Enrollment
382
Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 080480001920
Free Horizon Montessori — Golden, CO
Federal NCES profile for Free Horizon Montessori, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 29/100.
👥 Class size 17
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 19
📋 Attendance 8
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 School District No. R-1 · Colorado
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)
19.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.7:1
vs 16.9:1 Colorado avg
+22% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
15.2%
vs 38.5% Colorado avg
-61% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Free Horizon Montessori compares with Colorado 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
Free Horizon Montessori reports 382 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 19.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 20.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 22% above the Colorado state mean of 16.9:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 30% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 15.2% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 61% below the Colorado average and 71% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 406 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 36.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Jefferson County School District No. R-1 spends $16,228 per pupil district-wide, below the Colorado average of $20,949 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 55.3% from local sources (property taxes), 36.9% from the state, and 7.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 29/100 (F), 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 Free Horizon Montessori compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Colorado state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Colorado | Colorado avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.7:1 | ▲ 22% | 16.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 15.2% | ▼ 61% | 38.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 382 | top 54% | — | — |
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
15.2%
free-lunch eligible
— 61% below the Colorado average of 38.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
20.7:1
students per teacher
— 22% above state mean
Top 91% in Colorado — lower ratio than 9% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
36.6%
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
$16,228
per pupil, district-wide
— below Colorado avg of $20,949
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.9 FTE
Per 406 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 7 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 382 Top 54% in Colorado — larger than 46% of 1,923 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 19.0
Students per teacher 20.7:1 +22% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 15.2% -61% vs state
NCES ID 080480001920
Student demographics
White 74.6%
Hispanic or Latino 16.8%
Two or More 7.1%
Asian 1.3%
African American 0.3%
Largest group: White at 74.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.9
Students per counselor 406:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 36.6%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 7
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Jefferson County School District No. R-1, which includes Free Horizon Montessori.
$16,228
Per student
-23%
vs Colorado
Avg $20,949
-17%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 55.3%
State 36.9%
Federal 7.8%
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
- 1,923
- Students per teacher
- 20.4:1
- Enrollment
- 1,875
- Students per teacher
- 21.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,808
- Students per teacher
- 19.8:1
- Enrollment
- 1,735
- Students per teacher
- 18.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,710
- Students per teacher
- 19.6:1
Similar other schools in Golden
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Golden View Classical Academy
Standard public school
737 students 19.9:1 students per teacher
Kyffin Elementary School
Standard public school
503 students 18.6:1 students per teacher
Jeffco Virtual Academy
Alternative education program
441 students 15.4:1 students per teacher
Compass Montessori - Golden Charter School
Standard public school
425 students 23.6:1 students per teacher
Shelton Elementary School
Standard public school
394 students 15.6:1 students per teacher
Welchester Elementary School
Standard public school
293 students 15.4:1 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 Free Horizon Montessori
How many students attend Free Horizon Montessori?
Free Horizon Montessori has 382 students enrolled. It is a other school in GOLDEN, CO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Free Horizon Montessori?
The student-teacher ratio at Free Horizon Montessori is 20.7:1, which is 22% higher than the Colorado average of 16.9:1 and 30% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Free Horizon Montessori?
15.2% of students at Free Horizon Montessori are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Free Horizon Montessori?
The largest demographic group at Free Horizon Montessori is White at 74.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in GOLDEN, CO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Free Horizon Montessori?
Free Horizon Montessori has a Resource Investment Index of 29/100 (F) 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.