Enrollment
524
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 482901007819
Highland Lakes El — Granite Shoals, TX
Federal NCES profile for Highland Lakes El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 42/100.
👥 Class size 44
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 52
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: Marble Falls 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)
39.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.9:1
vs 14.6:1 Texas avg
-5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
86.3%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+39% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Highland Lakes 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
Highland Lakes El reports 524 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 39.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 13.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 5% 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 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: 86.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 39% above the Texas average and 67% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 524 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 19.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Marble Falls Isd spends $16,324 per pupil district-wide, below the Texas average of $17,150 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 79.9% from local sources (property taxes), 7.9% from the state, and 12.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (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 Highland Lakes 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 | 13.9:1 | ▼ 5% | 14.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 86.3% | ▲ 39% | 61.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 524 | top 53% | — | — |
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
86.3%
free-lunch eligible
— 39% 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
13.9:1
students per teacher
— 5% below state mean
Top 39% in Texas — lower ratio than 61% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
19.3%
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
$16,324
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 524 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
17
in-school suspensions + 5 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 524 Top 53% in Texas — larger than 47% of 9,061 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 39.0
Students per teacher 13.9:1 -5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 86.3% +39% vs state
NCES ID 482901007819
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 80.3%
White 17.0%
Two or More 1.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.8%
African American 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 80.3% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 524:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 19.3%
In-school suspensions 17
Out-of-school suspensions 5
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Marble Falls Isd, which includes Highland Lakes El.
$16,324
Per student
-5%
vs Texas
Avg $17,150
-16%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 79.9%
State 7.9%
Federal 12.1%
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
- 1,129
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Enrollment
- 852
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Enrollment
- 572
- Students per teacher
- 14.6:1
- Enrollment
- 569
- Students per teacher
- 14.6:1
- Enrollment
- 310
- Students per teacher
- 10.6:1
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 Highland Lakes El
How many students attend Highland Lakes El?
Highland Lakes El has 524 students enrolled. It is a other school in GRANITE SHOALS, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Highland Lakes El?
The student-teacher ratio at Highland Lakes El is 13.9:1, which is 5% lower than the Texas average of 14.6:1 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 Highland Lakes El?
86.3% of students at Highland Lakes El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Highland Lakes El?
The largest demographic group at Highland Lakes El is Hispanic or Latino at 80.3%. The school serves a diverse student body in GRANITE SHOALS, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Highland Lakes El?
Highland Lakes El has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (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.