Other / mixed grade configuration · Puyallup, WA

Edward Zeiger Elem

Federal NCES profile for Edward Zeiger Elem, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 38/100.

2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 530696002530
0/100100/10038/100
👥 S:T ratio
38
🌟 Gifted program
30
🎓 Counselors
0
📋 Attendance
83
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Edward Zeiger Elem earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Washington median. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Washington schools.

#18 of 20
schools in Puyallup · Resource Index
38
Resource Index · Typical
15.6:1
students per teacher
41.0%
free-lunch eligible

Edward Zeiger Elem has class sizes near the Washington median. Computed live against every Washington school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Edward Zeiger Elem ranks #18 of 20 schools in Puyallup, WA.

Enrollment

500

Washington · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

32.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

15.6:1

vs 17.6:1 Washington avg

-11% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

41.0%

vs 45.0% Washington avg

-9% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Edward Zeiger Elem compares with Washington and U.S. medians

Smaller classes than state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Edward Zeiger Elem

Edward Zeiger Elem is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Puyallup, Washington, enrolling 500 students.

At 15.6:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Washington median, within a few percentage points of the 17.6:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.

Its free-meal eligibility rate of 41.0% lands close to the Washington typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.

Enrollment of 500 puts it in the larger third of Washington schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,394 scored Washington schools.

Among 503 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Washington schools statewide, it ranks #382, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is led by White (41%) and Hispanic or Latino (24%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 74/100).

Counselor access is stretched at roughly 500 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.

Attendance holds up well here: only 7.0% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.

The surrounding Puyallup School District spends $15,642 per pupil, 20% below the Washington average, a leaner-resourced district than most.

The federal civil-rights collection also records 1 expulsion at this campus for 2021-22.

Among Puyallup's public schools, it stands alongside Dessie F Evans Elementary (919 students): Edward Zeiger Elem is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (15.6:1 vs 16.7:1).

Puyallup School District also operates Puyallup High School (1,815 students) and Gov John Rogers High School (1,788 students) alongside Edward Zeiger Elem.

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 Edward Zeiger Elem compares

Edward Zeiger Elem on the metrics families compare, against Washington and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Washington Washington avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 15.6:1 ▼ 11% 17.6:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 41.0% ▼ 9% 45.0% 51.7%
Enrollment 500 top 31% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

15.6:1
Leaner classes than 41% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
500
Bigger than 62% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
41.0%
free-lunch eligible - 9% below the Washington average of 45.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.6:1
students per teacher - 11% below state mean
Top 41% in Washington - lower ratio than 59% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
7.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$15,642
per pupil, district-wide - below Washington avg of $19,487
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 500 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
4
in-school suspensions + 10 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.

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 40.8%
Hispanic or Latino 24.2%
Two or More 15.8%
Asian 6.8%
African American 6.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 5.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.8%

Largest group: White at 40.8% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 73.9/100

Simpson diversity index - at 73.9, Edward Zeiger Elem is more mixed than the Washington school average of 53.3.

Programs

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Puyallup School District, which includes Edward Zeiger Elem.

$15,642
Per student
-20%
vs Washington
Avg $19,487
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 25.4%
State 64.7%
Federal 9.9%

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.

How Edward Zeiger Elem Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Puyallup High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Gov John Rogers High School Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Emerald Ridge High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Dessie F Evans Elementary Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Ballou Jr High Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Edward Zeiger Elem's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Puyallup School District · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar other schools in Puyallup

6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.

Similar other schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Washington, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Edward Zeiger Elem's federal record.

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 Edward Zeiger Elem

How many students attend Edward Zeiger Elem?

Edward Zeiger Elem has 500 students enrolled. It is a public school in Puyallup, WA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Edward Zeiger Elem?

The student-teacher ratio at Edward Zeiger Elem is 15.6:1, which is 11% lower than the Washington average of 17.6:1 and 1% 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 Edward Zeiger Elem?

41.0% of students at Edward Zeiger Elem are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Washington average of 45.0%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Edward Zeiger Elem?

The largest demographic group at Edward Zeiger Elem is White at 40.8% of enrollment, in Puyallup, WA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 73.9/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Edward Zeiger Elem?

Edward Zeiger Elem has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (typical 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 Edward Zeiger Elem rank among schools in Puyallup?

By Resource Investment Index, Edward Zeiger Elem ranks #18 of 20 schools in Puyallup, WA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Puyallup on the city page.

Is Edward Zeiger Elem a good school?

Edward Zeiger Elem earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Washington median. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Washington 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 Puyallup School District?

Besides Edward Zeiger Elem, Puyallup School District also operates Puyallup High School (1,815 students), Gov John Rogers High School (1,788 students), and Emerald Ridge High School (1,599 students). See the Puyallup School District district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.