Enrollment
198
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Piney Creek, NC
Piney Creek Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Piney Creek Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 36/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 370012000039
👥 S:T ratio 39
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 21
📋 Attendance 14
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Piney Creek Elementary earns 36/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the North Carolina median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most North Carolina schools.
- 36
- Resource Index · Typical
- 15.2:1
- students per teacher
- 48.6%
- free-lunch eligible
- 198
- students enrolled
Piney Creek Elementary has class sizes near the North Carolina median. Computed live against every North Carolina school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Alleghany County Schools · North Carolina
NCES ID 370012000039 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
13.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.2:1
vs 15.8:1 North Carolina avg
-4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
48.6%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
-26% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Piney Creek Elementary compares with North Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Piney Creek Elementary
Piney Creek Elementary is a small combined-grade school in Piney Creek, North Carolina, enrolling 198 students.
At 15.2:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the North Carolina median, within a few percentage points of the 15.8:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 48.6% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 198 puts it in the smaller third of North Carolina schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,698 scored North Carolina schools.
Among 114 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need North Carolina schools statewide, it ranks #107, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly White (89% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 19/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 396 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 34.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The surrounding Alleghany County Schools spends $15,572 per pupil, 30% above the North Carolina average, a better-resourced district than most.
Its district draws 23.7% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Alleghany County Schools also operates Sparta Elementary (523 students) and Alleghany High (395 students) alongside Piney Creek 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 Piney Creek Elementary compares
Piney Creek 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 | 15.2:1 | ▼ 4% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 48.6% | ▼ 26% | 66.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 198 | top 89% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
15.2:1
Leaner classes than 45% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
198
Bigger than 19% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
48.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 26% below 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
15.2:1
students per teacher
- 4% below state mean
Top 52% in North Carolina - lower ratio than 48% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
34.3%
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
$15,572
per pupil, district-wide
- above North Carolina avg of $12,017
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.5 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
8
in-school suspensions + 8 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 8.1 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 89.4%
Hispanic or Latino 8.6%
Two or More 1.5%
African American 0.5%
Largest group: White at 89.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 19.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 19.3, Piney Creek Elementary is less mixed than the North Carolina school average of 56.1.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Alleghany County Schools, which includes Piney Creek Elementary.
$15,572
Per student
+30%
vs North Carolina
Avg $12,017
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 14.6%
State 61.7%
Federal 23.7%
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.
How Piney Creek Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sparta Elementary | Larger | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Alleghany High | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Glade Creek Elementary | Similar size | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Piney Creek Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 523
- Students per teacher
- 11.6:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 395
- Students per teacher
- 11.3:1
- Resource Index
- 48/100
- Enrollment
- 236
- Students per teacher
- 12.4:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
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 (~198 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Piney Creek Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Piney Creek Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Alleghany 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 Piney Creek Elementary
How many students attend Piney Creek Elementary?
Piney Creek Elementary has 198 students enrolled. It is a public school in Piney Creek, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Piney Creek Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Piney Creek Elementary is 15.2:1, which is 4% lower than the North Carolina average of 15.8:1 and 3% 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 Piney Creek Elementary?
48.6% of students at Piney Creek Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Piney Creek Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Piney Creek Elementary is White at 89.4% of enrollment, in Piney Creek, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Piney Creek Elementary?
Piney Creek Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 36/100 (typical 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 Piney Creek Elementary a good school?
Piney Creek Elementary earns 36/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the North Carolina median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most 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 Alleghany County Schools?
Besides Piney Creek Elementary, Alleghany County Schools also operates Sparta Elementary (523 students), Alleghany High (395 students), and Glade Creek Elementary (236 students). See the Alleghany 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.