Enrollment
173
Montana · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 301014000280
Fairfield Elementary School — Fairfield, MT
Federal NCES profile for Fairfield Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 46/100.
👥 Class size 31
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 65
📋 Attendance 57
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 →
The verdict
Fairfield Elementary School earns a D Resource Investment Index (46/100), with class sizes larger than 90% of Montana schools.
- D
- Resource Index · 46/100
- 17.2:1
- large classes for Montana
- 173
- students enrolled
School address
District: Fairfield Elem · Montana
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)
10.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.2:1
vs 12.1:1 Montana avg
+42% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Fairfield Elementary School compares with Montana 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
Fairfield Elementary School reports 173 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 10.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 42% above the Montana state mean of 12.1:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 8% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Counselor coverage works out to roughly 173 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 17.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Fairfield Elem spends $13,874 per pupil district-wide, below the Montana average of $21,538 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 42.5% from local sources (property taxes), 39.8% from the state, and 17.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (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 Fairfield Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Montana state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Montana | Montana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.2:1 | ▲ 42% | 12.1:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Enrollment | 173 | top 65% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
Class size vs. every US school
Students per teacher (lower means more individual attention)
17 smaller classes than 29% of 92,598 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25
School size vs. every US school
Total enrollment — where this school sits by size (neither large nor small is 'better')
173 larger than 17% of 95,891 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 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.
Staffing depth
17.2:1
students per teacher
— 42% above state mean
Top 90% in Montana — lower ratio than 10% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
17.3%
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
$13,874
per pupil, district-wide
— below Montana avg of $21,538
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 173 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 173 Top 65% in Montana — larger than 35% of 826 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 10.0
Students per teacher 17.2:1 +42% vs state
Free-lunch eligible —
NCES ID 301014000280
Student demographics
White 97.1%
Two or More 2.3%
Hispanic or Latino 0.6%
Largest group: White at 97.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 173:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 17.3%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Fairfield Elem, which includes Fairfield Elementary School.
$13,874
Per student
-36%
vs Montana
Avg $21,538
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 42.5%
State 39.8%
Federal 17.8%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 47
- Students per teacher
- 7:1
Similar other schools in Fairfield
2 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
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 Fairfield Elementary School
How many students attend Fairfield Elementary School?
Fairfield Elementary School has 173 students enrolled. It is a other school in Fairfield, MT.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Fairfield Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Fairfield Elementary School is 17.2:1, which is 42% higher than the Montana average of 12.1:1 and 8% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Fairfield Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Fairfield Elementary School is White at 97.1%. The school serves a student body in Fairfield, MT.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Fairfield Elementary School?
Fairfield Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (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.