Enrollment
823
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 480021111282 Charter school
Idea College Prep — Donna, TX
Federal NCES profile for Idea College Prep, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 26/100.
👥 Class size 45
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 31
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: Idea Public Schools · 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)
53.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.7:1
vs 14.6:1 Texas avg
-6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
93.7%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+51% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Idea College Prep 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
Idea College Prep reports 823 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 53.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 13.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 6% 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 14% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 93.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 51% above the Texas average and 81% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 823 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 27.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Idea Public Schools spends $11,965 per pupil district-wide, below the Texas average of $17,150 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 2.8% from local sources (property taxes), 76.8% from the state, and 20.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 26/100 (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 Idea College Prep 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 | 13.7:1 | ▼ 6% | 14.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 93.7% | ▲ 51% | 61.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 823 | top 82% | — | — |
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
93.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 51% 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
13.7:1
students per teacher
— 6% below state mean
Top 37% in Texas — lower ratio than 63% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
27.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$11,965
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 823 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
10
in-school suspensions + 54 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 823 Top 82% in Texas — larger than 18% of 9,061 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 53.0
Students per teacher 13.7:1 -6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 93.7% +51% vs state
NCES ID 480021111282
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 96.8%
White 2.9%
African American 0.1%
Two or More 0.1%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 96.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 5
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 823:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 27.7%
In-school suspensions 10
Out-of-school suspensions 54
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Idea Public Schools, which includes Idea College Prep.
$11,965
Per student
-30%
vs Texas
Avg $17,150
-39%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 2.8%
State 76.8%
Federal 20.4%
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
- 848
- Students per teacher
- 16.1:1
- Enrollment
- 835
- Students per teacher
- 17.7:1
- Enrollment
- 820
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Enrollment
- 813
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
- Enrollment
- 798
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
Similar other schools in Donna
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Idea Academy
Standard public school
744 students 25.1:1 students per teacher
Maria Alicia P Munoz El
Standard public school
688 students 18.9:1 students per teacher
A M Ochoa El
Standard public school
580 students 15.7:1 students per teacher
Julian S Adame
Standard public school
562 students 17.1:1 students per teacher
Daniel Singleterry Sr
Standard public school
560 students 17.8:1 students per teacher
Patricia S Garza El
Standard public school
551 students 15.9:1 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 Idea College Prep
How many students attend Idea College Prep?
Idea College Prep has 823 students enrolled. It is a other school in DONNA, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Idea College Prep?
The student-teacher ratio at Idea College Prep is 13.7:1, which is 6% lower than the Texas average of 14.6:1 and 14% 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 Idea College Prep?
93.7% of students at Idea College Prep are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Idea College Prep?
The largest demographic group at Idea College Prep is Hispanic or Latino at 96.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in DONNA, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Idea College Prep?
Idea College Prep has a Resource Investment Index of 26/100 (F) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.