Enrollment
285
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 370111002290
First Flight Elementary School — Kill Devil Hills, NC
Federal NCES profile for First Flight Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 51/100.
👥 Class size 57
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 43
📋 Attendance 35
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: Dare County Schools · North Carolina
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)
30.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.7:1
vs 16.4:1 North Carolina avg
-35% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
43.1%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
-35% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How First Flight Elementary School compares with North Carolina 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
First Flight Elementary School reports 285 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 30.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 10.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 35% below the North Carolina state mean of 16.4:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 33% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 43.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 35% below the North Carolina average and 17% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 285 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 26.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Dare County Schools spends $14,049 per pupil district-wide, above the North Carolina average of $13,042 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 36.1% from local sources (property taxes), 51.5% from the state, and 12.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (C-), 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 First Flight Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against North Carolina state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.7:1 | ▼ 35% | 16.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 43.1% | ▼ 35% | 66.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 285 | top 21% | — | — |
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
43.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 35% below the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
10.7:1
students per teacher
— 35% below state mean
Top 6% in North Carolina — lower ratio than 94% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
26.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$14,049
per pupil, district-wide
— above North Carolina avg of $13,042
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 285 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 285 Top 21% in North Carolina — larger than 79% of 2,703 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 30.0
Students per teacher 10.7:1 -35% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 43.1% -35% vs state
NCES ID 370111002290
Student demographics
White 68.1%
Hispanic or Latino 21.8%
Two or More 7.7%
Asian 2.5%
Largest group: White at 68.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 285:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 26.0%
In-school suspensions 1
Out-of-school suspensions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Dare County Schools, which includes First Flight Elementary School.
$14,049
Per student
+8%
vs North Carolina
Avg $13,042
-28%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 36.1%
State 51.5%
Federal 12.4%
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
- 874
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
- Enrollment
- 636
- Students per teacher
- 12.2:1
- Enrollment
- 604
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
- Enrollment
- 528
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Enrollment
- 487
- Students per teacher
- 12.2:1
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 First Flight Elementary School
How many students attend First Flight Elementary School?
First Flight Elementary School has 285 students enrolled. It is a other school in Kill Devil Hills, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at First Flight Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at First Flight Elementary School is 10.7:1, which is 35% lower than the North Carolina average of 16.4:1 and 33% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at First Flight Elementary School?
43.1% of students at First Flight Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of First Flight Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at First Flight Elementary School is White at 68.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in Kill Devil Hills, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for First Flight Elementary School?
First Flight Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (C-) 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.