Enrollment
672
Arkansas · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Little Rock, AR
Estem Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Estem Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 38/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 050039801468Charter school
👥 S:T ratio 53
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 70
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Estem Elementary School earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Arkansas median.
- #17 of 28
- elementary schools in Little Rock · Resource Index
- 38
- Resource Index · Typical
- 11.8:1
- students per teacher
- 58.0%
- free-lunch eligible
Estem Elementary School has class sizes near the Arkansas median. Computed live against every Arkansas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Estem Elementary School ranks #17 of 28 elementary schools in Little Rock, AR.
School address
District: Estem High Charter · Arkansas
NCES ID 050039801468 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
57.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.8:1
vs 13.6:1 Arkansas avg
-13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
58.0%
vs 59.2% Arkansas avg
-2% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Estem Elementary School compares with Arkansas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Estem Elementary School
Estem Elementary School is a higher-need, large charter elementary school in Little Rock, Arkansas, enrolling 672 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11.8:1 puts it in the smaller third of Arkansas schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 58.0% lands close to the Arkansas typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 672 puts it in the larger third of Arkansas schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,066 scored Arkansas schools.
Against 147 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #90.
Its student body is predominantly African American (80% of enrollment) (diversity index 34/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 149 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 48.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 22.0% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Estem High Charter also operates Estem Public Charter High School (676 students) and Estem East Village Elementary Public Charter School (609 students) alongside Estem Elementary School.
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 Estem Elementary School compares
Estem Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Arkansas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Arkansas | Arkansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.8:1 | ▼ 13% | 13.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 58.0% | ▼ 2% | 59.2% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 672 | top 14% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.8:1
Leaner classes than 77% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
672
Bigger than 78% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
58.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 2% below the Arkansas average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
11.8:1
students per teacher
- 13% below state mean
Top 33% in Arkansas - lower ratio than 67% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
48.2%
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
$11,403
per pupil, district-wide
- below Arkansas avg of $12,251
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors4.5 FTE
Per 149 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 18 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.7 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 80.2%
Hispanic or Latino 7.7%
White 6.7%
Two or More 4.9%
Asian 0.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: African American at 80.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 34.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 34.4, Estem Elementary School is less mixed than the Arkansas school average of 40.4.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Estem High Charter, which includes Estem Elementary School.
$11,403
Per student
-7%
vs Arkansas
Avg $12,251
-31%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 4.0%
State 74.0%
Federal 22.0%
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.
How Estem Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Estem Public Charter High School | Similar size | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Estem East Village Elementary Public Charter School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Estem Middle School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Estem East Village Junior High Public Charter School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Estem Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 676
- Students per teacher
- 19.3:1
- Resource Index
- 21/100
- Enrollment
- 609
- Students per teacher
- 11.7:1
- Resource Index
- 35/100
- Enrollment
- 401
- Students per teacher
- 12.5:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 292
- Students per teacher
- 10.4:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Arkansas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~672 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Estem Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Estem Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Estem High Charter'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 Estem Elementary School
How many students attend Estem Elementary School?
Estem Elementary School has 672 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Little Rock, AR.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Estem Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Estem Elementary School is 11.8:1, which is 13% lower than the Arkansas average of 13.6:1 and 25% 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 Estem Elementary School?
58.0% of students at Estem Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arkansas average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Estem Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Estem Elementary School is African American at 80.2% of enrollment, in Little Rock, AR.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Estem Elementary School?
Estem Elementary School 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 Estem Elementary School rank among elementary schools in Little Rock?
By Resource Investment Index, Estem Elementary School ranks #17 of 28 elementary schools in Little Rock, AR. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Little Rock on the city page.
Is Estem Elementary School a good school?
Estem Elementary School earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Arkansas median. 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 Estem High Charter?
Besides Estem Elementary School, Estem High Charter also operates Estem Public Charter High School (676 students), Estem East Village Elementary Public Charter School (609 students), and Estem Middle School (401 students). See the Estem High Charter 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.