Enrollment
399
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Leicester, NC
Leicester Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Leicester Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 40/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 370045000154
👥 S:T ratio 47
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 20
📋 Attendance 24
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Leicester Elementary earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 75% of North Carolina schools.
- 40
- Resource Index · Typical
- 13.3:1
- small classes for North Carolina
- 64.6%
- free-lunch eligible
- 399
- students enrolled
Leicester Elementary has class sizes smaller than 75% of North Carolina schools. Computed live against every North Carolina school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Buncombe County Schools · North Carolina
NCES ID 370045000154 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
30.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.3:1
vs 15.8:1 North Carolina avg
-16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
64.6%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
-2% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Leicester Elementary compares with North Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Leicester Elementary
Leicester Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Leicester, North Carolina, enrolling 399 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 13.3:1 puts it in the smaller third of North Carolina schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 64.6% lands close to the North Carolina typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 399 students, its enrollment sits close to the North Carolina median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,698 scored North Carolina schools.
Against 376 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #181.
Its student body is predominantly White (81% of enrollment) (diversity index 33/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 399 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 30.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 21.3% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Buncombe County Schools also operates Roberson High (1,479 students) and Reynolds High (1,169 students) alongside Leicester Elementary.
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 Leicester Elementary compares
Leicester Elementary on the metrics families compare, against North Carolina and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.3:1 | ▼ 16% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 64.6% | ▼ 2% | 66.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 399 | top 64% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13.3:1
Leaner classes than 64% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
399
Bigger than 47% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
64.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 2% below the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
13.3:1
students per teacher
- 16% below state mean
Top 25% in North Carolina - lower ratio than 75% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
30.3%
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
$13,190
per pupil, district-wide
- above North Carolina avg of $12,017
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 399 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 8 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.5 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 80.7%
Hispanic or Latino 15.3%
African American 2.0%
Two or More 1.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 80.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 32.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 32.5, Leicester Elementary is less mixed than the North Carolina school average of 56.1.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Buncombe County Schools, which includes Leicester Elementary.
$13,190
Per student
+10%
vs North Carolina
Avg $12,017
-21%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 29.2%
State 49.5%
Federal 21.3%
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 Leicester Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roberson High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Reynolds High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Enka High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Erwin High | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| North Buncombe High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Leicester Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,479
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 1,169
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
- Enrollment
- 1,051
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 1,013
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 896
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of North Carolina, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~399 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~13.3:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Leicester Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Leicester Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Buncombe County Schools'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 Leicester Elementary
How many students attend Leicester Elementary?
Leicester Elementary has 399 students enrolled. It is a public school in Leicester, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Leicester Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Leicester Elementary is 13.3:1, which is 16% lower than the North Carolina average of 15.8:1 and 15% 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 Leicester Elementary?
64.6% of students at Leicester Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Leicester Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Leicester Elementary is White at 80.7% of enrollment, in Leicester, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Leicester Elementary?
Leicester Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (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).
Is Leicester Elementary a good school?
Leicester Elementary earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 75% of North Carolina 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 Buncombe County Schools?
Besides Leicester Elementary, Buncombe County Schools also operates Roberson High (1,479 students), Reynolds High (1,169 students), and Enka High (1,051 students). See the Buncombe County Schools 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.