Enrollment
744
Kentucky · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 210299000627
Fern Creek Elementary — Louisville, KY
Federal NCES profile for Fern Creek Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 46/100.
👥 Class size 34
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 26
📋 Attendance 56
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
District: Jefferson County · Kentucky
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)
43.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.6:1
vs 15.6:1 Kentucky avg
+6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
63.2%
vs 59.2% Kentucky avg
+7% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Fern Creek Elementary compares with Kentucky 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
Fern Creek Elementary reports 744 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 43.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.6:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 6% above the Kentucky state mean of 15.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 4% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 63.2% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 7% above the Kentucky average and 22% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 372 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 17.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Jefferson County spends $19,590 per pupil district-wide, above the Kentucky average of $15,105 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 46.8% from local sources (property taxes), 30.9% from the state, and 22.3% 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 Fern Creek Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Kentucky state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Kentucky | Kentucky avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.6:1 | ▲ 6% | 15.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 63.2% | ▲ 7% | 59.2% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 744 | top 86% | — | — |
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
63.2%
free-lunch eligible
— 7% above the Kentucky average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
16.6:1
students per teacher
— 6% above state mean
Top 73% in Kentucky — 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
17.7%
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
$19,590
per pupil, district-wide
— above Kentucky avg of $15,105
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 372 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
21
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 744 Top 86% in Kentucky — larger than 14% of 1,395 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 43.0
Students per teacher 16.6:1 +6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 63.2% +7% vs state
NCES ID 210299000627
Student demographics
African American 30.4%
Hispanic or Latino 28.0%
White 27.3%
Asian 8.6%
Two or More 5.8%
Largest group: African American at 30.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 372:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 17.7%
In-school suspensions 21
Out-of-school suspensions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Jefferson County, which includes Fern Creek Elementary.
$19,590
Per student
+30%
vs Kentucky
Avg $15,105
+1%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 46.8%
State 30.9%
Federal 22.3%
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
- 2,148
- Students per teacher
- 18.6:1
- Enrollment
- 1,899
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,892
- Students per teacher
- 18.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,790
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,777
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
Similar elementary schools in Louisville
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Bowen Elementary
Standard public school
729 students 16.5:1 students per teacher
Norton Elementary
Standard public school
716 students 17.1:1 students per teacher
Goldsmith Elementary
Standard public school
651 students 13.5:1 students per teacher
Indian Trail Elementary
Standard public school
649 students 14.8:1 students per teacher
Wheeler Elementary
Standard public school
626 students 17.5:1 students per teacher
Audubon Traditional Elementary
Standard public school
610 students 20.5:1 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 Fern Creek Elementary
How many students attend Fern Creek Elementary?
Fern Creek Elementary has 744 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Louisville, KY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Fern Creek Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Fern Creek Elementary is 16.6:1, which is 6% higher than the Kentucky average of 15.6:1 and 4% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Fern Creek Elementary?
63.2% of students at Fern Creek Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kentucky average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Fern Creek Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Fern Creek Elementary is African American at 30.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Louisville, KY.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Fern Creek Elementary?
Fern Creek Elementary 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.