Enrollment
249
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Cape Girardeau, MO
Nell Holcomb Elem.
Federal NCES profile for Nell Holcomb Elem., including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 65/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 290732000194
👥 S:T ratio 64
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 50
📋 Attendance 76
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Nell Holcomb Elem. earns 65/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 87% of Missouri schools.
- #1 of 7
- schools in Cape Girardeau · Resource Index
- 65
- Resource Index · Higher
- 8.9:1
- small classes for Missouri
- 35.7%
- free-lunch eligible
Nell Holcomb Elem. has class sizes smaller than 87% of Missouri schools. Computed live against every Missouri school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Nell Holcomb Elem. ranks #1 of 7 schools in Cape Girardeau, MO.
School address
District: Nell Holcomb R-Iv · Missouri
NCES ID 290732000194 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
28.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
8.9:1
vs 12.8:1 Missouri avg
-30% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
35.7%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
-23% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Nell Holcomb Elem. compares with Missouri and U.S. medians
What stands out at Nell Holcomb Elem.
Nell Holcomb Elem. is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, enrolling 249 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 8.9:1, Nell Holcomb Elem. is leaner than roughly 87% of Missouri schools and 30% under the state's 12.8:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 35.7% lands close to the Missouri typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 249 students, its enrollment sits close to the Missouri median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 97% of the 2,313 Missouri schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Among 425 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Missouri schools statewide, it ranks #10, a top-tier result once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly White (85% of enrollment) (diversity index 27/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 249 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Attendance holds up well here: only 9.6% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
Its district draws 19.4% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Nell Holcomb R-Iv operates only this one school, so Nell Holcomb Elem. has no district-mates to compare against locally.
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 Nell Holcomb Elem. compares
Nell Holcomb Elem. on the metrics families compare, against Missouri and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 8.9:1 | ▼ 30% | 12.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 35.7% | ▼ 23% | 46.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 249 | top 61% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
8.9:1
Leaner classes than 93% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
249
Bigger than 25% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
35.7%
free-lunch eligible
- 23% below the Missouri average of 46.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
8.9:1
students per teacher
- 30% below state mean
Top 13% in Missouri - lower ratio than 87% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
9.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$13,761
per pupil, district-wide
- above Missouri avg of $12,931
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 249 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
15
in-school suspensions + 12 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.8 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 84.7%
African American 10.4%
Hispanic or Latino 2.4%
Two or More 1.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.8%
Asian 0.4%
Largest group: White at 84.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 27.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 27.1, Nell Holcomb Elem. is less mixed than the Missouri school average of 31.0.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Nell Holcomb R-Iv, which includes Nell Holcomb Elem..
$13,761
Per student
+6%
vs Missouri
Avg $12,931
-17%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 59.0%
State 21.5%
Federal 19.4%
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.
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Missouri, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~249 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~8.9:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Nell Holcomb Elem.'s federal record.
- Compare Nell Holcomb Elem. against another school. Compare schools
- Nell Holcomb R-Iv'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 Nell Holcomb Elem.
How many students attend Nell Holcomb Elem.?
Nell Holcomb Elem. has 249 students enrolled. It is a public school in Cape Girardeau, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Nell Holcomb Elem.?
The student-teacher ratio at Nell Holcomb Elem. is 8.9:1, which is 30% lower than the Missouri average of 12.8:1 and 43% 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 Nell Holcomb Elem.?
35.7% of students at Nell Holcomb Elem. are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Nell Holcomb Elem.?
The largest demographic group at Nell Holcomb Elem. is White at 84.7% of enrollment, in Cape Girardeau, MO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Nell Holcomb Elem.?
Nell Holcomb Elem. has a Resource Investment Index of 65/100 (higher 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 Nell Holcomb Elem. rank among schools in Cape Girardeau?
By Resource Investment Index, Nell Holcomb Elem. ranks #1 of 7 schools in Cape Girardeau, MO. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Cape Girardeau on the city page.
Is Nell Holcomb Elem. a good school?
Nell Holcomb Elem. earns 65/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 87% of Missouri 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 Nell Holcomb R-Iv?
None reported; Nell Holcomb R-Iv operates only Nell Holcomb Elem. as a public school district in NCES's records.
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.