Enrollment
433
Kansas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 200654001856
Explorer Elementary School — Goddard, KS
Federal NCES profile for Explorer Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 45/100.
👥 Class size 39
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 13
📋 Attendance 59
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
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)
31.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.2:1
vs 14.4:1 Kansas avg
+6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
23.9%
vs 42.7% Kansas avg
-44% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Explorer Elementary School compares with Kansas 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
Explorer Elementary School reports 433 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 31.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 6% above the Kansas state mean of 14.4:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 4% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 23.9% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 44% below the Kansas average and 54% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 433 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 16.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Goddard spends $14,894 per pupil district-wide, below the Kansas average of $17,342 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 29.4% from local sources (property taxes), 62.4% from the state, and 8.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (D), 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 Explorer Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Kansas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Kansas | Kansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.2:1 | ▲ 6% | 14.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 23.9% | ▼ 44% | 42.7% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 433 | top 75% | — | — |
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
23.9%
free-lunch eligible
— 44% below the Kansas average of 42.7%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15.2:1
students per teacher
— 6% above state mean
Top 73% in Kansas — lower ratio than 27% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
16.4%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$14,894
per pupil, district-wide
— below Kansas avg of $17,342
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 433 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 7 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 433 Top 75% in Kansas — larger than 25% of 1,354 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 31.0
Students per teacher 15.2:1 +6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 23.9% -44% vs state
NCES ID 200654001856
Student demographics
White 73.4%
Hispanic or Latino 14.3%
Two or More 7.6%
African American 2.1%
Asian 1.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.5%
Largest group: White at 73.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 433:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 16.4%
In-school suspensions 1
Out-of-school suspensions 7
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Goddard, which includes Explorer Elementary School.
$14,894
Per student
-14%
vs Kansas
Avg $17,342
-24%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 29.4%
State 62.4%
Federal 8.2%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 991
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Enrollment
- 962
- Students per teacher
- 18.6:1
- Enrollment
- 625
- Students per teacher
- 19.2:1
- Enrollment
- 544
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Enrollment
- 514
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
Similar other schools in Goddard
4 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Apollo Elementary School
Standard public school
544 students 16:1 students per teacher
Amelia Earhart Elementary School
Standard public school
514 students 14.4:1 students per teacher
Clark Davidson Elem
Standard public school
462 students 13.7:1 students per teacher
Usd 265 - Goddard Virtual School
Standard public school
29 students 34:1 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 Explorer Elementary School
How many students attend Explorer Elementary School?
Explorer Elementary School has 433 students enrolled. It is a other school in Goddard, KS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Explorer Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Explorer Elementary School is 15.2:1, which is 6% higher than the Kansas average of 14.4:1 and 4% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Explorer Elementary School?
23.9% of students at Explorer Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kansas average of 42.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Explorer Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Explorer Elementary School is White at 73.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Goddard, KS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Explorer Elementary School?
Explorer Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (D) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.