Enrollment
448
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Forest City, IA
Forest City Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Forest City Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 46/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 191179000715
👥 S:T ratio 49
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 10
📋 Attendance 54
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Forest City Elementary School earns 46/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Iowa median.
- #3 of 3
- public schools in Forest City · Resource Index
- 46
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.8:1
- students per teacher
- 33.3%
- free-lunch eligible
Forest City Elementary School has class sizes near the Iowa median. Computed live against every Iowa school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Forest City Elementary School ranks #3 of 3 public schools in Forest City, IA.
School address
District: Forest City Comm School District · Iowa
NCES ID 191179000715 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
35.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.8:1
vs 14.8:1 Iowa avg
-14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
33.3%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
-9% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Forest City Elementary School compares with Iowa and U.S. medians
What stands out at Forest City Elementary School
Forest City Elementary School is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Forest City, Iowa, enrolling 448 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.8:1 puts it in the smaller third of Iowa schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 33.3% lands close to the Iowa typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 448 puts it in the larger third of Iowa schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,322 scored Iowa schools.
Against 385 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #192.
Its student body is led by White (79%) and Hispanic or Latino (12%) (diversity index 35/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 448 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 18.3% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Forest City Comm School District also operates Forest City Middle School (330 students) and Forest City High School (304 students) alongside Forest City 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 Forest City Elementary School compares
Forest City Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Iowa and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.8:1 | ▼ 14% | 14.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 33.3% | ▼ 9% | 36.4% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 448 | top 26% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.8:1
Leaner classes than 68% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
448
Bigger than 55% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
33.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 9% below the Iowa average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
12.8:1
students per teacher
- 14% below state mean
Top 33% in Iowa - lower ratio than 67% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
18.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$12,100
per pupil, district-wide
- below Iowa avg of $12,854
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 448 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.2 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
White 79.2%
Hispanic or Latino 12.1%
Two or More 6.9%
Asian 1.3%
African American 0.4%
Largest group: White at 79.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 35.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 35.3, Forest City Elementary School is about as mixed as the Iowa school average of 33.8.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Forest City Comm School District, which includes Forest City Elementary School.
$12,100
Per student
-6%
vs Iowa
Avg $12,854
-27%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 42.3%
State 47.7%
Federal 10.0%
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 Forest City Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forest City Middle School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Forest City High School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Forest City Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 330
- Students per teacher
- 12.7:1
- Resource Index
- 59/100
- Enrollment
- 304
- Students per teacher
- 11.7:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Iowa, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~448 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Forest City Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Forest City Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Forest City Comm School District'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 Forest City Elementary School
How many students attend Forest City Elementary School?
Forest City Elementary School has 448 students enrolled. It is a public school in Forest City, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Forest City Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Forest City Elementary School is 12.8:1, which is 14% lower than the Iowa average of 14.8:1 and 18% 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 Forest City Elementary School?
33.3% of students at Forest City Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Forest City Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Forest City Elementary School is White at 79.2% of enrollment, in Forest City, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Forest City Elementary School?
Forest City Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (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 Forest City Elementary School rank among public schools in Forest City?
By Resource Investment Index, Forest City Elementary School ranks #3 of 3 public schools in Forest City, IA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Forest City on the city page.
Is Forest City Elementary School a good school?
Forest City Elementary School earns 46/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Iowa 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 Forest City Comm School District?
Besides Forest City Elementary School, Forest City Comm School District also operates Forest City Middle School (330 students) and Forest City High School (304 students). See the Forest City Comm School District 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.