Enrollment
652
South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 450339000969
Forest Lake Elementary — Columbia, SC
Federal NCES profile for Forest Lake Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 43/100.
👥 Class size 50
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 53
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: Richland 02 · South 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)
49.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.5:1
vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg
-13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
70.4%
vs 74.0% South Carolina avg
-5% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Forest Lake Elementary compares with South 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
Forest Lake Elementary reports 652 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 49.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 13% below the South Carolina state mean of 14.3:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 21% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 70.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 5% below the South Carolina average and 36% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 652 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 18.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Richland 02 spends $18,376 per pupil district-wide, above the South Carolina average of $17,182 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 42.0% from local sources (property taxes), 47.7% from the state, and 10.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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 Forest Lake Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against South 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 South Carolina | South Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.5:1 | ▼ 13% | 14.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 70.4% | ▼ 5% | 74.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 652 | top 63% | — | — |
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
70.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 5% below the South Carolina average of 74.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.5:1
students per teacher
— 13% below state mean
Top 24% in South Carolina — lower ratio than 76% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
18.9%
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
$18,376
per pupil, district-wide
— above South Carolina avg of $17,182
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 652 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 10 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 652 Top 63% in South Carolina — larger than 37% of 1,215 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 49.0
Students per teacher 12.5:1 -13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 70.4% -5% vs state
NCES ID 450339000969
Student demographics
African American 55.7%
Hispanic or Latino 17.9%
White 17.3%
Two or More 5.8%
Asian 3.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: African American at 55.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 652:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 18.9%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 10
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Richland 02, which includes Forest Lake Elementary.
$18,376
Per student
+7%
vs South Carolina
Avg $17,182
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 42.0%
State 47.7%
Federal 10.3%
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
- 2,230
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Enrollment
- 2,164
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,743
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,631
- Students per teacher
- 18.8:1
- Enrollment
- 1,340
- Students per teacher
- 14.3:1
Similar other schools in Columbia
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Sc Connections Academy
Standard public school
6,152 students 28.3:1 students per teacher
Brennen Elementary
Standard public school
805 students 15.2:1 students per teacher
Rice Creek Elementary
Standard public school
718 students 13.6:1 students per teacher
Caughman Road Elementary
Standard public school
715 students 14.4:1 students per teacher
Killian Elementary
Standard public school
699 students 13.3:1 students per teacher
Sandlapper Elementary
Standard public school
671 students 14:1 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 Forest Lake Elementary
How many students attend Forest Lake Elementary?
Forest Lake Elementary has 652 students enrolled. It is a other school in Columbia, SC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Forest Lake Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Forest Lake Elementary is 12.5:1, which is 13% lower than the South Carolina average of 14.3:1 and 21% 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 Forest Lake Elementary?
70.4% of students at Forest Lake Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Forest Lake Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Forest Lake Elementary is African American at 55.7%. The school serves a diverse student body in Columbia, SC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Forest Lake Elementary?
Forest Lake Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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.