Enrollment
429
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Waseca, MN
Hartley Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Hartley Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 35/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 274188001747
👥 S:T ratio 46
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 14
📋 Attendance 48
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Hartley Elementary earns 35/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Minnesota median.
- #3 of 4
- schools in Waseca · Resource Index
- 35
- Resource Index · Typical
- 13.4:1
- students per teacher
- 44.3%
- free-lunch eligible
Hartley Elementary has class sizes near the Minnesota median. Computed live against every Minnesota school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Hartley Elementary ranks #3 of 4 schools in Waseca, MN.
School address
District: Waseca Public School District · Minnesota
NCES ID 274188001747 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
32.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.4:1
vs 15.8:1 Minnesota avg
-15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
44.3%
vs 42.8% Minnesota avg
+4% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Hartley Elementary compares with Minnesota and U.S. medians
What stands out at Hartley Elementary
Hartley Elementary is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Waseca, Minnesota, enrolling 429 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 13.4:1 puts it in the smaller third of Minnesota schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 44.3% lands close to the Minnesota typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 429 puts it in the larger third of Minnesota schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,334 scored Minnesota schools.
Against 339 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #212.
Its student body is led by White (72%) and Hispanic or Latino (19%) (diversity index 45/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 429 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 20.7% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Waseca Public School District also operates Waseca Senior High (555 students) and Waseca Intermediate School (380 students) alongside Hartley Elementary.
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 Hartley Elementary compares
Hartley Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Minnesota and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Minnesota | Minnesota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.4:1 | ▼ 15% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 44.3% | ▲ 4% | 42.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 429 | top 33% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13.4:1
Leaner classes than 63% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
429
Bigger than 52% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
44.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 4% above the Minnesota average of 42.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
13.4:1
students per teacher
- 15% below state mean
Top 40% in Minnesota - lower ratio than 60% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
20.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$14,498
per pupil, district-wide
- below Minnesota avg of $15,270
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 429 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
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
- 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 71.8%
Hispanic or Latino 18.6%
Two or More 4.9%
Asian 1.9%
African American 1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 71.8% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 44.7/100
Simpson diversity index - at 44.7, Hartley Elementary is about as mixed as the Minnesota school average of 42.8.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Waseca Public School District, which includes Hartley Elementary.
$14,498
Per student
-5%
vs Minnesota
Avg $15,270
-13%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 24.5%
State 64.6%
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.
How Hartley Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waseca Senior High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Waseca Intermediate School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Waseca Junior High | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Waseca Area Learning Center | Smaller | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Waseca Early Childhood | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Hartley Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 555
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Resource Index
- 35/100
- Enrollment
- 380
- Students per teacher
- 11.5:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
- Enrollment
- 280
- Students per teacher
- 23.3:1
- Resource Index
- 21/100
- Enrollment
- 65
- Students per teacher
- 13:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 38
- Students per teacher
- 38:1
- Resource Index
- 15/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Minnesota, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~429 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~13.4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Hartley Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Hartley Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Waseca Public School District'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 Hartley Elementary
How many students attend Hartley Elementary?
Hartley Elementary has 429 students enrolled. It is a public school in Waseca, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Hartley Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Hartley Elementary is 13.4:1, which is 15% lower than the Minnesota average of 15.8:1 and 15% lower 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 Hartley Elementary?
44.3% of students at Hartley Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Minnesota average of 42.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Hartley Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Hartley Elementary is White at 71.8% of enrollment, in Waseca, MN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Hartley Elementary?
Hartley Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (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 Hartley Elementary rank among schools in Waseca?
By Resource Investment Index, Hartley Elementary ranks #3 of 4 schools in Waseca, MN. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Waseca on the city page.
Is Hartley Elementary a good school?
Hartley Elementary earns 35/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Minnesota 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 Waseca Public School District?
Besides Hartley Elementary, Waseca Public School District also operates Waseca Senior High (555 students), Waseca Intermediate School (380 students), and Waseca Junior High (280 students). See the Waseca Public School District 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.