Enrollment
342
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 191350000825
Harlan Primary — Harlan, IA
Federal NCES profile for Harlan Primary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 37/100.
👥 Class size 26
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 32
📋 Attendance 61
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: Harlan Comm School District · Iowa
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)
20.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.5:1
vs 15:1 Iowa avg
+23% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
38.8%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
+7% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Harlan Primary compares with Iowa 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
Harlan Primary reports 342 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 20.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 18.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 23% above the Iowa state mean of 15:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 16% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 38.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 7% above the Iowa average and 25% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 342 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 15.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Harlan Comm School District spends $13,036 per pupil district-wide, below the Iowa average of $17,211 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 39.7% from local sources (property taxes), 48.7% from the state, and 11.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (F), 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 Harlan Primary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Iowa state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.5:1 | ▲ 23% | 15:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 38.8% | ▲ 7% | 36.4% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 342 | top 57% | — | — |
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
38.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 7% above the Iowa average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
18.5:1
students per teacher
— 23% above state mean
Top 91% in Iowa — lower ratio than 9% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
15.8%
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
$13,036
per pupil, district-wide
— below Iowa avg of $17,211
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 342 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 342 Top 57% in Iowa — larger than 43% of 1,326 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 20.0
Students per teacher 18.5:1 +23% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 38.8% +7% vs state
NCES ID 191350000825
Student demographics
White 81.0%
Hispanic or Latino 10.5%
Two or More 6.1%
African American 1.2%
Asian 0.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 81.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 342:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 15.8%
In-school suspensions 2
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Harlan Comm School District, which includes Harlan Primary.
$13,036
Per student
-24%
vs Iowa
Avg $17,211
-33%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 39.7%
State 48.7%
Federal 11.6%
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
- 486
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
- Enrollment
- 335
- Students per teacher
- 15.5:1
- Enrollment
- 309
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
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 Harlan Primary
How many students attend Harlan Primary?
Harlan Primary has 342 students enrolled. It is a other school in Harlan, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Harlan Primary?
The student-teacher ratio at Harlan Primary is 18.5:1, which is 23% higher than the Iowa average of 15:1 and 16% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Harlan Primary?
38.8% of students at Harlan Primary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Harlan Primary?
The largest demographic group at Harlan Primary is White at 81.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in Harlan, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Harlan Primary?
Harlan Primary has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (F) 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.