Enrollment
594
Washington · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 530732003540
Orchard Elementary — Richland, WA
Federal NCES profile for Orchard Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 43/100.
👥 Class size 34
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 69
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 →
The verdict
Orchard Elementary earns a D Resource Investment Index (43/100), with class sizes near the Washington median.
- D
- Resource Index · 43/100
- 16.6:1
- students per teacher
- 21.6%
- free-lunch eligible
- 594
- students enrolled
School address
District: Richland School District · Washington
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)
37.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.6:1
vs 17.8:1 Washington avg
-7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
21.6%
vs 45.0% Washington avg
-52% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Orchard Elementary compares with Washington 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
Orchard Elementary reports 594 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 37.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.6:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 7% below the Washington state mean of 17.8:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 4% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 21.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 52% below the Washington average and 58% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 594 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 12.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Richland School District spends $18,933 per pupil district-wide, below the Washington average of $23,175 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 24.0% from local sources (property taxes), 65.7% from the state, and 10.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (D), 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 Orchard Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Washington state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Washington | Washington avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.6:1 | ▼ 7% | 17.8:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 21.6% | ▼ 52% | 45.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 594 | top 79% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
Class size vs. every US school
Students per teacher (lower means more individual attention)
17 smaller classes than 34% of 92,598 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25
School size vs. every US school
Total enrollment — where this school sits by size (neither large nor small is 'better')
594 larger than 72% of 95,891 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 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
21.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 52% below the Washington average of 45.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
16.6:1
students per teacher
— 7% below state mean
Top 52% in Washington — lower ratio than 48% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
12.6%
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
$18,933
per pupil, district-wide
— below Washington avg of $23,175
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 594 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 594 Top 79% in Washington — larger than 21% of 2,465 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 37.0
Students per teacher 16.6:1 -7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 21.6% -52% vs state
NCES ID 530732003540
Student demographics
White 66.5%
Hispanic or Latino 14.8%
Asian 10.4%
Two or More 7.2%
African American 0.8%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 66.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 594:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 12.6%
In-school suspensions 1
Out-of-school suspensions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Richland School District, which includes Orchard Elementary.
$18,933
Per student
-18%
vs Washington
Avg $23,175
-3%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 24.0%
State 65.7%
Federal 10.3%
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
- 2,218
- Students per teacher
- 22.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,959
- Students per teacher
- 21.5:1
- Enrollment
- 805
- Students per teacher
- 22.2:1
- Enrollment
- 791
- Students per teacher
- 19.7:1
- Enrollment
- 756
- Students per teacher
- 33:1
Similar other schools in Richland
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Three Rivers Home Link
Alternative education program
756 students 33:1 students per teacher
White Bluffs Elementary School
Standard public school
653 students 19.1:1 students per teacher
Amon Creek Elementary
Standard public school
594 students 17.2:1 students per teacher
Jason Lee Elementary School
Standard public school
518 students 17.4:1 students per teacher
Lewis & Clark Elementary School
Standard public school
471 students 16.8:1 students per teacher
Jefferson Elementary
Standard public school
418 students 15.3:1 students per teacher
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 Orchard Elementary
How many students attend Orchard Elementary?
Orchard Elementary has 594 students enrolled. It is a other school in Richland, WA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Orchard Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Orchard Elementary is 16.6:1, which is 7% lower than the Washington average of 17.8:1 and 4% higher 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 Orchard Elementary?
21.6% of students at Orchard Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Washington average of 45.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Orchard Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Orchard Elementary is White at 66.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in Richland, WA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Orchard Elementary?
Orchard Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (D) 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.