Enrollment
343
New Jersey · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Newark, NJ
Link Community Charter School
Federal NCES profile for Link Community Charter School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 48/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 340077303275Charter school
👥 S:T ratio 32
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 66
📋 Attendance 63
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Link Community Charter School earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 96% of New Jersey schools.
- #1 of 3
- elementary schools in Newark · Resource Index
- 48
- Resource Index · Typical
- 17.1:1
- large classes for New Jersey
- 55.5%
- free-lunch eligible
Link Community Charter School has class sizes larger than 96% of New Jersey schools. Computed live against every New Jersey school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Link Community Charter School ranks #1 of 3 elementary schools in Newark, NJ.
School address
District: Link Community Charter School · New Jersey
NCES ID 340077303275 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
20.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.1:1
vs 11.8:1 New Jersey avg
+45% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
55.5%
vs 29.6% New Jersey avg
+87% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Link Community Charter School compares with New Jersey and U.S. medians
What stands out at Link Community Charter School
Link Community Charter School is a higher-need, mid-sized charter elementary school in Newark, New Jersey, enrolling 343 students.
Class loads run heavy: 17.1:1 is larger than about 96% of New Jersey schools and 45% above the 11.8:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 55.5% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 343 puts it in the smaller third of New Jersey schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,501 scored New Jersey schools.
Against 230 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #109.
Its student body is predominantly African American (84% of enrollment) (diversity index 27/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 172 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
14.9% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
Its district draws 16.8% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Among Newark's elementary schools, it stands alongside Achieve Community Charter School (450 students): Link Community Charter School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (17.1:1 vs 17.3:1).
Link Community Charter School is a single-school charter district, so Link Community Charter School operates independently rather than alongside district-mates.
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 Link Community Charter School compares
Link Community Charter School on the metrics families compare, against New Jersey and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs New Jersey | New Jersey avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.1:1 | ▲ 45% | 11.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 55.5% | ▲ 87% | 29.6% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 343 | top 66% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17.1:1
Leaner classes than 30% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
343
Bigger than 39% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
55.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 87% above the New Jersey average of 29.6%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
17.1:1
students per teacher
- 45% above state mean
Top 96% in New Jersey - lower ratio than 4% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
14.9%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$24,922
per pupil, district-wide
- below New Jersey avg of $24,984
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 172 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 39 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 11.4 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
African American 84.3%
Hispanic or Latino 13.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.9%
Two or More 0.9%
White 0.3%
Asian 0.3%
Largest group: African American at 84.3% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 27.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 27.1, Link Community Charter School is less mixed than the New Jersey school average of 51.2.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Link Community Charter School, which includes Link Community Charter School.
$24,922
Per student
0%
vs New Jersey
Avg $24,984
+50%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 68.8%
State 14.4%
Federal 16.8%
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.
Similar elementary schools in Newark
2 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of New Jersey, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~343 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Link Community Charter School's federal record.
- Compare Link Community Charter School against another school. Compare schools
- Link Community Charter 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 Link Community Charter School
How many students attend Link Community Charter School?
Link Community Charter School has 343 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Newark, NJ.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Link Community Charter School?
The student-teacher ratio at Link Community Charter School is 17.1:1, which is 45% higher than the New Jersey average of 11.8:1 and 9% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Link Community Charter School?
55.5% of students at Link Community Charter School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the New Jersey average of 29.6%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Link Community Charter School?
The largest demographic group at Link Community Charter School is African American at 84.3% of enrollment, in Newark, NJ.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Link Community Charter School?
Link Community Charter School has a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (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 Link Community Charter School rank among elementary schools in Newark?
By Resource Investment Index, Link Community Charter School ranks #1 of 3 elementary schools in Newark, NJ. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Newark on the city page.
Is Link Community Charter School a good school?
Link Community Charter School earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 96% of New Jersey 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 Link Community Charter School?
None; Link Community Charter School is a single-school charter district, and Link Community Charter School is its only campus.
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.