Enrollment
351
Louisiana · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 220039002482
Grand Lake Elementary — Lake Charles, LA
Federal NCES profile for Grand Lake Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 50/100.
👥 Class size 44
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 30
📋 Attendance 95
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: Cameron Parish · Louisiana
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)
24.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.9:1
vs 18.6:1 Louisiana avg
-25% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
39.8%
vs 62.5% Louisiana avg
-36% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Grand Lake Elementary compares with Louisiana 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
Grand Lake Elementary reports 351 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 24.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 13.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 25% below the Louisiana state mean of 18.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 13% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 39.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 36% below the Louisiana average and 23% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 351 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 2.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Cameron Parish spends $49,678 per pupil district-wide, above the Louisiana average of $17,870 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 76.6% from local sources (property taxes), 12.6% from the state, and 10.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (C-), 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 Grand Lake Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Louisiana state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Louisiana | Louisiana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.9:1 | ▼ 25% | 18.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 39.8% | ▼ 36% | 62.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 351 | top 36% | — | — |
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
39.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 36% below the Louisiana average of 62.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
13.9:1
students per teacher
— 25% below state mean
Top 16% in Louisiana — lower ratio than 84% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
2.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$49,678
per pupil, district-wide
— above Louisiana avg of $17,870
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 351 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
4
in-school suspensions + 8 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 351 Top 36% in Louisiana — larger than 64% of 1,330 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 24.0
Students per teacher 13.9:1 -25% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 39.8% -36% vs state
NCES ID 220039002482
Student demographics
White 86.6%
Hispanic or Latino 9.7%
Two or More 2.0%
African American 1.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: White at 86.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 351:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 2.0%
In-school suspensions 4
Out-of-school suspensions 8
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cameron Parish, which includes Grand Lake Elementary.
$49,678
Per student
+178%
vs Louisiana
Avg $17,870
+155%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 76.6%
State 12.6%
Federal 10.8%
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
- 322
- Students per teacher
- 11.7:1
- Enrollment
- 218
- Students per teacher
- 8.2:1
- Enrollment
- 161
- Students per teacher
- 7.3:1
- Enrollment
- 68
- Students per teacher
- 5.3:1
Similar other schools in Lake Charles
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Moss Bluff Elementary School
Standard public school
969 students 18.4:1 students per teacher
Lake Charles Charter Academy
Standard public school
951 students 17.4:1 students per teacher
Southwest Louisiana Charter Academy
Standard public school
852 students 17.2:1 students per teacher
A. a. Nelson Elementary School
Standard public school
736 students 17.2:1 students per teacher
St. John Elementary School
Standard public school
670 students 17.7:1 students per teacher
Gillis Elementary School
Standard public school
650 students 15:1 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 Grand Lake Elementary
How many students attend Grand Lake Elementary?
Grand Lake Elementary has 351 students enrolled. It is a other school in Lake Charles, LA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Grand Lake Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Grand Lake Elementary is 13.9:1, which is 25% lower than the Louisiana average of 18.6:1 and 13% 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 Grand Lake Elementary?
39.8% of students at Grand Lake Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Louisiana average of 62.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Grand Lake Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Grand Lake Elementary is White at 86.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in Lake Charles, LA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Grand Lake Elementary?
Grand Lake Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (C-) 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.