Enrollment
291
Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Pennington Gap, VA
Elk Knob Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Elk Knob Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 49/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 510219000891
👥 S:T ratio 47
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 42
📋 Attendance 36
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Elk Knob Elementary earns 49/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Virginia median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Virginia schools.
- 49
- Resource Index · Higher
- 13.2:1
- students per teacher
- 86.9%
- free-lunch eligible
- 291
- students enrolled
Elk Knob Elementary has class sizes near the Virginia median. Computed live against every Virginia school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Lee County Public Schools · Virginia
NCES ID 510219000891 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
22.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.2:1
vs 13.9:1 Virginia avg
-5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
86.9%
vs 57.6% Virginia avg
+51% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Elk Knob Elementary compares with Virginia and U.S. medians
What stands out at Elk Knob Elementary
Elk Knob Elementary is a high-poverty, small combined-grade school in Pennington Gap, Virginia, enrolling 291 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 13.2:1 puts it in the smaller third of Virginia schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 86.9% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 291 puts it in the smaller third of Virginia schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,868 scored Virginia schools.
Against 269 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #159.
Its student body is predominantly White (97% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 7/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 291 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 25.8% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 27.8% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Lee County Public Schools also operates Lee High (803 students) and Flatwoods Elementary (336 students) alongside Elk Knob 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 Elk Knob Elementary compares
Elk Knob Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Virginia and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Virginia | Virginia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.2:1 | ▼ 5% | 13.9:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 86.9% | ▲ 51% | 57.6% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 291 | top 86% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13.2:1
Leaner classes than 65% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
291
Bigger than 31% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
86.9%
free-lunch eligible
- 51% above the Virginia average of 57.6%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
13.2:1
students per teacher
- 5% below state mean
Top 40% in Virginia - lower ratio than 60% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
25.8%
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
$14,995
per pupil, district-wide
- above Virginia avg of $14,649
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 291 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.4 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 96.6%
Two or More 1.4%
Hispanic or Latino 1.0%
African American 0.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: White at 96.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 6.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 6.6, Elk Knob Elementary is less mixed than the Virginia school average of 53.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Lee County Public Schools, which includes Elk Knob Elementary.
$14,995
Per student
+2%
vs Virginia
Avg $14,649
-10%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 12.6%
State 59.6%
Federal 27.8%
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 Elk Knob Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lee High | Larger | Higher economic need | No ratio data |
| Flatwoods Elementary | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Thomas Walker High | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Pennington Middle | Similar size | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Rose Hill Elementary | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Elk Knob Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 803
- Students per teacher
- -
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 336
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 291
- Students per teacher
- 12.7:1
- Resource Index
- 54/100
- Enrollment
- 278
- Students per teacher
- 9.9:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 256
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Virginia, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~291 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~13.2:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Elk Knob Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Elk Knob Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Lee County Public Schools'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 Elk Knob Elementary
How many students attend Elk Knob Elementary?
Elk Knob Elementary has 291 students enrolled. It is a public school in Pennington Gap, VA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Elk Knob Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Elk Knob Elementary is 13.2:1, which is 5% lower than the Virginia average of 13.9:1 and 16% 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 Elk Knob Elementary?
86.9% of students at Elk Knob Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Virginia average of 57.6%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Elk Knob Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Elk Knob Elementary is White at 96.6% of enrollment, in Pennington Gap, VA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Elk Knob Elementary?
Elk Knob Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 49/100 (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).
Is Elk Knob Elementary a good school?
Elk Knob Elementary earns 49/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Virginia median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Virginia 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 Lee County Public Schools?
Besides Elk Knob Elementary, Lee County Public Schools also operates Lee High (803 students), Flatwoods Elementary (336 students), and Thomas Walker High (291 students). See the Lee County Public Schools 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.