Enrollment
104
Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 420291001334
Mountaintop Area El Sch — Snow Shoe, PA
Federal NCES profile for Mountaintop Area El Sch, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 52/100.
👥 Class size 48
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 69
📋 Attendance 59
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: Bald Eagle Area Sd · Pennsylvania
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)
9.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.9:1
vs 13.5:1 Pennsylvania avg
-4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
36.2%
vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg
-38% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Mountaintop Area El Sch compares with Pennsylvania 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
Mountaintop Area El Sch reports 104 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 9.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 4% below the Pennsylvania state mean of 13.5:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 19% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 36.2% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 38% below the Pennsylvania average and 30% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 155 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 16.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Bald Eagle Area Sd spends $22,647 per pupil district-wide, below the Pennsylvania average of $22,745 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 48.2% from local sources (property taxes), 45.5% from the state, and 6.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 52/100 (C-), calculated from 4 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 Mountaintop Area El Sch compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Pennsylvania state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.9:1 | ▼ 4% | 13.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 36.2% | ▼ 38% | 58.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 104 | top 4% | — | — |
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
36.2%
free-lunch eligible
— 38% below the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
12.9:1
students per teacher
— 4% below state mean
Top 39% in Pennsylvania — lower ratio than 61% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
16.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$22,647
per pupil, district-wide
— below Pennsylvania avg of $22,745
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors0.7 FTE
Per 155 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 104 Top 4% in Pennsylvania — larger than 96% of 2,930 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 9.0
Students per teacher 12.9:1 -4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 36.2% -38% vs state
NCES ID 420291001334
Student demographics
White 96.2%
Two or More 3.8%
Largest group: White at 96.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 0.7
Students per counselor 155:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 16.3%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Bald Eagle Area Sd, which includes Mountaintop Area El Sch.
$22,647
Per student
0%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $22,745
+16%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 48.2%
State 45.5%
Federal 6.4%
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
- 832
- Students per teacher
- 13:1
- Enrollment
- 365
- Students per teacher
- 11.3:1
- Enrollment
- 94
- Students per teacher
- 11.1:1
- Enrollment
- 87
- Students per teacher
- 10:1
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 Mountaintop Area El Sch
How many students attend Mountaintop Area El Sch?
Mountaintop Area El Sch has 104 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Snow Shoe, PA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Mountaintop Area El Sch?
The student-teacher ratio at Mountaintop Area El Sch is 12.9:1, which is 4% lower than the Pennsylvania average of 13.5:1 and 19% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Mountaintop Area El Sch?
36.2% of students at Mountaintop Area El Sch are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Mountaintop Area El Sch?
The largest demographic group at Mountaintop Area El Sch is White at 96.2%. The school serves a student body in Snow Shoe, PA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Mountaintop Area El Sch?
Mountaintop Area El Sch has a Resource Investment Index of 52/100 (C-) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.