Enrollment
643
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 482034002025
Golden Meadows El — Garland, TX
Federal NCES profile for Golden Meadows El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 44/100.
👥 Class size 42
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 64
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: Garland Isd · Texas
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)
31.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.5:1
vs 14.6:1 Texas avg
-1% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
85.5%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+38% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Golden Meadows El compares with Texas 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
Golden Meadows El reports 643 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 31.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 1% below the Texas state mean of 14.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 9% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 85.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 38% above the Texas average and 65% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 643 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 14.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Garland Isd spends $11,836 per pupil district-wide, below the Texas average of $17,150 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 43.7% from local sources (property taxes), 37.7% from the state, and 18.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (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 Golden Meadows El compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Texas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.5:1 | ▼ 1% | 14.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 85.5% | ▲ 38% | 61.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 643 | top 67% | — | — |
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
85.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 38% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.5:1
students per teacher
— 1% below state mean
Top 49% in Texas — lower ratio than 51% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
14.5%
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
$11,836
per pupil, district-wide
— below Texas avg of $17,150
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 643 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 643 Top 67% in Texas — larger than 33% of 9,061 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 31.0
Students per teacher 14.5:1 -1% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 85.5% +38% vs state
NCES ID 482034002025
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 79.8%
African American 9.3%
White 6.7%
Asian 2.8%
Two or More 0.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 79.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 643:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 14.5%
In-school suspensions 1
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Garland Isd, which includes Golden Meadows El.
$11,836
Per student
-31%
vs Texas
Avg $17,150
-39%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 43.7%
State 37.7%
Federal 18.6%
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
- 2,935
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
- Enrollment
- 2,929
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
- Enrollment
- 2,335
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Enrollment
- 2,156
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Enrollment
- 2,073
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
Similar other schools in Garland
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
S Garland H S
Standard public school
2,001 students 16.4:1 students per teacher
Harmony Science Academy - Garland
Standard public school
759 students 15.1:1 students per teacher
Daugherty El
Standard public school
757 students 16.9:1 students per teacher
Abbett El
Standard public school
710 students 16.3:1 students per teacher
Spring Creek El
Standard public school
673 students 16.7:1 students per teacher
Harmony School of Innovation - Garland
Standard public school
658 students 15.3:1 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 Golden Meadows El
How many students attend Golden Meadows El?
Golden Meadows El has 643 students enrolled. It is a other school in GARLAND, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Golden Meadows El?
The student-teacher ratio at Golden Meadows El is 14.5:1, which is 1% lower than the Texas average of 14.6:1 and 9% 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 Golden Meadows El?
85.5% of students at Golden Meadows El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Golden Meadows El?
The largest demographic group at Golden Meadows El is Hispanic or Latino at 79.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in GARLAND, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Golden Meadows El?
Golden Meadows El has a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (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.