Enrollment
27
Wyoming · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Wamsutter, WY
Desert Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Desert Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 48/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 560530200297
👥 S:T ratio 64
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 97
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Desert Elementary earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 75% of Wyoming schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Wyoming schools.
- 48
- Resource Index · Typical
- 9:1
- small classes for Wyoming
- 45.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 27
- students enrolled
Desert Elementary has class sizes smaller than 75% of Wyoming schools. Computed live against every Wyoming school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Sweetwater County School District #1 · Wyoming
NCES ID 560530200297 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
3.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
9:1
vs 11.4:1 Wyoming avg
-21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
45.0%
vs 27.4% Wyoming avg
+64% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Desert Elementary compares with Wyoming and U.S. medians
What stands out at Desert Elementary
Desert Elementary is a small elementary school in Wamsutter, Wyoming, enrolling 27 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 9:1 puts it in the smaller third of Wyoming schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need is high: 45.0% of students qualify for free meals, 64% above the Wyoming average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
Enrollment of 27 puts it in the smaller third of Wyoming schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 347 scored Wyoming schools.
Its student body is led by White (44%) and Hispanic or Latino (33%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 64/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 14 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 48.1% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The surrounding Sweetwater County School District #1 spends $15,932 per pupil, 29% below the Wyoming average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
Sweetwater County School District #1 also operates Rock Springs High School (1,393 students) and Rock Springs Junior High (746 students) alongside Desert 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 Desert Elementary compares
Desert Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Wyoming and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Wyoming | Wyoming avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 9:1 | ▼ 21% | 11.4:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 45.0% | ▲ 64% | 27.4% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 27 | top 86% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
9:1
Leaner classes than 93% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
27
Bigger than 3% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
45.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 64% above the Wyoming average of 27.4%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
9:1
students per teacher
- 21% below state mean
Top 25% in Wyoming - lower ratio than 75% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
48.1%
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
$15,932
per pupil, district-wide
- below Wyoming avg of $22,313
Close to the U.S. public-school average per-pupil spend.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 14 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.7 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 44.4%
Hispanic or Latino 33.3%
Two or More 22.2%
Largest group: White at 44.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 64.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 64.3, Desert Elementary is more mixed than the Wyoming school average of 33.2.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Sweetwater County School District #1, which includes Desert Elementary.
$15,932
Per student
-29%
vs Wyoming
Avg $22,313
-4%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 40.5%
State 46.2%
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 Desert Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rock Springs High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Rock Springs Junior High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Pilot Butte Elementary | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Eastside Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Stagecoach Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Desert Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,393
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Resource Index
- 24/100
- Enrollment
- 746
- Students per teacher
- 16.6:1
- Resource Index
- 22/100
- Enrollment
- 547
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 541
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 394
- Students per teacher
- 11.3:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Wyoming, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~27 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~9:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Desert Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Desert Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Sweetwater County School District #1'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 Desert Elementary
How many students attend Desert Elementary?
Desert Elementary has 27 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Wamsutter, WY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Desert Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Desert Elementary is 9:1, which is 21% lower than the Wyoming average of 11.4:1 and 43% 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 Desert Elementary?
45.0% of students at Desert Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Wyoming average of 27.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Desert Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Desert Elementary is White at 44.4% of enrollment, in Wamsutter, WY. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 64.3/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Desert Elementary?
Desert Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (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 Desert Elementary a good school?
Desert Elementary earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 75% of Wyoming schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Wyoming 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 Sweetwater County School District #1?
Besides Desert Elementary, Sweetwater County School District #1 also operates Rock Springs High School (1,393 students), Rock Springs Junior High (746 students), and Pilot Butte Elementary (547 students). See the Sweetwater County School District #1 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.