Enrollment
338
Arizona · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 040000101872
Desert Willow Elementary School — Cave Creek, AZ
Federal NCES profile for Desert Willow Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 19/100.
👥 Class size 27
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 0
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: Cave Creek Unified District (4244) · Arizona
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)
25.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.2:1
vs 17.7:1 Arizona avg
+3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
4.8%
vs 48.3% Arizona avg
-90% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Desert Willow Elementary School compares with Arizona 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
Desert Willow Elementary School reports 338 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 25.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 18.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 3% above the Arizona state mean of 17.7:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 14% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 4.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 90% below the Arizona average and 91% below the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 61.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Cave Creek Unified District (4244) spends $9,553 per pupil district-wide, below the Arizona average of $15,070 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 65.6% from local sources (property taxes), 24.9% from the state, and 9.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 19/100 (F), calculated from 3 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 Desert Willow Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Arizona state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Arizona | Arizona avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.2:1 | ▲ 3% | 17.7:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 4.8% | ▼ 90% | 48.3% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 338 | top 41% | — | — |
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
4.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 90% below the Arizona average of 48.3%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
18.2:1
students per teacher
— 3% above state mean
Top 57% in Arizona — lower ratio than 43% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
61.5%
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
$9,553
per pupil, district-wide
— below Arizona avg of $15,070
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 338 Top 41% in Arizona — larger than 59% of 2,186 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 25.0
Students per teacher 18.2:1 +3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 4.8% -90% vs state
NCES ID 040000101872
Student demographics
White 70.1%
Hispanic or Latino 21.0%
Two or More 6.2%
Asian 2.7%
Largest group: White at 70.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 61.5%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cave Creek Unified District (4244), which includes Desert Willow Elementary School.
$9,553
Per student
-37%
vs Arizona
Avg $15,070
-51%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 65.6%
State 24.9%
Federal 9.4%
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
- 1,362
- Students per teacher
- 20.9:1
- Enrollment
- 615
- Students per teacher
- 21.7:1
- Enrollment
- 496
- Students per teacher
- 15:1
- Enrollment
- 424
- Students per teacher
- 17.3:1
- Enrollment
- 376
- Students per teacher
- 18.4:1
Similar elementary schools in Cave Creek
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 Desert Willow Elementary School
How many students attend Desert Willow Elementary School?
Desert Willow Elementary School has 338 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Cave Creek, AZ.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Desert Willow Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Desert Willow Elementary School is 18.2:1, which is 3% higher than the Arizona average of 17.7:1 and 14% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Desert Willow Elementary School?
4.8% of students at Desert Willow Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arizona average of 48.3%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Desert Willow Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Desert Willow Elementary School is White at 70.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in Cave Creek, AZ.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Desert Willow Elementary School?
Desert Willow Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 19/100 (F) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.