Enrollment
563
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Locust, NC
Locust Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Locust Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 34/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 370432001710
👥 S:T ratio 16
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 50
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Locust Elementary earns 34/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 92% of North Carolina schools.
- 34
- Resource Index · Typical
- 20.9:1
- large classes for North Carolina
- 99.4%
- free-lunch eligible
- 563
- students enrolled
Locust Elementary has class sizes larger than 92% of North Carolina schools. Computed live against every North Carolina school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Stanly County Schools · North Carolina
NCES ID 370432001710 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
27.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.9:1
vs 15.8:1 North Carolina avg
+32% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
99.4%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
+51% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Locust Elementary compares with North Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Locust Elementary
Locust Elementary is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Locust, North Carolina, enrolling 563 students.
Class loads run heavy: 20.9:1 is larger than about 92% of North Carolina schools and 32% above the 15.8:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Economic need is high: 99.4% of students qualify for free meals, 51% above the North Carolina average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
With 563 students, its enrollment sits close to the North Carolina median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,698 scored North Carolina schools.
Against 558 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #330.
Its student body is led by White (73%) and Hispanic or Latino (16%) (diversity index 44/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 563 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 20.2% 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.
Stanly County Schools also operates West Stanly High (800 students) and West Stanly Middle School (662 students) alongside Locust Elementary.
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 Locust Elementary compares
Locust Elementary on the metrics families compare, against North Carolina and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.9:1 | ▲ 32% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 99.4% | ▲ 51% | 66.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 563 | top 40% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
20.9:1
Leaner classes than 13% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
563
Bigger than 69% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
99.4%
free-lunch eligible
- 51% above the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
20.9:1
students per teacher
- 32% above state mean
Top 92% in North Carolina - lower ratio than 8% of state schools
Above 20:1, running heavier than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is comparatively stretched.
Engagement
20.2%
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
$11,496
per pupil, district-wide
- below North Carolina avg of $12,017
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 563 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
9
in-school suspensions + 8 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.0 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 72.5%
Hispanic or Latino 15.6%
Two or More 5.7%
African American 4.8%
Asian 1.4%
Largest group: White at 72.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 44.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 44.4, Locust Elementary is less mixed than the North Carolina school average of 56.1.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Stanly County Schools, which includes Locust Elementary.
$11,496
Per student
-4%
vs North Carolina
Avg $12,017
-31%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 18.7%
State 60.2%
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 Locust Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Stanly High | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| West Stanly Middle School | Similar size | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| North Stanly High | Similar size | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Central Elementary | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Stanfield Elementary | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Locust Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 800
- Students per teacher
- 17.8:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 662
- Students per teacher
- 18.4:1
- Resource Index
- 28/100
- Enrollment
- 568
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
- Resource Index
- 26/100
- Enrollment
- 525
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Resource Index
- 27/100
- Enrollment
- 483
- Students per teacher
- 19.3:1
- Resource Index
- 35/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of North Carolina, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~563 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~20.9:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Locust Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Locust Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Stanly County Schools'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 Locust Elementary
How many students attend Locust Elementary?
Locust Elementary has 563 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Locust, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Locust Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Locust Elementary is 20.9:1, which is 32% higher than the North Carolina average of 15.8:1 and 33% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Locust Elementary?
99.4% of students at Locust Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Locust Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Locust Elementary is White at 72.5% of enrollment, in Locust, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Locust Elementary?
Locust Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (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 Locust Elementary a good school?
Locust Elementary earns 34/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 92% of North Carolina 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 Stanly County Schools?
Besides Locust Elementary, Stanly County Schools also operates West Stanly High (800 students), West Stanly Middle School (662 students), and North Stanly High (568 students). See the Stanly County Schools 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.