Enrollment
322
Kentucky · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Blackey, KY
Letcher Elementary & Middle School
Federal NCES profile for Letcher Elementary & Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 41/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 210336002528
👥 S:T ratio 57
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 36
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Letcher Elementary & Middle School earns 41/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 88% of Kentucky schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Kentucky schools.
- 41
- Resource Index · Typical
- 10.7:1
- small classes for Kentucky
- 69.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 322
- students enrolled
Letcher Elementary & Middle School has class sizes smaller than 88% of Kentucky schools. Computed live against every Kentucky school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Letcher County · Kentucky
NCES ID 210336002528 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
30.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.7:1
vs 15.2:1 Kentucky avg
-30% 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
What stands out at Letcher Elementary & Middle School
Letcher Elementary & Middle School is a higher-need, mid-sized elementary school in Blackey, Kentucky, enrolling 322 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 10.7:1, Letcher Elementary & Middle School is leaner than roughly 88% of Kentucky schools and 30% under the state's 15.2:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 69.0% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 322 puts it in the smaller third of Kentucky schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,389 scored Kentucky schools.
Against 327 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #196.
Its student body is predominantly White (100% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 0/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 322 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 81.7% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 22.2% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Letcher County also operates Letcher County Central High School (692 students) and West Whitesburg Elementary School (462 students) alongside Letcher Elementary & Middle 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 Letcher Elementary & Middle School compares
Letcher Elementary & Middle School on the metrics families compare, against Kentucky and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Kentucky | Kentucky avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.7:1 | ▼ 30% | 15.2:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 69.0% | ▲ 17% | 59.2% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 322 | top 66% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
10.7:1
Leaner classes than 85% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
322
Bigger than 36% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
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
10.7:1
students per teacher
- 30% below state mean
Top 12% in Kentucky - lower ratio than 88% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
81.7%
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
$14,514
per pupil, district-wide
- above Kentucky avg of $13,211
Somewhat 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
- 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 100.0%
Largest group: White at 100.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 0.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 0.0, Letcher Elementary & Middle School is less mixed than the Kentucky school average of 34.5.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Letcher County, which includes Letcher Elementary & Middle School.
$14,514
Per student
+10%
vs Kentucky
Avg $13,211
-13%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
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.
How Letcher Elementary & Middle School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Letcher County Central High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| West Whitesburg Elementary School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Martha Jane Potter Elementary School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Cowan Elementary School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Whitesburg Middle School | Smaller | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Letcher Elementary & Middle School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 692
- Students per teacher
- 12.8:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 462
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Resource Index
- 30/100
- Enrollment
- 273
- Students per teacher
- 10.9:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 246
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 191
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Kentucky, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~322 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Letcher Elementary & Middle School's federal record.
- Compare Letcher Elementary & Middle School against another school. Compare schools
- Letcher County'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 Letcher Elementary & Middle School
How many students attend Letcher Elementary & Middle School?
Letcher Elementary & Middle School has 322 students enrolled. It is an 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 10.7:1, which is 30% lower than the Kentucky average of 15.2:1 and 32% 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 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% of enrollment, in Blackey, KY.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Letcher Elementary & Middle School?
Letcher Elementary & Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (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 Letcher Elementary & Middle School a good school?
Letcher Elementary & Middle School earns 41/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 88% of Kentucky schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Kentucky 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 Letcher County?
Besides Letcher Elementary & Middle School, Letcher County also operates Letcher County Central High School (692 students), West Whitesburg Elementary School (462 students), and Martha Jane Potter Elementary School (273 students). See the Letcher County 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.