Enrollment
322
Kentucky · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 210336002528
Letcher Elementary & Middle School — Blackey, KY
Federal NCES profile for Letcher Elementary & Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 39/100.
👥 Class size 50
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 36
📋 Attendance 0
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: Letcher County · Kentucky
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)
30.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.5:1
vs 15.6:1 Kentucky avg
-20% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
69.0%
vs 59.2% Kentucky avg
+17% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Letcher Elementary & Middle School compares with Kentucky 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
Letcher Elementary & Middle School reports 322 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 30.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 20% below the Kentucky state mean of 15.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 21% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 69.0% 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 Kentucky average and 33% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 322 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 81.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Letcher County spends $15,959 per pupil district-wide, above the Kentucky average of $15,105 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 13.9% from local sources (property taxes), 63.9% from the state, and 22.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 39/100 (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 Letcher Elementary & Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Kentucky state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Kentucky | Kentucky avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.5:1 | ▼ 20% | 15.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 69.0% | ▲ 17% | 59.2% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 322 | top 34% | — | — |
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
69.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 17% above the Kentucky average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.5:1
students per teacher
— 20% below state mean
Top 19% in Kentucky — lower ratio than 81% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
81.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$15,959
per pupil, district-wide
— above Kentucky avg of $15,105
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 322 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
13
in-school suspensions + 24 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 11.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 322 Top 34% in Kentucky — larger than 66% of 1,395 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 30.0
Students per teacher 12.5:1 -20% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 69.0% +17% vs state
NCES ID 210336002528
Student demographics
White 100.0%
Largest group: White at 100.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 322:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 81.7%
In-school suspensions 13
Out-of-school suspensions 24
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Letcher County, which includes Letcher Elementary & Middle School.
$15,959
Per student
+6%
vs Kentucky
Avg $15,105
-18%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 13.9%
State 63.9%
Federal 22.2%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 692
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Enrollment
- 462
- Students per teacher
- 11.9:1
- Enrollment
- 273
- Students per teacher
- 12.8:1
- Enrollment
- 246
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Enrollment
- 191
- Students per teacher
- 15:1
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 Letcher Elementary & Middle School
How many students attend Letcher Elementary & Middle School?
Letcher Elementary & Middle School has 322 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Blackey, KY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Letcher Elementary & Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Letcher Elementary & Middle School is 12.5:1, which is 20% lower than the Kentucky average of 15.6:1 and 21% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Letcher Elementary & Middle School?
69.0% of students at Letcher Elementary & Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kentucky average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Letcher Elementary & Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Letcher Elementary & Middle School is White at 100.0%. The school serves a student body in Blackey, KY.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Letcher Elementary & Middle School?
Letcher Elementary & Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 39/100 (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.