Enrollment
468
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Willard, NC
Penderlea Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Penderlea Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 31/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 370357001467
👥 S:T ratio 46
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 6
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Penderlea Elementary earns 31/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 73% of North Carolina schools.
- 31
- Resource Index · Lower
- 13.4:1
- small classes for North Carolina
- 66.1%
- free-lunch eligible
- 468
- students enrolled
Penderlea Elementary has class sizes smaller than 73% of North Carolina schools. Computed live against every North Carolina school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Pender County Schools · North Carolina
NCES ID 370357001467 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
35.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.4:1
vs 15.8:1 North Carolina avg
-15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
66.1%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
+0% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Penderlea Elementary compares with North Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Penderlea Elementary
Penderlea Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Willard, North Carolina, enrolling 468 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 13.4:1 puts it in the smaller third of North Carolina schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 66.1% lands close to the North Carolina typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 468 students, its enrollment sits close to the North Carolina median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,698 scored North Carolina schools.
Among 400 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need North Carolina schools statewide, it ranks #343, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by White (50%) and Hispanic or Latino (23%) (diversity index 66/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 468 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 51.7% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 21.2% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Pender County Schools also operates Topsail High (1,945 students) and Surf City Elementary (857 students) alongside Penderlea Elementary.
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 Penderlea Elementary compares
Penderlea Elementary on the metrics families compare, against North Carolina and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.4:1 | ▼ 15% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 66.1% | ▲ 0% | 66.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 468 | top 54% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13.4:1
Leaner classes than 63% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
468
Bigger than 57% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
66.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 0% above the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
13.4:1
students per teacher
- 15% below state mean
Top 27% in North Carolina - lower ratio than 73% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
51.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$11,305
per pupil, district-wide
- below North Carolina avg of $12,017
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 468 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
31
in-school suspensions + 22 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 11.3 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 50.2%
Hispanic or Latino 23.1%
African American 17.7%
Two or More 7.3%
Asian 0.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
Largest group: White at 50.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 65.8/100
Simpson diversity index - at 65.8, Penderlea Elementary is more mixed than the North Carolina school average of 56.1.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Pender County Schools, which includes Penderlea Elementary.
$11,305
Per student
-6%
vs North Carolina
Avg $12,017
-32%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 22.0%
State 56.8%
Federal 21.2%
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 Penderlea Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Topsail High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Surf City Elementary | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Topsail Middle | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Surf City Middle | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Heide Trask High | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Penderlea Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,945
- Students per teacher
- 23.7:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 857
- Students per teacher
- 19.5:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 837
- Students per teacher
- 20.4:1
- Resource Index
- 22/100
- Enrollment
- 752
- Students per teacher
- 23.5:1
- Resource Index
- 21/100
- Enrollment
- 732
- Students per teacher
- 16.6:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of North Carolina, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~468 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~13.4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Penderlea Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Penderlea Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Pender County 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 Penderlea Elementary
How many students attend Penderlea Elementary?
Penderlea Elementary has 468 students enrolled. It is a public school in Willard, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Penderlea Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Penderlea Elementary is 13.4:1, which is 15% lower than the North Carolina average of 15.8:1 and 15% 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 Penderlea Elementary?
66.1% of students at Penderlea Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Penderlea Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Penderlea Elementary is White at 50.2% of enrollment, in Willard, NC. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 65.8/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Penderlea Elementary?
Penderlea Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (lower 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).
Is Penderlea Elementary a good school?
Penderlea Elementary earns 31/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 73% of North Carolina 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 Pender County Schools?
Besides Penderlea Elementary, Pender County Schools also operates Topsail High (1,945 students), Surf City Elementary (857 students), and Topsail Middle (837 students). See the Pender County 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.