Enrollment
734
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Waco, TX
Lake Air Montessori School
Federal NCES profile for Lake Air Montessori School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 45/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 484428005035
👥 S:T ratio 42
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 67
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Lake Air Montessori School earns 45/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median.
- #19 of 32
- schools in Waco · Resource Index
- 45
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14.4:1
- students per teacher
- 64.3%
- free-lunch eligible
Lake Air Montessori School has class sizes near the Texas median. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Lake Air Montessori School ranks #19 of 32 schools in Waco, TX.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
51.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.4:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
-2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
64.3%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+4% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Lake Air Montessori School compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Lake Air Montessori School
Lake Air Montessori School is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Waco, Texas, enrolling 734 students.
At 14.4:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Texas median, within a few percentage points of the 14.7:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 64.3% lands close to the Texas typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 734 puts it in the larger third of Texas schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Against 1,538 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #357.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (68%) and White (16%) (diversity index 50/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 734 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
13.2% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
Its district draws 19.5% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 3 expulsions at this campus for 2021-22.
Waco Isd also operates Waco H S (1,885 students) and University H S (1,752 students) alongside Lake Air Montessori School.
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 Lake Air Montessori School compares
Lake Air Montessori School on the metrics families compare, against Texas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.4:1 | ▼ 2% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 64.3% | ▲ 4% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 734 | top 24% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.4:1
Leaner classes than 53% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
734
Bigger than 82% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
64.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 4% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.4:1
students per teacher
- 2% below state mean
Top 52% in Texas - lower ratio than 48% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
13.2%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$13,294
per pupil, district-wide
- below Texas avg of $13,644
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 734 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
36
in-school suspensions + 20 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 3 expulsions.
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 68.0%
White 15.9%
African American 12.1%
Two or More 3.7%
Asian 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 68.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 49.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 49.6, Lake Air Montessori School is more mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Waco Isd, which includes Lake Air Montessori School.
$13,294
Per student
-3%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-20%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 46.6%
State 33.9%
Federal 19.5%
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 Lake Air Montessori School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waco H S | Larger | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| University H S | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Tennyson Middle | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Bell's Hill El | Similar size | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Cesar Chavez Middle | Similar size | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Lake Air Montessori School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,885
- Students per teacher
- 12.5:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
- Enrollment
- 1,752
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Resource Index
- 30/100
- Enrollment
- 963
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 786
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 786
- Students per teacher
- 12.5:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Texas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~734 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Lake Air Montessori School's federal record.
- Compare Lake Air Montessori School against another school. Compare schools
- Waco Isd's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
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 Lake Air Montessori School
How many students attend Lake Air Montessori School?
Lake Air Montessori School has 734 students enrolled. It is a public school in Waco, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Lake Air Montessori School?
The student-teacher ratio at Lake Air Montessori School is 14.4:1, which is 2% lower than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 8% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Lake Air Montessori School?
64.3% of students at Lake Air Montessori School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Lake Air Montessori School?
The largest demographic group at Lake Air Montessori School is Hispanic or Latino at 68.0% of enrollment, in Waco, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Lake Air Montessori School?
Lake Air Montessori School has a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (typical 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 Lake Air Montessori School rank among schools in Waco?
By Resource Investment Index, Lake Air Montessori School ranks #19 of 32 schools in Waco, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Waco on the city page.
Is Lake Air Montessori School a good school?
Lake Air Montessori School earns 45/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas 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 Waco Isd?
Besides Lake Air Montessori School, Waco Isd also operates Waco H S (1,885 students), University H S (1,752 students), and Tennyson Middle (963 students). See the Waco Isd district page for the complete list.
Related tools
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.