Enrollment
450
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Cedar Hill, TX
Life School Cedar Hill
Federal NCES profile for Life School Cedar Hill, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 36/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 480005512477Charter school
👥 S:T ratio 18
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 10
📋 Attendance 45
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Life School Cedar Hill earns 36/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 94% of Texas schools.
- #14 of 15
- public schools in Cedar Hill · Resource Index
- 36
- Resource Index · Typical
- 20.5:1
- large classes for Texas
- 61.5%
- free-lunch eligible
Life School Cedar Hill has class sizes larger than 94% of Texas schools. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Life School Cedar Hill ranks #14 of 15 public schools in Cedar Hill, TX.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
22.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.5:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
+39% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
61.5%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
-1% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Life School Cedar Hill compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Life School Cedar Hill
Life School Cedar Hill is a higher-need, mid-sized charter elementary school in Cedar Hill, Texas, enrolling 450 students.
Class loads run heavy: 20.5:1 is larger than about 94% of Texas schools and 39% above the 14.7:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 61.5% lands close to the Texas typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 450 students, its enrollment sits close to the Texas median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Among 1,400 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Texas schools statewide, it ranks #1,164, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by African American (61%) and Hispanic or Latino (32%) (diversity index 52/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 450 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 22.0% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
The surrounding Life School spends $10,257 per pupil, 25% below the Texas average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
Its district draws 17.7% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 1 expulsion at this campus for 2021-22.
Life School also operates Life School Oak Cliff (1,483 students) and Life H S Waxahachie (1,114 students) alongside Life School Cedar Hill.
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 Life School Cedar Hill compares
Life School Cedar Hill on the metrics families compare, against Texas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.5:1 | ▲ 39% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 61.5% | ▼ 1% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 450 | top 57% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
20.5:1
Leaner classes than 14% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
450
Bigger than 55% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
61.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 1% below the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
20.5:1
students per teacher
- 39% above state mean
Top 94% in Texas - lower ratio than 6% of state schools
Above 20:1, running heavier than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is comparatively stretched.
Engagement
22.0%
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
$10,257
per pupil, district-wide
- below Texas avg of $13,644
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 450 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
29
in-school suspensions + 35 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 14.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
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 60.9%
Hispanic or Latino 32.0%
White 3.6%
Two or More 3.3%
Asian 0.2%
Largest group: African American at 60.9% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 52.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 52.4, Life School Cedar Hill is more mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Life School, which includes Life School Cedar Hill.
$10,257
Per student
-25%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-38%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 1.5%
State 80.8%
Federal 17.7%
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 Life School Cedar Hill Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life School Oak Cliff | Larger | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Life H S Waxahachie | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Life School Red Oak | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Life Middle Waxahachie | Similar size | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Life School Lancaster | Similar size | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Life School Cedar Hill's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,483
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
- Enrollment
- 1,114
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 1,045
- Students per teacher
- 20.5:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 551
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Resource Index
- 53/100
- Enrollment
- 455
- Students per teacher
- 19:1
- Resource Index
- 25/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Texas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~450 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~20.5:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Life School Cedar Hill's federal record.
- Compare Life School Cedar Hill against another school. Compare schools
- Life School'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 Life School Cedar Hill
How many students attend Life School Cedar Hill?
Life School Cedar Hill has 450 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Cedar Hill, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Life School Cedar Hill?
The student-teacher ratio at Life School Cedar Hill is 20.5:1, which is 39% higher than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 31% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Life School Cedar Hill?
61.5% of students at Life School Cedar Hill are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Life School Cedar Hill?
The largest demographic group at Life School Cedar Hill is African American at 60.9% of enrollment, in Cedar Hill, TX. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 52.4/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Life School Cedar Hill?
Life School Cedar Hill 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 Life School Cedar Hill rank among public schools in Cedar Hill?
By Resource Investment Index, Life School Cedar Hill ranks #14 of 15 public schools in Cedar Hill, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Cedar Hill on the city page.
Is Life School Cedar Hill a good school?
Life School Cedar Hill earns 36/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 94% of Texas 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 Life School?
Besides Life School Cedar Hill, Life School also operates Life School Oak Cliff (1,483 students), Life H S Waxahachie (1,114 students), and Life School Red Oak (1,045 students). See the Life School 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.