Other / mixed grade configuration · Fort Wayne, IN

Lindley Elementary School

Federal NCES profile for Lindley Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 53/100.

2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 180363000541
0/100100/10053/100
👥 S:T ratio
43
🌟 Gifted program
70
📋 Attendance
45
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Lindley Elementary School earns 53/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Indiana median. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Indiana schools.

#4 of 32
schools in Fort Wayne · Resource Index
53
Resource Index · Higher
14.3:1
students per teacher
68.3%
free-lunch eligible

Lindley Elementary School has class sizes near the Indiana median. Computed live against every Indiana school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Lindley Elementary School ranks #4 of 32 schools in Fort Wayne, IN.

Enrollment

330

Indiana · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

23.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

14.3:1

vs 15.9:1 Indiana avg

-10% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

68.3%

vs 49.5% Indiana avg

+38% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Lindley Elementary School compares with Indiana and U.S. medians

At or below state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Lindley Elementary School

Lindley Elementary School is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Fort Wayne, Indiana, enrolling 330 students.

Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 14.3:1 puts it in the smaller third of Indiana schools by student-teacher ratio.

Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 68.3% of students eligible for free meals.

Enrollment of 330 puts it in the smaller third of Indiana schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 1,862 scored Indiana schools.

Against 301 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #49.

Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (35%) and African American (29%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 71/100).

Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 21.8% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.

Its district draws 21.1% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Among Fort Wayne's public schools, it stands alongside Southwick Elementary School (724 students): Lindley Elementary School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (14.3:1 vs 16.8:1).

Fort Wayne Community Schools also operates Northrop High School (2,145 students) and R Nelson Snider High School (1,927 students) alongside Lindley Elementary 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 Lindley Elementary School compares

Lindley Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Indiana and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Indiana Indiana avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 14.3:1 ▼ 10% 15.9:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 68.3% ▲ 38% 49.5% 51.7%
Enrollment 330 top 73% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

14.3:1
Leaner classes than 54% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
330
Bigger than 37% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
68.3%
free-lunch eligible - 38% above the Indiana average of 49.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.3:1
students per teacher - 10% below state mean
Top 38% in Indiana - lower ratio than 62% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
21.8%
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
$13,247
per pupil, district-wide - above Indiana avg of $12,079
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
4
in-school suspensions + 11 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.5 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

Hispanic or Latino 35.2%
African American 29.1%
White 27.0%
Two or More 7.9%
Asian 0.9%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 35.2% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 71.2/100

Simpson diversity index - at 71.2, Lindley Elementary School is more mixed than the Indiana school average of 39.0.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Fort Wayne Community Schools, which includes Lindley Elementary School.

$13,247
Per student
+10%
vs Indiana
Avg $12,079
-20%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 22.4%
State 56.6%
Federal 21.1%

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 Lindley Elementary School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Northrop High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
R Nelson Snider High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
South Side High School Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Wayne High School Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
North Side High School Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Lindley Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Fort Wayne Community Schools · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar other schools in Fort Wayne

6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.

Similar other schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Indiana, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Lindley Elementary School's federal record.

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 Lindley Elementary School

How many students attend Lindley Elementary School?

Lindley Elementary School has 330 students enrolled. It is a public school in Fort Wayne, IN.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Lindley Elementary School?

The student-teacher ratio at Lindley Elementary School is 14.3:1, which is 10% lower than the Indiana average of 15.9:1 and 9% 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 Lindley Elementary School?

68.3% of students at Lindley Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Indiana average of 49.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Lindley Elementary School?

The largest demographic group at Lindley Elementary School is Hispanic or Latino at 35.2% of enrollment, in Fort Wayne, IN. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 71.2/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Lindley Elementary School?

Lindley Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 53/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).

How does Lindley Elementary School rank among schools in Fort Wayne?

By Resource Investment Index, Lindley Elementary School ranks #4 of 32 schools in Fort Wayne, IN. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Fort Wayne on the city page.

Is Lindley Elementary School a good school?

Lindley Elementary School earns 53/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Indiana median. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Indiana 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 Fort Wayne Community Schools?

Besides Lindley Elementary School, Fort Wayne Community Schools also operates Northrop High School (2,145 students), R Nelson Snider High School (1,927 students), and South Side High School (1,405 students). See the Fort Wayne Community Schools district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.