Enrollment
399
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 271137004181
Handke Center- Ec Special Education — Elk River, MN
Federal NCES profile for Handke Center- Ec Special Education, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 33/100.
👥 Class size 36
🌟 Gifted program 30
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: Elk River Public School District · Minnesota
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)
21.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.1:1
vs 15.9:1 Minnesota avg
+1% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
23.6%
vs 42.8% Minnesota avg
-45% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Handke Center- Ec Special Education compares with Minnesota 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
Handke Center- Ec Special Education reports 399 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 21.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 1% above the Minnesota state mean of 15.9:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 1% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 23.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 45% below the Minnesota average and 54% below the national baseline.
On the finance side, the surrounding Elk River Public School District spends $18,226 per pupil district-wide, below the Minnesota average of $21,113 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 31.4% from local sources (property taxes), 61.0% from the state, and 7.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 33/100 (F), calculated from 2 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 Handke Center- Ec Special Education compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Minnesota state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Minnesota | Minnesota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.1:1 | ▲ 1% | 15.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 23.6% | ▼ 45% | 42.8% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 399 | top 64% | — | — |
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
23.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 45% below the Minnesota average of 42.8%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
16.1:1
students per teacher
— 1% above state mean
Top 64% in Minnesota — lower ratio than 36% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Funding equity
$18,226
per pupil, district-wide
— below Minnesota avg of $21,113
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 399 Top 64% in Minnesota — larger than 36% of 2,391 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 21.0
Students per teacher 16.1:1 +1% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 23.6% -45% vs state
NCES ID 271137004181
Student demographics
White 89.5%
African American 3.5%
Hispanic or Latino 3.3%
Two or More 2.0%
Asian 1.8%
Largest group: White at 89.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Elk River Public School District, which includes Handke Center- Ec Special Education.
$18,226
Per student
-14%
vs Minnesota
Avg $21,113
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 31.4%
State 61.0%
Federal 7.6%
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
- 1,888
- Students per teacher
- 37:1
- Enrollment
- 1,562
- Students per teacher
- 32.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,077
- Students per teacher
- 49:1
- Enrollment
- 953
- Students per teacher
- 38.8:1
- Enrollment
- 755
- Students per teacher
- 17.3:1
Similar other schools in Elk River
2 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
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 Handke Center- Ec Special Education
How many students attend Handke Center- Ec Special Education?
Handke Center- Ec Special Education has 399 students enrolled. It is a other school in ELK RIVER, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Handke Center- Ec Special Education?
The student-teacher ratio at Handke Center- Ec Special Education is 16.1:1, which is 1% higher than the Minnesota average of 15.9:1 and 1% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Handke Center- Ec Special Education?
23.6% of students at Handke Center- Ec Special Education are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Minnesota average of 42.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Handke Center- Ec Special Education?
The largest demographic group at Handke Center- Ec Special Education is White at 89.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in ELK RIVER, MN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Handke Center- Ec Special Education?
Handke Center- Ec Special Education has a Resource Investment Index of 33/100 (F) based on 2 factors: student-teacher ratio. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Limited indicators were available, so the index reflects partial data.