Enrollment
529
Florida · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Venice, FL
Garden Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Garden Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 39/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 120168001860
👥 S:T ratio 44
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 40
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Garden Elementary School earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 78% of Florida schools.
- #3 of 3
- schools in Venice · Resource Index
- 39
- Resource Index · Typical
- 13.9:1
- small classes for Florida
- 43.9%
- free-lunch eligible
Garden Elementary School has class sizes smaller than 78% of Florida schools. Computed live against every Florida school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Garden Elementary School ranks #3 of 3 schools in Venice, FL.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
38.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.9:1
vs 17.8:1 Florida avg
-22% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
43.9%
vs 52.0% Florida avg
-16% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Garden Elementary School compares with Florida and U.S. medians
What stands out at Garden Elementary School
Garden Elementary School is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Venice, Florida, enrolling 529 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 13.9:1 puts it in the smaller third of Florida schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 43.9% of students eligible for free meals.
With 529 students, its enrollment sits close to the Florida median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 3,996 scored Florida schools.
Against 610 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #253.
Its student body is led by White (68%) and Hispanic or Latino (22%) (diversity index 49/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 529 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 24.0% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Sarasota also operates Riverview High School (2,637 students) and Venice Senior High School (2,579 students) alongside Garden 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 Garden Elementary School compares
Garden Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Florida and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Florida | Florida avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.9:1 | ▼ 22% | 17.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 43.9% | ▼ 16% | 52.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 529 | top 57% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13.9:1
Leaner classes than 58% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
529
Bigger than 65% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
43.9%
free-lunch eligible
- 16% below the Florida average of 52.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
13.9:1
students per teacher
- 22% below state mean
Top 22% in Florida - lower ratio than 78% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
24.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$12,753
per pupil, district-wide
- above Florida avg of $11,167
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 529 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 21 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.2 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 67.9%
Hispanic or Latino 22.1%
Two or More 6.0%
African American 2.1%
Asian 1.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.6%
Largest group: White at 67.9% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 48.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 48.6, Garden Elementary School is less mixed than the Florida school average of 52.3.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Sarasota, which includes Garden Elementary School.
$12,753
Per student
+14%
vs Florida
Avg $11,167
-23%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 77.1%
State 11.5%
Federal 11.3%
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 Garden Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riverview High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Venice Senior High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| North Port High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Sarasota High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Pine View School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Garden Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,637
- Students per teacher
- 20.3:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 2,579
- Students per teacher
- 23.7:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 2,557
- Students per teacher
- 20.8:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 2,359
- Students per teacher
- 18.4:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
- Enrollment
- 1,752
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Florida, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~529 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Garden Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Garden Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Sarasota'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 Garden Elementary School
How many students attend Garden Elementary School?
Garden Elementary School has 529 students enrolled. It is a public school in Venice, FL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Garden Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Garden Elementary School is 13.9:1, which is 22% lower than the Florida average of 17.8:1 and 11% 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 Garden Elementary School?
43.9% of students at Garden Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Florida average of 52.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Garden Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Garden Elementary School is White at 67.9% of enrollment, in Venice, FL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Garden Elementary School?
Garden Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 39/100 (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 Garden Elementary School rank among schools in Venice?
By Resource Investment Index, Garden Elementary School ranks #3 of 3 schools in Venice, FL. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Venice on the city page.
Is Garden Elementary School a good school?
Garden Elementary School earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 78% of Florida 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 Sarasota?
Besides Garden Elementary School, Sarasota also operates Riverview High School (2,637 students), Venice Senior High School (2,579 students), and North Port High School (2,557 students). See the Sarasota 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.