Enrollment
857
Florida · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Tallahassee, FL
Gilchrist Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Gilchrist Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 47/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 120111001186
👥 S:T ratio 36
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 5
📋 Attendance 77
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Gilchrist Elementary School earns 47/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Florida median.
- #9 of 37
- schools in Tallahassee · Resource Index
- 47
- Resource Index · Typical
- 15.9:1
- students per teacher
- 19.1%
- free-lunch eligible
Gilchrist Elementary School has class sizes near the Florida median. Computed live against every Florida school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Gilchrist Elementary School ranks #9 of 37 schools in Tallahassee, FL.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
54.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.9:1
vs 17.8:1 Florida avg
-11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
19.1%
vs 52.0% Florida avg
-63% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Gilchrist Elementary School compares with Florida and U.S. medians
What stands out at Gilchrist Elementary School
Gilchrist Elementary School is a lower-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Tallahassee, Florida, enrolling 857 students.
At 15.9:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Florida median, within a few percentage points of the 17.8:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 19.1% free-meal eligibility runs 63% below the Florida average.
Enrollment of 857 puts it in the larger third of Florida schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 3,996 scored Florida schools.
Against 390 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #75.
Its student body is led by White (60%) and African American (13%) (diversity index 60/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 476 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance holds up well here: only 9.1% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
Its district draws 18.1% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Leon also operates Lawton Chiles High School (1,881 students) and Lincoln High School (1,822 students) alongside Gilchrist 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 Gilchrist Elementary School compares
Gilchrist 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 | 15.9:1 | ▼ 11% | 17.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 19.1% | ▼ 63% | 52.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 857 | top 27% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
15.9:1
Leaner classes than 39% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
857
Bigger than 88% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
19.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 63% below the Florida average of 52.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15.9:1
students per teacher
- 11% below state mean
Top 43% in Florida - lower ratio than 57% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
9.1%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$10,180
per pupil, district-wide
- below 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
Counselors1.8 FTE
Per 476 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 5 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.7 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 59.6%
African American 13.3%
Hispanic or Latino 11.3%
Two or More 8.2%
Asian 6.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 59.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 60.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 60.3, Gilchrist Elementary School is more mixed than the Florida school average of 52.3.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Leon, which includes Gilchrist Elementary School.
$10,180
Per student
-9%
vs Florida
Avg $11,167
-39%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 42.6%
State 39.3%
Federal 18.1%
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 Gilchrist Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lawton Chiles High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Lincoln High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Leon High School | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| James Rickards High School | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Amos P. Godby High School | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Gilchrist Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,881
- Students per teacher
- 24.1:1
- Resource Index
- 23/100
- Enrollment
- 1,822
- Students per teacher
- 24.6:1
- Resource Index
- 23/100
- Enrollment
- 1,793
- Students per teacher
- 21.6:1
- Resource Index
- 21/100
- Enrollment
- 1,718
- Students per teacher
- 26.8:1
- Resource Index
- 17/100
- Enrollment
- 1,388
- Students per teacher
- 21.7:1
- Resource Index
- 28/100
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 (~857 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Gilchrist Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Gilchrist Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Leon'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 Gilchrist Elementary School
How many students attend Gilchrist Elementary School?
Gilchrist Elementary School has 857 students enrolled. It is a public school in Tallahassee, FL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Gilchrist Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Gilchrist Elementary School is 15.9:1, which is 11% lower than the Florida average of 17.8:1 and 1% higher 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 Gilchrist Elementary School?
19.1% of students at Gilchrist Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Florida average of 52.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Gilchrist Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Gilchrist Elementary School is White at 59.6% of enrollment, in Tallahassee, FL. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 60.3/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Gilchrist Elementary School?
Gilchrist Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 47/100 (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 Gilchrist Elementary School rank among schools in Tallahassee?
By Resource Investment Index, Gilchrist Elementary School ranks #9 of 37 schools in Tallahassee, FL. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Tallahassee on the city page.
Is Gilchrist Elementary School a good school?
Gilchrist Elementary School earns 47/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Florida 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 Leon?
Besides Gilchrist Elementary School, Leon also operates Lawton Chiles High School (1,881 students), Lincoln High School (1,822 students), and Leon High School (1,793 students). See the Leon 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.