Enrollment
578
Georgia · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 130021803964 Charter school
Pataula Charter Academy — Edison, GA
Federal NCES profile for Pataula Charter Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 44/100.
👥 Class size 42
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 62
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
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)
40.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.4:1
vs 14.5:1 Georgia avg
-1% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
52.5%
vs 60.7% Georgia avg
-14% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Pataula Charter Academy compares with Georgia 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
Pataula Charter Academy reports 578 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 40.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 1% below the Georgia state mean of 14.5:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 9% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 52.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 14% below the Georgia average and 1% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 578 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 15.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding State Charter Schools Ii- Pataula Charter Academy spends $16,005 per pupil district-wide, above the Georgia average of $15,679 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 5.6% from local sources (property taxes), 69.7% from the state, and 24.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (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 Pataula Charter Academy compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Georgia state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Georgia | Georgia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.4:1 | ▼ 1% | 14.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 52.5% | ▼ 14% | 60.7% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 578 | top 42% | — | — |
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
52.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 14% below the Georgia average of 60.7%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.4:1
students per teacher
— 1% below state mean
Top 52% in Georgia — lower ratio than 48% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
15.1%
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
$16,005
per pupil, district-wide
— above Georgia avg of $15,679
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 578 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
40
in-school suspensions + 37 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 13.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 4 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 578 Top 42% in Georgia — larger than 58% of 2,315 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 40.0
Students per teacher 14.4:1 -1% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 52.5% -14% vs state
NCES ID 130021803964
Student demographics
White 58.0%
African American 29.1%
Hispanic or Latino 7.6%
Two or More 3.6%
Asian 1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 58.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 578:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 15.1%
In-school suspensions 40
Out-of-school suspensions 37
Expulsions 4
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for State Charter Schools Ii- Pataula Charter Academy, which includes Pataula Charter Academy.
$16,005
Per student
+2%
vs Georgia
Avg $15,679
-18%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 5.6%
State 69.7%
Federal 24.7%
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 in Edison
1 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
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 Pataula Charter Academy
How many students attend Pataula Charter Academy?
Pataula Charter Academy has 578 students enrolled. It is a other school in Edison, GA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Pataula Charter Academy?
The student-teacher ratio at Pataula Charter Academy is 14.4:1, which is 1% lower than the Georgia average of 14.5:1 and 9% 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 Pataula Charter Academy?
52.5% of students at Pataula Charter Academy are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Georgia average of 60.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Pataula Charter Academy?
The largest demographic group at Pataula Charter Academy is White at 58.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in Edison, GA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Pataula Charter Academy?
Pataula Charter Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (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.