Enrollment
199
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 291647000895
Kelso Elem. — Benton, MO
Federal NCES profile for Kelso Elem., including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 51/100.
👥 Class size 41
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 60
📋 Attendance 71
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
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)
13.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.7:1
vs 12.9:1 Missouri avg
+14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
22.0%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
-52% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Kelso Elem. compares with Missouri 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
Kelso Elem. reports 199 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 13.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 14% above the Missouri state mean of 12.9:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 8% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 22.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 52% below the Missouri average and 58% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 199 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 11.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Kelso C-7 spends $19,656 per pupil district-wide, above the Missouri average of $15,248 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 66.6% from local sources (property taxes), 17.6% from the state, and 15.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (C-), 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 Kelso Elem. compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Missouri state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.7:1 | ▲ 14% | 12.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 22.0% | ▼ 52% | 46.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 199 | top 30% | — | — |
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
22.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 52% below the Missouri average of 46.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
14.7:1
students per teacher
— 14% above state mean
Top 77% in Missouri — lower ratio than 23% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
11.6%
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
$19,656
per pupil, district-wide
— above Missouri avg of $15,248
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 199 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
21
in-school suspensions + 6 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 10.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 13.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 199 Top 30% in Missouri — larger than 70% of 2,321 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 13.0
Students per teacher 14.7:1 +14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 22.0% -52% vs state
NCES ID 291647000895
Student demographics
White 98.0%
African American 1.5%
Two or More 0.5%
Largest group: White at 98.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 199:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 11.6%
In-school suspensions 21
Out-of-school suspensions 6
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Kelso C-7, which includes Kelso Elem..
$19,656
Per student
+29%
vs Missouri
Avg $15,248
+1%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 66.6%
State 17.6%
Federal 15.8%
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.
Similar other schools in Benton
1 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
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 Kelso Elem.
How many students attend Kelso Elem.?
Kelso Elem. has 199 students enrolled. It is a other school in BENTON, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Kelso Elem.?
The student-teacher ratio at Kelso Elem. is 14.7:1, which is 14% higher than the Missouri average of 12.9:1 and 8% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Kelso Elem.?
22.0% of students at Kelso Elem. are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Kelso Elem.?
The largest demographic group at Kelso Elem. is White at 98.0%. The school serves a student body in BENTON, MO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Kelso Elem.?
Kelso Elem. has a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (C-) 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.