Other / mixed grade configuration · Blue Springs, MO

James Lewis Elem.

Federal NCES profile for James Lewis Elem., including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 50/100.

2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 290531000082
0/100100/10050/100
👥 S:T ratio
46
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
5
📋 Attendance
79
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

James Lewis Elem. earns 50/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Missouri median.

#2 of 3
schools in Blue Springs · Resource Index
50
Resource Index · Higher
13.5:1
students per teacher
18.6%
free-lunch eligible

James Lewis Elem. has class sizes near the Missouri median. Computed live against every Missouri school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, James Lewis Elem. ranks #2 of 3 schools in Blue Springs, MO.

School address

Enrollment

473

Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

35.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

13.5:1

vs 12.8:1 Missouri avg

+5% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

18.6%

vs 46.1% Missouri avg

-60% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How James Lewis Elem. compares with Missouri and U.S. medians

Slightly above state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at James Lewis Elem.

James Lewis Elem. is a lower-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Blue Springs, Missouri, enrolling 473 students.

Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 13.5:1 puts it in the larger third of Missouri schools by student-teacher ratio.

Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 18.6% free-meal eligibility runs 60% below the Missouri average.

Enrollment of 473 puts it in the larger third of Missouri schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,313 scored Missouri schools.

Against 407 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #194.

Its student body is led by White (71%) and Hispanic or Latino (13%) (diversity index 47/100).

Counselor access is stretched at roughly 473 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.

Attendance holds up well here: only 8.5% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.

Blue Springs R-Iv also operates Blue Springs High (2,429 students) and Blue Springs South High (2,299 students) alongside James Lewis Elem..

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 James Lewis Elem. compares

James Lewis Elem. on the metrics families compare, against Missouri and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Missouri Missouri avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 13.5:1 ▲ 5% 12.8:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 18.6% ▼ 60% 46.1% 51.7%
Enrollment 473 top 24% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

13.5:1
Leaner classes than 62% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
473
Bigger than 58% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
18.6%
free-lunch eligible - 60% below the Missouri average of 46.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
13.5:1
students per teacher - 5% above state mean
Top 63% in Missouri - lower ratio than 37% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
8.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$11,399
per pupil, district-wide - below Missouri avg of $12,931
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 473 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
28
in-school suspensions + 5 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.0 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 70.8%
Hispanic or Latino 12.9%
African American 9.3%
Two or More 6.1%
Asian 0.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%

Largest group: White at 70.8% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 47.0/100

Simpson diversity index - at 47.0, James Lewis Elem. is more mixed than the Missouri school average of 31.0.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Blue Springs R-Iv, which includes James Lewis Elem..

$11,399
Per student
-12%
vs Missouri
Avg $12,931
-31%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 66.8%
State 25.6%
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.

How James Lewis Elem. Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Blue Springs High Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Blue Springs South High Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Paul Kinder Middle School Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Delta Woods Middle Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Moreland Ridge Middle Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to James Lewis Elem.'s own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Blue Springs R-Iv · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar other schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Missouri, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on James Lewis Elem.'s federal record.

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 James Lewis Elem.

How many students attend James Lewis Elem.?

James Lewis Elem. has 473 students enrolled. It is a public school in Blue Springs, MO.

What is the student-teacher ratio at James Lewis Elem.?

The student-teacher ratio at James Lewis Elem. is 13.5:1, which is 5% higher than the Missouri average of 12.8:1 and 14% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at James Lewis Elem.?

18.6% of students at James Lewis Elem. are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of James Lewis Elem.?

The largest demographic group at James Lewis Elem. is White at 70.8% of enrollment, in Blue Springs, MO.

What is the Resource Investment Index for James Lewis Elem.?

James Lewis Elem. has a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (higher 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 James Lewis Elem. rank among schools in Blue Springs?

By Resource Investment Index, James Lewis Elem. ranks #2 of 3 schools in Blue Springs, MO. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Blue Springs on the city page.

Is James Lewis Elem. a good school?

James Lewis Elem. earns 50/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Missouri 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 Blue Springs R-Iv?

Besides James Lewis Elem., Blue Springs R-Iv also operates Blue Springs High (2,429 students), Blue Springs South High (2,299 students), and Paul Kinder Middle School (919 students). See the Blue Springs R-Iv district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.