Enrollment
1,022
Utah · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 490014001268 Charter school
Early Light Academy at Daybreak — South Jordan, UT
Federal NCES profile for Early Light Academy at Daybreak, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 18/100.
👥 Class size 19
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 23
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: Early Light Academy at Daybreak · Utah
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)
48.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.3:1
vs 23.1:1 Utah avg
-12% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
10.0%
vs 28.0% Utah avg
-64% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Early Light Academy at Daybreak compares with Utah 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
Early Light Academy at Daybreak reports 1,022 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 48.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 20.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 12% below the Utah state mean of 23.1:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 28% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 10.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 64% below the Utah average and 81% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 538 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 30.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Early Light Academy at Daybreak spends $9,323 per pupil district-wide, below the Utah average of $12,354 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 3.3% from local sources (property taxes), 88.7% from the state, and 8.0% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 18/100 (F), 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 Early Light Academy at Daybreak compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Utah state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Utah | Utah avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.3:1 | ▼ 12% | 23.1:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 10.0% | ▼ 64% | 28.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,022 | top 86% | — | — |
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
10.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 64% below the Utah average of 28.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
20.3:1
students per teacher
— 12% below state mean
Top 33% in Utah — lower ratio than 67% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
30.6%
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
$9,323
per pupil, district-wide
— below Utah avg of $12,354
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.9 FTE
Per 538 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
13
in-school suspensions + 10 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 1,022 Top 86% in Utah — larger than 14% of 1,068 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 48.0
Students per teacher 20.3:1 -12% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 10.0% -64% vs state
NCES ID 490014001268
Student demographics
White 64.2%
Hispanic or Latino 17.2%
Asian 8.7%
Two or More 6.1%
African American 1.8%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 1.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.9%
Largest group: White at 64.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 2
Counselors (FTE) 1.9
Students per counselor 538:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 30.6%
In-school suspensions 13
Out-of-school suspensions 10
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Early Light Academy at Daybreak, which includes Early Light Academy at Daybreak.
$9,323
Per student
-25%
vs Utah
Avg $12,354
-52%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 3.3%
State 88.7%
Federal 8.0%
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.
Similar other schools in South Jordan
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
South Jordan Middle
Standard public school
1,182 students 24:1 students per teacher
Elk Ridge Middle
Standard public school
1,151 students 22.4:1 students per teacher
American Academy of Innovation
Standard public school
373 students 18.5:1 students per teacher
Paradigm High School
Standard public school
361 students 16.6:1 students per teacher
Valley High School
Alternative education program
347 students 16.5:1 students per teacher
Career Academy of Utah
Standard public school
64 students 5.8:1 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 Early Light Academy at Daybreak
How many students attend Early Light Academy at Daybreak?
Early Light Academy at Daybreak has 1,022 students enrolled. It is a other school in SOUTH JORDAN, UT.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Early Light Academy at Daybreak?
The student-teacher ratio at Early Light Academy at Daybreak is 20.3:1, which is 12% lower than the Utah average of 23.1:1 and 28% 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 Early Light Academy at Daybreak?
10.0% of students at Early Light Academy at Daybreak are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Utah average of 28.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Early Light Academy at Daybreak?
The largest demographic group at Early Light Academy at Daybreak is White at 64.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in SOUTH JORDAN, UT.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Early Light Academy at Daybreak?
Early Light Academy at Daybreak has a Resource Investment Index of 18/100 (F) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.