Enrollment
430
Arizona · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 040607001423
Payson Elementary School — Payson, AZ
Federal NCES profile for Payson Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 23/100.
👥 Class size 46
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 14
📋 Attendance 0
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
District: Payson Unified District (4209) · Arizona
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)
32.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.5:1
vs 17.7:1 Arizona avg
-24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
51.9%
vs 48.3% Arizona avg
+7% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Payson Elementary School compares with Arizona 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
Payson Elementary School reports 430 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 32.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 13.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 24% below the Arizona state mean of 17.7:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 15% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 51.9% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 7% above the Arizona average and 0% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 430 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 61.2% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Payson Unified District (4209) spends $12,649 per pupil district-wide, below the Arizona average of $15,070 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 51.2% from local sources (property taxes), 33.2% from the state, and 15.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 23/100 (F), 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 Payson Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Arizona state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Arizona | Arizona avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.5:1 | ▼ 24% | 17.7:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 51.9% | ▲ 7% | 48.3% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 430 | top 53% | — | — |
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
51.9%
free-lunch eligible
— 7% above the Arizona average of 48.3%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
13.5:1
students per teacher
— 24% below state mean
Top 20% in Arizona — lower ratio than 80% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
61.2%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$12,649
per pupil, district-wide
— below Arizona avg of $15,070
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 430 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
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
Enrollment 430 Top 53% in Arizona — larger than 47% of 2,186 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 32.0
Students per teacher 13.5:1 -24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 51.9% +7% vs state
NCES ID 040607001423
Student demographics
White 68.4%
Hispanic or Latino 24.0%
Two or More 4.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 2.1%
Asian 0.5%
African American 0.2%
Largest group: White at 68.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 430:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 61.2%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Payson Unified District (4209), which includes Payson Elementary School.
$12,649
Per student
-16%
vs Arizona
Avg $15,070
-35%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 51.2%
State 33.2%
Federal 15.7%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 733
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
- Enrollment
- 503
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
- Enrollment
- 478
- Students per teacher
- 18.3:1
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 Payson Elementary School
How many students attend Payson Elementary School?
Payson Elementary School has 430 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Payson, AZ.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Payson Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Payson Elementary School is 13.5:1, which is 24% lower than the Arizona average of 17.7:1 and 15% 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 Payson Elementary School?
51.9% of students at Payson Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arizona average of 48.3%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Payson Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Payson Elementary School is White at 68.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Payson, AZ.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Payson Elementary School?
Payson Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 23/100 (F) 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.