Enrollment
478
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Pine River, MN
Pine River-Backus Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Pine River-Backus Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 37/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 272897000039
👥 S:T ratio 48
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 34
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Pine River-Backus Elementary earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Minnesota median.
- #1 of 3
- public schools in Pine River · Resource Index
- 37
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.9:1
- students per teacher
- 56.4%
- free-lunch eligible
Pine River-Backus Elementary has class sizes near the Minnesota median. Computed live against every Minnesota school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Pine River-Backus Elementary ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Pine River, MN.
School address
District: Pine River-Backus School District · Minnesota
NCES ID 272897000039 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
37.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.9:1
vs 15.8:1 Minnesota avg
-18% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
56.4%
vs 42.8% Minnesota avg
+32% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Pine River-Backus Elementary compares with Minnesota and U.S. medians
What stands out at Pine River-Backus Elementary
Pine River-Backus Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Pine River, Minnesota, enrolling 478 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.9:1 puts it in the smaller third of Minnesota schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 56.4% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 478 puts it in the larger third of Minnesota schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,334 scored Minnesota schools.
Against 216 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #119.
Its student body is predominantly White (90% of enrollment) (diversity index 19/100).
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 26.4% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 17.1% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Pine River-Backus School District also operates Pine River-Backus High School (371 students) and Pine River-Backus Alp (57 students) alongside Pine River-Backus 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 Pine River-Backus Elementary compares
Pine River-Backus Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Minnesota and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Minnesota | Minnesota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.9:1 | ▼ 18% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 56.4% | ▲ 32% | 42.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 478 | top 28% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.9:1
Leaner classes than 68% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
478
Bigger than 59% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
56.4%
free-lunch eligible
- 32% above the Minnesota average of 42.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.9:1
students per teacher
- 18% below state mean
Top 36% in Minnesota - lower ratio than 64% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
26.4%
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
$12,830
per pupil, district-wide
- below Minnesota avg of $15,270
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
7
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.9 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 89.7%
Two or More 5.4%
Hispanic or Latino 2.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.8%
Asian 0.6%
African American 0.4%
Largest group: White at 89.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 19.2/100
Simpson diversity index - at 19.2, Pine River-Backus Elementary is less mixed than the Minnesota school average of 42.8.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Pine River-Backus School District, which includes Pine River-Backus Elementary.
$12,830
Per student
-16%
vs Minnesota
Avg $15,270
-23%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 18.3%
State 64.6%
Federal 17.1%
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 Pine River-Backus Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pine River-Backus High School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Pine River-Backus Alp | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Pine River-Backus Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 371
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
- Resource Index
- 26/100
- Enrollment
- 57
- Students per teacher
- 19:1
- Resource Index
- 27/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Minnesota, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~478 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~12.9:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Pine River-Backus Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Pine River-Backus Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Pine River-Backus School District'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 Pine River-Backus Elementary
How many students attend Pine River-Backus Elementary?
Pine River-Backus Elementary has 478 students enrolled. It is a public school in Pine River, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Pine River-Backus Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Pine River-Backus Elementary is 12.9:1, which is 18% lower than the Minnesota average of 15.8:1 and 18% 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 Pine River-Backus Elementary?
56.4% of students at Pine River-Backus Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Minnesota average of 42.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Pine River-Backus Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Pine River-Backus Elementary is White at 89.7% of enrollment, in Pine River, MN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Pine River-Backus Elementary?
Pine River-Backus Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Pine River-Backus Elementary rank among public schools in Pine River?
By Resource Investment Index, Pine River-Backus Elementary ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Pine River, MN. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Pine River on the city page.
Is Pine River-Backus Elementary a good school?
Pine River-Backus Elementary earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Minnesota median. 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 Pine River-Backus School District?
Besides Pine River-Backus Elementary, Pine River-Backus School District also operates Pine River-Backus High School (371 students) and Pine River-Backus Alp (57 students). See the Pine River-Backus School District 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.