Enrollment
979
Arizona · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 040906000928
Lookout Mountain School — Phoenix, AZ
Federal NCES profile for Lookout Mountain School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 32/100.
👥 Class size 18
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 9
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: Washington Elementary School District (4260) · Arizona
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
43.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.5:1
vs 17.7:1 Arizona avg
+16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
20.0%
vs 48.3% Arizona avg
-59% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Lookout Mountain School compares with Arizona and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Lookout Mountain School reports 979 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 43.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 20.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 16% above the Arizona state mean of 17.7:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 29% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 20.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 59% below the Arizona average and 61% below the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 36.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Washington Elementary School District (4260) spends $12,508 per pupil district-wide, below the Arizona average of $15,070 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 29.7% from local sources (property taxes), 45.6% from the state, and 24.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (F), calculated from 3 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Lookout Mountain School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Arizona state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Arizona | Arizona avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.5:1 | ▲ 16% | 17.7:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 20.0% | ▼ 59% | 48.3% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 979 | top 91% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
20.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 59% below the Arizona average of 48.3%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
20.5:1
students per teacher
— 16% above state mean
Top 76% in Arizona — lower ratio than 24% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
36.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$12,508
per pupil, district-wide
— below Arizona avg of $15,070
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
35
in-school suspensions + 6 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 979 Top 91% in Arizona — larger than 9% of 2,186 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 43.0
Students per teacher 20.5:1 +16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 20.0% -59% vs state
NCES ID 040906000928
Student demographics
White 61.6%
Hispanic or Latino 22.1%
Two or More 7.6%
African American 6.4%
Asian 1.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.0%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: White at 61.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 36.5%
In-school suspensions 35
Out-of-school suspensions 6
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Washington Elementary School District (4260), which includes Lookout Mountain School.
$12,508
Per student
-17%
vs Arizona
Avg $15,070
-36%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 29.7%
State 45.6%
Federal 24.8%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 903
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
- Enrollment
- 806
- Students per teacher
- 19.2:1
- Enrollment
- 797
- Students per teacher
- 18.9:1
- Enrollment
- 797
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Enrollment
- 720
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
Similar other schools in Phoenix
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Arizona Virtual Academy
Standard public school
4,476 students
Pinnacle High School
Standard public school
2,430 students 23.6:1 students per teacher
Paradise Valley High School
Standard public school
1,900 students 18.4:1 students per teacher
Barry Goldwater High School
Standard public school
1,602 students 20:1 students per teacher
North Canyon High School
Standard public school
1,560 students 20.9:1 students per teacher
Great Hearts Academies - Maryvale Prep
Standard public school
1,192 students
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Lookout Mountain School
How many students attend Lookout Mountain School?
Lookout Mountain School has 979 students enrolled. It is a other school in PHOENIX, AZ.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Lookout Mountain School?
The student-teacher ratio at Lookout Mountain School is 20.5:1, which is 16% higher than the Arizona average of 17.7:1 and 29% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Lookout Mountain School?
20.0% of students at Lookout Mountain School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arizona average of 48.3%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Lookout Mountain School?
The largest demographic group at Lookout Mountain School is White at 61.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in PHOENIX, AZ.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Lookout Mountain School?
Lookout Mountain School has a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (F) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.