Enrollment
915
Florida · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 120030008631
Discovery Oaks Elementary — Orange Park, FL
Federal NCES profile for Discovery Oaks Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 41/100.
👥 Class size 30
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 9
📋 Attendance 54
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
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)
56.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.4:1
vs 18.3:1 Florida avg
-5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
29.8%
vs 52.0% Florida avg
-43% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Discovery Oaks Elementary compares with Florida 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
Discovery Oaks Elementary reports 915 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 56.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 5% below the Florida state mean of 18.3:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 9% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 29.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 43% below the Florida average and 42% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 458 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 18.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Clay spends $10,722 per pupil district-wide, below the Florida average of $12,756 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 31.3% from local sources (property taxes), 53.9% from the state, and 14.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D), 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 Discovery Oaks Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Florida state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Florida | Florida avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.4:1 | ▼ 5% | 18.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 29.8% | ▼ 43% | 52.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 915 | top 77% | — | — |
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
29.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 43% below the Florida average of 52.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17.4:1
students per teacher
— 5% below state mean
Top 56% in Florida — lower ratio than 44% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
18.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$10,722
per pupil, district-wide
— below Florida avg of $12,756
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 458 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
56
in-school suspensions + 17 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 8.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 3 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 915 Top 77% in Florida — larger than 23% of 4,029 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 56.0
Students per teacher 17.4:1 -5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 29.8% -43% vs state
NCES ID 120030008631
Student demographics
African American 37.0%
White 30.1%
Hispanic or Latino 17.6%
Two or More 11.1%
Asian 3.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
Largest group: African American at 37.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 458:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 18.3%
In-school suspensions 56
Out-of-school suspensions 17
Expulsions 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Clay, which includes Discovery Oaks Elementary.
$10,722
Per student
-16%
vs Florida
Avg $12,756
-45%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 31.3%
State 53.9%
Federal 14.9%
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
- 2,307
- Students per teacher
- 20.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,866
- Students per teacher
- 18.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,844
- Students per teacher
- 19.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,792
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,776
- Students per teacher
- 20.3:1
Similar other schools in Orange Park
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Oakleaf Village Elementary School
Standard public school
1,022 students 13.5:1 students per teacher
Plantation Oaks Elementary School
Standard public school
915 students 13.2:1 students per teacher
Lakeside Elementary School
Standard public school
726 students 14.3:1 students per teacher
Argyle Elementary School
Standard public school
722 students 16.9:1 students per teacher
Robert M. Paterson Elementary
Standard public school
665 students 14.1:1 students per teacher
W E Cherry Elementary School
Standard public school
652 students 10.2:1 students per teacher
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 Discovery Oaks Elementary
How many students attend Discovery Oaks Elementary?
Discovery Oaks Elementary has 915 students enrolled. It is a other school in ORANGE PARK, FL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Discovery Oaks Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Discovery Oaks Elementary is 17.4:1, which is 5% lower than the Florida average of 18.3:1 and 9% higher than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Discovery Oaks Elementary?
29.8% of students at Discovery Oaks Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Florida average of 52.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Discovery Oaks Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Discovery Oaks Elementary is African American at 37.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in ORANGE PARK, FL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Discovery Oaks Elementary?
Discovery Oaks Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D) 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.