Enrollment
2,177
Louisiana · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 220023502396 Charter school
Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy — Lafayette, LA
Federal NCES profile for Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 35/100.
👥 Class size 18
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 90
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: Lafayette Charter Foundation · Louisiana
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)
66.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.5:1
vs 18.6:1 Louisiana avg
+10% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
73.1%
vs 62.5% Louisiana avg
+17% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy compares with Louisiana 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
Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy reports 2,177 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 66.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 20.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 10% above the Louisiana state mean of 18.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 29% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 73.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 17% above the Louisiana average and 41% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 2177 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 4.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Lafayette Charter Foundation spends $12,255 per pupil district-wide, below the Louisiana average of $17,870 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 47.0% from local sources (property taxes), 38.4% from the state, and 14.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (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 Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Louisiana state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Louisiana | Louisiana avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.5:1 | ▲ 10% | 18.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 73.1% | ▲ 17% | 62.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 2,177 | top 99% | — | — |
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
73.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 17% above the Louisiana average of 62.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
20.5:1
students per teacher
— 10% above state mean
Top 81% in Louisiana — lower ratio than 19% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
4.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$12,255
per pupil, district-wide
— below Louisiana avg of $17,870
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 2177 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 16 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 2,177 Top 99% in Louisiana — larger than 1% of 1,330 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 66.0
Students per teacher 20.5:1 +10% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 73.1% +17% vs state
NCES ID 220023502396
Student demographics
African American 69.7%
White 21.0%
Two or More 4.8%
Hispanic or Latino 3.5%
Asian 0.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: African American at 69.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 2177:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 4.0%
In-school suspensions 3
Out-of-school suspensions 16
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Lafayette Charter Foundation, which includes Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy.
$12,255
Per student
-31%
vs Louisiana
Avg $17,870
-37%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 47.0%
State 38.4%
Federal 14.6%
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.
Similar other schools in Lafayette
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
David Thibodaux Stem Magnet Academy
Vocational / career-technical school
1,362 students 21.4:1 students per teacher
Milton Elementary School
Standard public school
1,261 students 21.1:1 students per teacher
Woodvale Elementary School
Standard public school
793 students 17.8:1 students per teacher
Broadmoor Elementary School
Standard public school
749 students 16.3:1 students per teacher
S.J. Montgomery Elementary School
Standard public school
663 students 17:1 students per teacher
Prairie Elementary School
Standard public school
663 students 14.8:1 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 Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy
How many students attend Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy?
Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy has 2,177 students enrolled. It is a other school in Lafayette, LA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy?
The student-teacher ratio at Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy is 20.5:1, which is 10% higher than the Louisiana average of 18.6:1 and 29% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy?
73.1% of students at Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Louisiana average of 62.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy?
The largest demographic group at Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy is African American at 69.7%. The school serves a diverse student body in Lafayette, LA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy?
Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F) 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.