Enrollment
393
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Duncanville, TX
Merrifield El
Federal NCES profile for Merrifield El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 40/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 481764001527
👥 S:T ratio 37
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 21
📋 Attendance 30
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Merrifield El earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median.
- #2 of 8
- schools in Duncanville · Resource Index
- 40
- Resource Index · Typical
- 15.7:1
- students per teacher
- 85.9%
- free-lunch eligible
Merrifield El has class sizes near the Texas median. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Merrifield El ranks #2 of 8 schools in Duncanville, TX.
School address
District: Duncanville Isd · Texas
NCES ID 481764001527 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
25.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.7:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
+7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
85.9%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+39% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Merrifield El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Merrifield El
Merrifield El is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Duncanville, Texas, enrolling 393 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 15.7:1 puts it in the larger third of Texas schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 85.9% of students eligible for free meals.
With 393 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.
Against 1,701 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #841.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (53%) and African American (43%) (diversity index 53/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 393 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 28.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 15.7% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Duncanville Isd also operates Duncanville H S (4,399 students) and G W Kennemer Middle (795 students) alongside Merrifield El.
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 Merrifield El compares
Merrifield El on the metrics families compare, against Texas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.7:1 | ▲ 7% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 85.9% | ▲ 39% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 393 | top 65% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
15.7:1
Leaner classes than 41% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
393
Bigger than 46% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
85.9%
free-lunch eligible
- 39% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.7:1
students per teacher
- 7% above state mean
Top 68% in Texas - lower ratio than 32% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
28.2%
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
$11,709
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 393 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
22
in-school suspensions + 15 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 9.4 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
Hispanic or Latino 53.4%
African American 42.5%
Two or More 1.8%
White 1.5%
Asian 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 53.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 53.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 53.4, Merrifield El is more mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Duncanville Isd, which includes Merrifield El.
$11,709
Per student
-14%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 46.5%
State 37.9%
Federal 15.7%
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 Merrifield El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duncanville H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| G W Kennemer Middle | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| James R Bilhartz Jr El | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Charles Acton El | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| William Lee Hastings El | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Merrifield El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 4,399
- Students per teacher
- 19.3:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 795
- Students per teacher
- 11.9:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 541
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 537
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 529
- Students per teacher
- 17.1:1
- Resource Index
- 29/100
Similar other 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 (~393 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~15.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Merrifield El's federal record.
- Compare Merrifield El against another school. Compare schools
- Duncanville Isd'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 Merrifield El
How many students attend Merrifield El?
Merrifield El has 393 students enrolled. It is a public school in Duncanville, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Merrifield El?
The student-teacher ratio at Merrifield El is 15.7:1, which is 7% higher than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 0% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Merrifield El?
85.9% of students at Merrifield El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Merrifield El?
The largest demographic group at Merrifield El is Hispanic or Latino at 53.4% of enrollment, in Duncanville, TX. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 53.4/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Merrifield El?
Merrifield El has a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (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 Merrifield El rank among schools in Duncanville?
By Resource Investment Index, Merrifield El ranks #2 of 8 schools in Duncanville, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Duncanville on the city page.
Is Merrifield El a good school?
Merrifield El earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median. 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 Duncanville Isd?
Besides Merrifield El, Duncanville Isd also operates Duncanville H S (4,399 students), G W Kennemer Middle (795 students), and James R Bilhartz Jr El (541 students). See the Duncanville Isd 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.