Enrollment
450
Arizona · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 040497000229
Kerr Elementary School — Mesa, AZ
Federal NCES profile for Kerr Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 42/100.
👥 Class size 41
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 55
📋 Attendance 0
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: Mesa Unified District (4235) · Arizona
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)
35.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.7:1
vs 17.7:1 Arizona avg
-17% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
68.8%
vs 48.3% Arizona avg
+42% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Kerr Elementary School compares with Arizona 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
Kerr Elementary School reports 450 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 35.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 17% below the Arizona state mean of 17.7:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. 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: 68.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 42% above the Arizona average and 33% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 225 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 73.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Mesa Unified District (4235) spends $13,766 per pupil district-wide, below the Arizona average of $15,070 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 37.4% from local sources (property taxes), 44.5% from the state, and 18.1% 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 Kerr Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Arizona state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Arizona | Arizona avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.7:1 | ▼ 17% | 17.7:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 68.8% | ▲ 42% | 48.3% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 450 | top 55% | — | — |
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
68.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 42% above the Arizona average of 48.3%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.7:1
students per teacher
— 17% below state mean
Top 28% in Arizona — lower ratio than 72% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
73.1%
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
$13,766
per pupil, district-wide
— below Arizona avg of $15,070
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 225 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
34
in-school suspensions + 37 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 7.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 15.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 450 Top 55% in Arizona — larger than 45% of 2,186 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 35.0
Students per teacher 14.7:1 -17% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 68.8% +42% vs state
NCES ID 040497000229
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 65.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 12.7%
White 11.8%
African American 4.9%
Two or More 4.0%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.9%
Asian 0.4%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 65.3% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 225:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 73.1%
In-school suspensions 34
Out-of-school suspensions 37
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mesa Unified District (4235), which includes Kerr Elementary School.
$13,766
Per student
-9%
vs Arizona
Avg $15,070
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 37.4%
State 44.5%
Federal 18.1%
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
- 3,421
- Students per teacher
- 21.1:1
- Enrollment
- 3,379
- Students per teacher
- 20.8:1
- Enrollment
- 3,233
- Students per teacher
- 20.9:1
- Enrollment
- 3,135
- Students per teacher
- 21:1
- Enrollment
- 2,284
- Students per teacher
- 20.3:1
Similar elementary schools in Mesa
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Sequoia Elementary School
Standard public school
764 students
Burke Basic School
Standard public school
634 students
Imagine East Mesa Elementary
Standard public school
611 students
Shepherd Junior High School
Standard public school
581 students 18.3:1 students per teacher
Pathfinder Academy
Standard public school
554 students
Noah Webster Schools- Mesa
Standard public school
525 students
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 Kerr Elementary School
How many students attend Kerr Elementary School?
Kerr Elementary School has 450 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in MESA, AZ.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Kerr Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Kerr Elementary School is 14.7:1, which is 17% lower than the Arizona average of 17.7:1 and 8% 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 Kerr Elementary School?
68.8% of students at Kerr Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arizona average of 48.3%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Kerr Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Kerr Elementary School is Hispanic or Latino at 65.3%. The school serves a diverse student body in MESA, AZ.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Kerr Elementary School?
Kerr Elementary School 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.