Other / mixed grade configuration · Morganton, NC

Mull Elementary

Federal NCES profile for Mull Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 43/100.

2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 370048000187
0/100100/10043/100
👥 S:T ratio
39
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
42
📋 Attendance
22
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Mull Elementary earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the North Carolina median.

#4 of 12
schools in Morganton · Resource Index
43
Resource Index · Typical
15.3:1
students per teacher
61.2%
free-lunch eligible

Mull Elementary has class sizes near the North Carolina median. Computed live against every North Carolina school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Mull Elementary ranks #4 of 12 schools in Morganton, NC.

Enrollment

291

North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

19.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

15.3:1

vs 15.8:1 North Carolina avg

-3% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

61.2%

vs 66.0% North Carolina avg

-7% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Mull Elementary compares with North Carolina and U.S. medians

At or below state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Mull Elementary

Mull Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Morganton, North Carolina, enrolling 291 students.

At 15.3:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the North Carolina median, within a few percentage points of the 15.8:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.

Its free-meal eligibility rate of 61.2% lands close to the North Carolina typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.

Enrollment of 291 puts it in the smaller third of North Carolina schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,698 scored North Carolina schools.

Against 248 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #129.

Its student body is led by White (70%) and Hispanic or Latino (17%) (diversity index 48/100).

Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 291 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 31.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Its district draws 23.1% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Among Morganton's public schools, it stands alongside Mountain View Elementary (762 students): Mull Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (15.3:1 vs 17.7:1).

Burke County Schools also operates Freedom High (1,299 students) and East Burke High (874 students) alongside Mull 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 Mull Elementary compares

Mull 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 15.3:1 ▼ 3% 15.8:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 61.2% ▼ 7% 66.0% 51.7%
Enrollment 291 top 78% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

15.3:1
Leaner classes than 44% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
291
Bigger than 31% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
61.2%
free-lunch eligible - 7% below the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.3:1
students per teacher - 3% below state mean
Top 53% in North Carolina - lower ratio than 47% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
31.3%
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
$11,845
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 291 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
8
in-school suspensions + 14 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.6 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 69.8%
Hispanic or Latino 16.5%
Two or More 5.8%
Asian 4.5%
African American 2.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.7%

Largest group: White at 69.8% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 47.9/100

Simpson diversity index - at 47.9, Mull 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 Burke County Schools, which includes Mull Elementary.

$11,845
Per student
-1%
vs North Carolina
Avg $12,017
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 15.2%
State 61.7%
Federal 23.1%

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 Mull Elementary Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Freedom High Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
East Burke High Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Mountain View Elementary Larger Higher economic need Higher S:T ratio
Robert L. Patton High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Jimmy C Draughn High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Mull Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Burke County Schools · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar other schools in Morganton

6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.

Similar other 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.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Mull Elementary's federal record.

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 Mull Elementary

How many students attend Mull Elementary?

Mull Elementary has 291 students enrolled. It is a public school in Morganton, NC.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Mull Elementary?

The student-teacher ratio at Mull Elementary is 15.3:1, which is 3% lower than the North Carolina average of 15.8:1 and 3% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Mull Elementary?

61.2% of students at Mull Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Mull Elementary?

The largest demographic group at Mull Elementary is White at 69.8% of enrollment, in Morganton, NC.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Mull Elementary?

Mull Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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 Mull Elementary rank among schools in Morganton?

By Resource Investment Index, Mull Elementary ranks #4 of 12 schools in Morganton, NC. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Morganton on the city page.

Is Mull Elementary a good school?

Mull Elementary earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the North Carolina 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 Burke County Schools?

Besides Mull Elementary, Burke County Schools also operates Freedom High (1,299 students), East Burke High (874 students), and Mountain View Elementary (762 students). See the Burke County Schools district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.