Enrollment
455
Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Mc Donald, PA
Fort Cherry El Ctr
Federal NCES profile for Fort Cherry El Ctr, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 46/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 420996007270
👥 S:T ratio 52
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 9
📋 Attendance 52
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Fort Cherry El Ctr earns 46/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 72% of Pennsylvania schools.
- #3 of 3
- public schools in Mc Donald · Resource Index
- 46
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12:1
- small classes for Pennsylvania
- 42.6%
- free-lunch eligible
Fort Cherry El Ctr has class sizes smaller than 72% of Pennsylvania schools. Computed live against every Pennsylvania school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Fort Cherry El Ctr ranks #3 of 3 public schools in Mc Donald, PA.
School address
District: Fort Cherry Sd · Pennsylvania
NCES ID 420996007270 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
38.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12:1
vs 13.6:1 Pennsylvania avg
-12% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
42.6%
vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg
-27% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Fort Cherry El Ctr compares with Pennsylvania and U.S. medians
What stands out at Fort Cherry El Ctr
Fort Cherry El Ctr is a mid-sized elementary school in Mc Donald, Pennsylvania, enrolling 455 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12:1 puts it in the smaller third of Pennsylvania schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 42.6% lands close to the Pennsylvania typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 455 students, its enrollment sits close to the Pennsylvania median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,889 scored Pennsylvania schools.
Against 651 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #409.
Its student body is predominantly White (90% of enrollment) (diversity index 19/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 455 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 19.1% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Among Mc Donald's elementary schools, it stands alongside Cecil Intrmd Sch (412 students): Fort Cherry El Ctr is larger than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (12:1 vs 17.2:1).
Its district, Fort Cherry Sd, also runs Fort Cherry Jshs (457 students).
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 Fort Cherry El Ctr compares
Fort Cherry El Ctr on the metrics families compare, against Pennsylvania and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12:1 | ▼ 12% | 13.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 42.6% | ▼ 27% | 58.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 455 | top 50% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12:1
Leaner classes than 75% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
455
Bigger than 56% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
42.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 27% below the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12:1
students per teacher
- 12% below state mean
Top 28% in Pennsylvania - lower ratio than 72% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
19.1%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$19,198
per pupil, district-wide
- above Pennsylvania avg of $17,970
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 455 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 25 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.2 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 89.5%
Two or More 6.8%
Hispanic or Latino 3.1%
African American 0.4%
Asian 0.2%
Largest group: White at 89.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 19.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 19.3, Fort Cherry El Ctr is less mixed than the Pennsylvania school average of 37.3.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Fort Cherry Sd, which includes Fort Cherry El Ctr.
$19,198
Per student
+7%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $17,970
+16%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 44.1%
State 49.6%
Federal 6.3%
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.
How Fort Cherry El Ctr Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Cherry Jshs | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Fort Cherry El Ctr's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 457
- Students per teacher
- 12.4:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
Similar elementary schools in Mc Donald
1 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Pennsylvania, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~455 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Fort Cherry El Ctr's federal record.
- Compare Fort Cherry El Ctr against another school. Compare schools
- Fort Cherry Sd'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 Fort Cherry El Ctr
How many students attend Fort Cherry El Ctr?
Fort Cherry El Ctr has 455 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Mc Donald, PA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Fort Cherry El Ctr?
The student-teacher ratio at Fort Cherry El Ctr is 12:1, which is 12% lower than the Pennsylvania average of 13.6:1 and 24% 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 Fort Cherry El Ctr?
42.6% of students at Fort Cherry El Ctr are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Fort Cherry El Ctr?
The largest demographic group at Fort Cherry El Ctr is White at 89.5% of enrollment, in Mc Donald, PA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Fort Cherry El Ctr?
Fort Cherry El Ctr 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 Fort Cherry El Ctr rank among public schools in Mc Donald?
By Resource Investment Index, Fort Cherry El Ctr ranks #3 of 3 public schools in Mc Donald, PA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Mc Donald on the city page.
Is Fort Cherry El Ctr a good school?
Fort Cherry El Ctr earns 46/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 72% of Pennsylvania schools. 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 Fort Cherry Sd?
Besides Fort Cherry El Ctr, Fort Cherry Sd also operates Fort Cherry Jshs (457 students). See the Fort Cherry Sd 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.