥 S:T ratio 53
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 40
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Dayton Center earns 54/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 80% of Iowa schools.
- 54
- Resource Index · Higher
- 11.8:1
- small classes for Iowa
- 38.2%
- free-lunch eligible
- 200
- students enrolled
Dayton Center has class sizes smaller than 80% of Iowa schools. Computed live against every Iowa school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Southeast Webster Grand Comm School District · Iowa
NCES ID 199901902077 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
17.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.8:1
vs 14.8:1 Iowa avg
-20% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
38.2%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
+5% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Dayton Center compares with Iowa and U.S. medians
What stands out at Dayton Center
Dayton Center is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Dayton, Iowa, enrolling 200 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11.8:1 puts it in the smaller third of Iowa schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 38.2% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 200 puts it in the smaller third of Iowa schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 1,322 scored Iowa schools.
Against 313 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #117.
Its student body is predominantly White (89% of enrollment) (diversity index 21/100).
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 24.0% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district, Southeast Webster Grand Comm School District, also runs Southeast Webster-Grand Southeast Valley Middle (314 students).
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 Dayton Center compares
Dayton Center on the metrics families compare, against Iowa and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.8:1 | ▼ 20% | 14.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 38.2% | ▲ 5% | 36.4% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 200 | top 76% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.8:1
Leaner classes than 77% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
200
Bigger than 20% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
38.2%
free-lunch eligible
- 5% above the Iowa average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
11.8:1
students per teacher
- 20% below state mean
Top 20% in Iowa - lower ratio than 80% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
24.0%
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
$11,602
per pupil, district-wide
- below Iowa avg of $12,854
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
12
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 8.0 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
White 88.5%
Hispanic or Latino 7.5%
Two or More 3.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.0%
Largest group: White at 88.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 21.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 21.0, Dayton Center is less mixed than the Iowa school average of 33.8.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Southeast Webster Grand Comm School District, which includes Dayton Center.
$11,602
Per student
-10%
vs Iowa
Avg $12,854
-30%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 53.3%
State 36.6%
Federal 10.1%
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.
How Dayton Center Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southeast Webster-Grand Southeast Valley Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Dayton Center's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 314
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Iowa, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~200 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Dayton Center's federal record.
- Compare Dayton Center against another school. Compare schools
- Southeast Webster Grand Comm School District'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 Dayton Center
How many students attend Dayton Center?
Dayton Center has 200 students enrolled. It is a public school in Dayton, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Dayton Center?
The student-teacher ratio at Dayton Center is 11.8:1, which is 20% lower than the Iowa average of 14.8:1 and 25% 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 Dayton Center?
38.2% of students at Dayton Center are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Dayton Center?
The largest demographic group at Dayton Center is White at 88.5% of enrollment, in Dayton, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Dayton Center?
Dayton Center has a Resource Investment Index of 54/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Dayton Center a good school?
Dayton Center earns 54/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 80% of Iowa 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 Southeast Webster Grand Comm School District?
Besides Dayton Center, Southeast Webster Grand Comm School District also operates Southeast Webster-Grand Southeast Valley Middle (314 students). See the Southeast Webster Grand Comm School District 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.