Elementary school (grades K-5) · Allentown, PA

Jefferson El Sch

Federal NCES profile for Jefferson El Sch, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 18/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 420228002774
0/100100/10018/100
👥 S:T ratio
42
🌟 Gifted program
30
🎓 Counselors
0
📋 Attendance
0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Jefferson El Sch earns 18/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Pennsylvania median.

#19 of 21
elementary schools in Allentown · Resource Index
18
Resource Index · Lower
14.5:1
students per teacher
100.0%
free-lunch eligible

Jefferson El Sch has class sizes near the Pennsylvania median. Computed live against every Pennsylvania school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Jefferson El Sch ranks #19 of 21 elementary schools in Allentown, PA.

Enrollment

522

Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

36.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

14.5:1

vs 13.6:1 Pennsylvania avg

+7% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

100.0%

vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg

+72% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Jefferson El Sch compares with Pennsylvania 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 Jefferson El Sch

Jefferson El Sch is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Allentown, Pennsylvania, enrolling 522 students.

Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 14.5:1 puts it in the larger third of Pennsylvania schools by student-teacher ratio.

Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 100.0% of students eligible for free meals.

With 522 students, its enrollment sits close to the Pennsylvania median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index trails 99% of the 2,889 Pennsylvania schools with a score on record, one of the lower results on this measure.

Among 524 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Pennsylvania schools statewide, it ranks #508, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (75%) and African American (10%) (diversity index 42/100).

Counselor access is stretched at roughly 522 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 53.1% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Its district draws 18.3% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Among Allentown's elementary schools, it stands alongside Brigadier General Anna Mae Hays El Sch (807 students): Jefferson El Sch is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (14.5:1 vs 15.8:1).

Allentown City Sd also operates William Allen Hs (3,074 students) and Louis E Dieruff Hs (1,914 students) alongside Jefferson El Sch.

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 Jefferson El Sch compares

Jefferson El Sch on the metrics families compare, against Pennsylvania and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Pennsylvania Pennsylvania avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 14.5:1 ▲ 7% 13.6:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 100.0% ▲ 72% 58.1% 51.7%
Enrollment 522 top 40% - -

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

14.5:1
Leaner classes than 52% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
522
Bigger than 64% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
100.0%
free-lunch eligible - 72% above the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.5:1
students per teacher - 7% above state mean
Top 69% in Pennsylvania - lower ratio than 31% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
53.1%
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
$15,572
per pupil, district-wide - below Pennsylvania avg of $17,970
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 522 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.0 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

Hispanic or Latino 74.5%
African American 10.2%
Two or More 8.6%
White 5.2%
Asian 1.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 74.5% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 42.4/100

Simpson diversity index - at 42.4, Jefferson El Sch is more mixed than the Pennsylvania school average of 37.3.

Programs

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Allentown City Sd, which includes Jefferson El Sch.

$15,572
Per student
-13%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $17,970
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 29.0%
State 52.7%
Federal 18.3%

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 Jefferson El Sch Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
William Allen Hs Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Louis E Dieruff Hs Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
South Mountain Ms Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Francis D Raub Ms Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Brigadier General Anna Mae Hays El Sch Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Jefferson El Sch's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Allentown City Sd · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools in Allentown

6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.

Similar elementary schools statewide

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

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Jefferson El Sch'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 Jefferson El Sch

How many students attend Jefferson El Sch?

Jefferson El Sch has 522 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Allentown, PA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Jefferson El Sch?

The student-teacher ratio at Jefferson El Sch is 14.5:1, which is 7% higher than the Pennsylvania average of 13.6:1 and 8% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Jefferson El Sch?

100.0% of students at Jefferson El Sch are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Jefferson El Sch?

The largest demographic group at Jefferson El Sch is Hispanic or Latino at 74.5% of enrollment, in Allentown, PA.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Jefferson El Sch?

Jefferson El Sch has a Resource Investment Index of 18/100 (lower 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 Jefferson El Sch rank among elementary schools in Allentown?

By Resource Investment Index, Jefferson El Sch ranks #19 of 21 elementary schools in Allentown, PA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Allentown on the city page.

Is Jefferson El Sch a good school?

Jefferson El Sch earns 18/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Pennsylvania 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 Allentown City Sd?

Besides Jefferson El Sch, Allentown City Sd also operates William Allen Hs (3,074 students), Louis E Dieruff Hs (1,914 students), and South Mountain Ms (972 students). See the Allentown City Sd 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.