Enrollment
139
Kansas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Dighton, KS
Dighton Elem
Federal NCES profile for Dighton Elem, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 58/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 200555001294
👥 S:T ratio 30
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 73
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Dighton Elem earns 58/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 90% of Kansas schools.
- 58
- Resource Index · Higher
- 17.4:1
- large classes for Kansas
- 38.3%
- free-lunch eligible
- 139
- students enrolled
Dighton Elem has class sizes larger than 90% of Kansas schools. Computed live against every Kansas school reporting to NCES.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
8.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.4:1
vs 13.8:1 Kansas avg
+26% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
38.3%
vs 42.7% Kansas avg
-10% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Dighton Elem compares with Kansas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Dighton Elem
Dighton Elem is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Dighton, Kansas, enrolling 139 students.
Class loads run heavy: 17.4:1 is larger than about 90% of Kansas schools and 26% above the 13.8:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 38.3% lands close to the Kansas typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 139 puts it in the smaller third of Kansas schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 1,346 scored Kansas schools.
Against 189 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #41.
Its student body is predominantly White (89% of enrollment) (diversity index 21/100).
10.8% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
Among Dighton's public schools, it stands alongside Dighton High (86 students): Dighton Elem is larger than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (17.4:1 vs 8.6:1).
Its district, Dighton, also runs Dighton High (86 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 Dighton Elem compares
Dighton Elem on the metrics families compare, against Kansas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Kansas | Kansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.4:1 | ▲ 26% | 13.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 38.3% | ▼ 10% | 42.7% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 139 | top 77% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17.4:1
Leaner classes than 28% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
139
Bigger than 14% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
38.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 10% below the Kansas average of 42.7%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17.4:1
students per teacher
- 26% above state mean
Top 90% in Kansas - lower ratio than 10% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
10.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$14,779
per pupil, district-wide
- below Kansas avg of $15,487
Somewhat 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
10
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 7.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.2 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 10.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.7%
Two or More 0.7%
Largest group: White at 88.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 20.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 20.6, Dighton Elem is less mixed than the Kansas school average of 39.4.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Dighton, which includes Dighton Elem.
$14,779
Per student
-5%
vs Kansas
Avg $15,487
-11%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 41.2%
State 53.1%
Federal 5.7%
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 Dighton Elem Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dighton High | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Dighton Elem's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 86
- Students per teacher
- 8.6:1
- Resource Index
- 57/100
Similar other schools in Dighton
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 Kansas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~139 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~17.4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Dighton Elem's federal record.
- Compare Dighton Elem against another school. Compare schools
- Dighton'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 Dighton Elem
How many students attend Dighton Elem?
Dighton Elem has 139 students enrolled. It is a public school in Dighton, KS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Dighton Elem?
The student-teacher ratio at Dighton Elem is 17.4:1, which is 26% higher than the Kansas average of 13.8:1 and 11% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Dighton Elem?
38.3% of students at Dighton Elem are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kansas average of 42.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Dighton Elem?
The largest demographic group at Dighton Elem is White at 88.5% of enrollment, in Dighton, KS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Dighton Elem?
Dighton Elem has a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (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 Dighton Elem a good school?
Dighton Elem earns 58/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 90% of Kansas 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 Dighton?
Besides Dighton Elem, Dighton also operates Dighton High (86 students). See the Dighton 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.