Enrollment
358
Alabama · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Montgomery, AL
Lead Academy Building a
Federal NCES profile for Lead Academy Building a, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 36/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 010020302470Charter school
👥 S:T ratio 10
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 28
📋 Attendance 34
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Lead Academy Building a earns 36/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 95% of Alabama schools.
- #4 of 7
- elementary schools in Montgomery · Resource Index
- 36
- Resource Index · Typical
- 22.4:1
- large classes for Alabama
- 55.3%
- free-lunch eligible
Lead Academy Building a has class sizes larger than 95% of Alabama schools. Computed live against every Alabama school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Lead Academy Building a ranks #4 of 7 elementary schools in Montgomery, AL.
School address
District: Lead Academy · Alabama
NCES ID 010020302470 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
16.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
22.4:1
vs 17.7:1 Alabama avg
+27% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
55.3%
vs 58.8% Alabama avg
-6% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Lead Academy Building a compares with Alabama and U.S. medians
What stands out at Lead Academy Building a
Lead Academy Building a is a higher-need, mid-sized charter elementary school in Montgomery, Alabama, enrolling 358 students.
Class loads run heavy: 22.4:1 is larger than about 95% of Alabama schools and 27% above the 17.7:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 55.3% lands close to the Alabama typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 358 puts it in the smaller third of Alabama schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,365 scored Alabama schools.
Against 352 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #238.
Its student body is predominantly African American (90% of enrollment) (diversity index 18/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 358 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 26.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 33.4% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Among Montgomery's elementary schools, it stands alongside Forest Avenue Elementary School (617 students): Lead Academy Building a is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (22.4:1 vs 17.1:1).
Its district, Lead Academy, also runs Lead Academy Building B (394 students).
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 Lead Academy Building a compares
Lead Academy Building a on the metrics families compare, against Alabama and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Alabama | Alabama avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 22.4:1 | ▲ 27% | 17.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 55.3% | ▼ 6% | 58.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 358 | top 72% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
22.4:1
Leaner classes than 9% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
358
Bigger than 41% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
55.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 6% below the Alabama average of 58.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
22.4:1
students per teacher
- 27% above state mean
Top 95% in Alabama - lower ratio than 5% of state schools
Above 20:1, running heavier than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is comparatively stretched.
Engagement
26.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$11,420
per pupil, district-wide
- below Alabama avg of $12,491
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 358 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 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
African American 90.2%
Hispanic or Latino 5.3%
Two or More 3.1%
White 1.4%
Largest group: African American at 90.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 18.2/100
Simpson diversity index - at 18.2, Lead Academy Building a is less mixed than the Alabama school average of 42.5.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Lead Academy, which includes Lead Academy Building a.
$11,420
Per student
-9%
vs Alabama
Avg $12,491
-31%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 1.9%
State 64.7%
Federal 33.4%
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 Lead Academy Building a Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lead Academy Building B | Similar size | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Lead Academy Building a's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 394
- Students per teacher
- 32.8:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
Similar elementary schools in Montgomery
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Forest Avenue Elementary School
Standard public school
617 students 17.1:1 students per teacher
Life Academy at Historic St Jude Educational Institute
Standard public school
599 students 49.9:1 students per teacher
Brewbaker Intermediate School
Standard public school
549 students 22:1 students per teacher
Bear Exploration Center
Standard public school
507 students 18.1:1 students per teacher
Lead Academy Building B
Standard public school
394 students 32.8:1 students per teacher
Macmillan International at Mckee
Standard public school
386 students 18.4:1 students per teacher
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Alabama, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~358 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Lead Academy Building a's federal record.
- Compare Lead Academy Building a against another school. Compare schools
- Lead Academy'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 Lead Academy Building a
How many students attend Lead Academy Building a?
Lead Academy Building a has 358 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Montgomery, AL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Lead Academy Building a?
The student-teacher ratio at Lead Academy Building a is 22.4:1, which is 27% higher than the Alabama average of 17.7:1 and 43% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Lead Academy Building a?
55.3% of students at Lead Academy Building a are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Alabama average of 58.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Lead Academy Building a?
The largest demographic group at Lead Academy Building a is African American at 90.2% of enrollment, in Montgomery, AL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Lead Academy Building a?
Lead Academy Building a has a Resource Investment Index of 36/100 (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 Lead Academy Building a rank among elementary schools in Montgomery?
By Resource Investment Index, Lead Academy Building a ranks #4 of 7 elementary schools in Montgomery, AL. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Montgomery on the city page.
Is Lead Academy Building a a good school?
Lead Academy Building a earns 36/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 95% of Alabama schools. 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 Lead Academy?
Besides Lead Academy Building a, Lead Academy also operates Lead Academy Building B (394 students). See the Lead Academy 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.