Enrollment
256
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Slayton, MN
Murray Co. Central Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Murray Co. Central Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 59/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 270009001448
👥 S:T ratio 67
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 81
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Murray Co. Central Elementary earns 59/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 87% of Minnesota schools.
- 59
- Resource Index · Higher
- 8.3:1
- small classes for Minnesota
- 31.6%
- free-lunch eligible
- 256
- students enrolled
Murray Co. Central Elementary has class sizes smaller than 87% of Minnesota schools. Computed live against every Minnesota school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Murray County Central Schools · Minnesota
NCES ID 270009001448 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
31.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
8.3:1
vs 15.8:1 Minnesota avg
-47% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
31.6%
vs 42.8% Minnesota avg
-26% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Murray Co. Central Elementary compares with Minnesota and U.S. medians
What stands out at Murray Co. Central Elementary
Murray Co. Central Elementary is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Slayton, Minnesota, enrolling 256 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 8.3:1, Murray Co. Central Elementary is leaner than roughly 87% of Minnesota schools and 47% under the state's 15.8:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 31.6% of students eligible for free meals.
With 256 students, its enrollment sits close to the Minnesota median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 91% of the 2,334 Minnesota schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Among 292 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Minnesota schools statewide, it ranks #7, a top-tier result once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly White (84% of enrollment) (diversity index 28/100).
Attendance holds up well here: only 7.8% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
Its district, Murray County Central Schools, also runs Murray County Central Secondary (328 students).
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 Murray Co. Central Elementary compares
Murray Co. Central Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Minnesota and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Minnesota | Minnesota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 8.3:1 | ▼ 47% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 31.6% | ▼ 26% | 42.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 256 | top 51% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
8.3:1
Leaner classes than 94% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
256
Bigger than 26% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
31.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 26% below the Minnesota average of 42.8%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
8.3:1
students per teacher
- 47% below state mean
Top 13% in Minnesota - lower ratio than 87% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
7.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$14,623
per pupil, district-wide
- below Minnesota avg of $15,270
Somewhat 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
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
- 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 84.4%
Hispanic or Latino 10.9%
African American 2.3%
Two or More 1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.8%
Largest group: White at 84.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 27.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 27.5, Murray Co. Central Elementary is less mixed than the Minnesota school average of 42.8.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Murray County Central Schools, which includes Murray Co. Central Elementary.
$14,623
Per student
-4%
vs Minnesota
Avg $15,270
-12%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 19.9%
State 69.6%
Federal 10.5%
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 Murray Co. Central Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Murray County Central Secondary | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Murray Co. Central Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 328
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Minnesota, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~256 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~8.3:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Murray Co. Central Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Murray Co. Central Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Murray County Central 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 Murray Co. Central Elementary
How many students attend Murray Co. Central Elementary?
Murray Co. Central Elementary has 256 students enrolled. It is a public school in Slayton, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Murray Co. Central Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Murray Co. Central Elementary is 8.3:1, which is 47% lower than the Minnesota average of 15.8:1 and 47% 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 Murray Co. Central Elementary?
31.6% of students at Murray Co. Central Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Minnesota average of 42.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Murray Co. Central Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Murray Co. Central Elementary is White at 84.4% of enrollment, in Slayton, MN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Murray Co. Central Elementary?
Murray Co. Central Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 59/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Murray Co. Central Elementary a good school?
Murray Co. Central Elementary earns 59/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 87% of Minnesota 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 Murray County Central Schools?
Besides Murray Co. Central Elementary, Murray County Central Schools also operates Murray County Central Secondary (328 students). See the Murray County Central 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.