Enrollment
233
Mississippi · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Cleveland, MS
D.M. Smith Elementary
Federal NCES profile for D.M. Smith Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 53/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 280075001476
👥 S:T ratio 61
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 53
📋 Attendance 26
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
D.M. Smith Elementary earns 53/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 92% of Mississippi schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Mississippi schools.
- #2 of 4
- elementary schools in Cleveland · Resource Index
- 53
- Resource Index · Higher
- 9.7:1
- small classes for Mississippi
- 100.0%
- free-lunch eligible
D.M. Smith Elementary has class sizes smaller than 92% of Mississippi schools. Computed live against every Mississippi school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, D.M. Smith Elementary ranks #2 of 4 elementary schools in Cleveland, MS.
School address
District: Cleveland School Dist · Mississippi
NCES ID 280075001476 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
24.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
9.7:1
vs 13.3:1 Mississippi avg
-27% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 80.5% Mississippi avg
+24% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How D.M. Smith Elementary compares with Mississippi and U.S. medians
What stands out at D.M. Smith Elementary
D.M. Smith Elementary is a high-poverty, small elementary school in Cleveland, Mississippi, enrolling 233 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 9.7:1, D.M. Smith Elementary is leaner than roughly 92% of Mississippi schools and 27% under the state's 13.3:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 100.0% lands close to the Mississippi typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 233 puts it in the smaller third of Mississippi schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 877 scored Mississippi schools.
Against 190 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #43.
Its student body is predominantly African American (94% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 12/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 233 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 29.6% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 21.8% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Discipline events run high: 93 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 233 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
Cleveland School Dist also operates Cleveland Central High School (799 students) and Cleveland Central Middle School (423 students) alongside D.M. Smith 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 D.M. Smith Elementary compares
D.M. Smith Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Mississippi and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Mississippi | Mississippi avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 9.7:1 | ▼ 27% | 13.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 24% | 80.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 233 | top 87% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
9.7:1
Leaner classes than 90% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
233
Bigger than 23% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
100.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 24% above the Mississippi average of 80.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
9.7:1
students per teacher
- 27% below state mean
Top 8% in Mississippi - lower ratio than 92% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
29.6%
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
$11,339
per pupil, district-wide
- below Mississippi avg of $11,990
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 233 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 93 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 39.9 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
African American 93.6%
Two or More 5.2%
Asian 0.9%
White 0.4%
Largest group: African American at 93.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 12.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 12.1, D.M. Smith Elementary is less mixed than the Mississippi school average of 41.1.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cleveland School Dist, which includes D.M. Smith Elementary.
$11,339
Per student
-5%
vs Mississippi
Avg $11,990
-32%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 37.4%
State 40.8%
Federal 21.8%
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 D.M. Smith Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Central High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Cleveland Central Middle School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Bell Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Hayes Cooper Center for Math Sc Tec | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Parks Elementary School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to D.M. Smith Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 799
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 423
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 327
- Students per teacher
- 13.1:1
- Resource Index
- 61/100
- Enrollment
- 304
- Students per teacher
- 12.7:1
- Resource Index
- 63/100
- Enrollment
- 265
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Resource Index
- 48/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Mississippi, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~233 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on D.M. Smith Elementary's federal record.
- Compare D.M. Smith Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Cleveland School Dist'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 D.M. Smith Elementary
How many students attend D.M. Smith Elementary?
D.M. Smith Elementary has 233 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Cleveland, MS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at D.M. Smith Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at D.M. Smith Elementary is 9.7:1, which is 27% lower than the Mississippi average of 13.3:1 and 38% 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 D.M. Smith Elementary?
100.0% of students at D.M. Smith Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Mississippi average of 80.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of D.M. Smith Elementary?
The largest demographic group at D.M. Smith Elementary is African American at 93.6% of enrollment, in Cleveland, MS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for D.M. Smith Elementary?
D.M. Smith Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 53/100 (higher 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).
How does D.M. Smith Elementary rank among elementary schools in Cleveland?
By Resource Investment Index, D.M. Smith Elementary ranks #2 of 4 elementary schools in Cleveland, MS. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Cleveland on the city page.
Is D.M. Smith Elementary a good school?
D.M. Smith Elementary earns 53/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 92% of Mississippi schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Mississippi 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 Cleveland School Dist?
Besides D.M. Smith Elementary, Cleveland School Dist also operates Cleveland Central High School (799 students), Cleveland Central Middle School (423 students), and Bell Elementary School (327 students). See the Cleveland School Dist 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.