Enrollment
407
Delaware · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Harrington, DE
Lake Forest South Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Lake Forest South Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 37/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 100079000097
👥 S:T ratio 49
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 19
📋 Attendance 52
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Lake Forest South Elementary School earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Delaware median.
- #2 of 3
- public schools in Harrington · Resource Index
- 37
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.7:1
- students per teacher
- 407
- students enrolled
Lake Forest South Elementary School has class sizes near the Delaware median. Computed live against every Delaware school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Lake Forest South Elementary School ranks #2 of 3 public schools in Harrington, DE.
School address
District: Lake Forest School District · Delaware
NCES ID 100079000097 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
32.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.7:1
vs 13.9:1 Delaware avg
-9% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Lake Forest South Elementary School compares with Delaware and U.S. medians
What stands out at Lake Forest South Elementary School
Lake Forest South Elementary School is a mid-sized elementary school in Harrington, Delaware, enrolling 407 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.7:1 puts it in the smaller third of Delaware schools by student-teacher ratio.
Enrollment of 407 puts it in the smaller third of Delaware schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 222 scored Delaware schools.
Its student body is led by White (59%) and African American (22%) (diversity index 59/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 407 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 19.2% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 19.0% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Lake Forest School District also operates Lake Forest High School (951 students) and Chipman (W.T.) Middle School (905 students) alongside Lake Forest South Elementary 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 Forest South Elementary School compares
Lake Forest South Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Delaware and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Delaware | Delaware avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.7:1 | ▼ 9% | 13.9:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 407 | top 71% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.7:1
Leaner classes than 69% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
407
Bigger than 48% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
12.7:1
students per teacher
- 9% below state mean
Top 35% in Delaware - lower ratio than 65% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
19.2%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$15,646
per pupil, district-wide
- below Delaware avg of $16,990
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 407 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
6
in-school suspensions + 11 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.2 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
White 58.7%
African American 21.6%
Two or More 10.3%
Hispanic or Latino 8.6%
Asian 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 58.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 59.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 59.1, Lake Forest South Elementary School is less mixed than the Delaware school average of 61.3.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Lake Forest School District, which includes Lake Forest South Elementary School.
$15,646
Per student
-8%
vs Delaware
Avg $16,990
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 15.7%
State 65.3%
Federal 19.0%
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 Forest South Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Forest High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Chipman (W.T.) Middle School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Lake Forest Central Elementary School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Lake Forest North Elementary School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Lake Forest East Elementary School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Lake Forest South Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 951
- Students per teacher
- 17.6:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 905
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 604
- Students per teacher
- 15.5:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 424
- Students per teacher
- 12.1:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 353
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Delaware, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~407 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Lake Forest South Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Lake Forest South Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Lake Forest School District'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 Forest South Elementary School
How many students attend Lake Forest South Elementary School?
Lake Forest South Elementary School has 407 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Harrington, DE.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Lake Forest South Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Lake Forest South Elementary School is 12.7:1, which is 9% lower than the Delaware average of 13.9:1 and 19% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Lake Forest South Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Lake Forest South Elementary School is White at 58.7% of enrollment, in Harrington, DE. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 59.1/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Lake Forest South Elementary School?
Lake Forest South Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (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 Forest South Elementary School rank among public schools in Harrington?
By Resource Investment Index, Lake Forest South Elementary School ranks #2 of 3 public schools in Harrington, DE. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Harrington on the city page.
Is Lake Forest South Elementary School a good school?
Lake Forest South Elementary School earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Delaware 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 Lake Forest School District?
Besides Lake Forest South Elementary School, Lake Forest School District also operates Lake Forest High School (951 students), Chipman (W.T.) Middle School (905 students), and Lake Forest Central Elementary School (604 students). See the Lake Forest School District 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.