Enrollment
448
Kansas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 200420002075
Plum Creek Elementary — Hutchinson, KS
Federal NCES profile for Plum Creek Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 30/100.
👥 Class size 22
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 10
📋 Attendance 57
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)
24.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
19.5:1
vs 14.4:1 Kansas avg
+35% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
26.1%
vs 42.7% Kansas avg
-39% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Plum Creek Elementary compares with Kansas 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
Plum Creek Elementary reports 448 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 24.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 19.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 35% above the Kansas state mean of 14.4:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 23% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 26.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 39% below the Kansas average and 50% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 448 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 17.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Buhler spends $12,079 per pupil district-wide, below the Kansas average of $17,342 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 26.5% from local sources (property taxes), 66.6% from the state, and 6.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 30/100 (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 Plum Creek Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Kansas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Kansas | Kansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 19.5:1 | ▲ 35% | 14.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 26.1% | ▼ 39% | 42.7% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 448 | top 77% | — | — |
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
26.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 39% below the Kansas average of 42.7%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
19.5:1
students per teacher
— 35% above state mean
Top 95% in Kansas — lower ratio than 5% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
17.4%
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
$12,079
per pupil, district-wide
— below Kansas avg of $17,342
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 448 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 448 Top 77% in Kansas — larger than 23% of 1,354 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 24.0
Students per teacher 19.5:1 +35% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 26.1% -39% vs state
NCES ID 200420002075
Student demographics
White 85.0%
Hispanic or Latino 10.9%
African American 2.0%
Two or More 1.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Asian 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 85.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 448:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 17.4%
In-school suspensions 2
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Buhler, which includes Plum Creek Elementary.
$12,079
Per student
-30%
vs Kansas
Avg $17,342
-38%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 26.5%
State 66.6%
Federal 6.9%
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
- 674
- Students per teacher
- 18.7:1
- Enrollment
- 532
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Enrollment
- 435
- Students per teacher
- 18.8:1
- Enrollment
- 241
- Students per teacher
- 16.1:1
- Enrollment
- 171
- Students per teacher
- —
Similar other schools in Hutchinson
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Union Valley Elem
Standard public school
435 students 18.8:1 students per teacher
Morgan Elementary
Standard public school
388 students 12.7:1 students per teacher
Mccandless Elementary
Standard public school
346 students 11.4:1 students per teacher
Wiley Elementary
Standard public school
322 students 15:1 students per teacher
Graber Elementary
Standard public school
311 students 12.7:1 students per teacher
Hutchinson Virtual School
Standard public school
300 students
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 Plum Creek Elementary
How many students attend Plum Creek Elementary?
Plum Creek Elementary has 448 students enrolled. It is a other school in Hutchinson, KS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Plum Creek Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Plum Creek Elementary is 19.5:1, which is 35% higher than the Kansas average of 14.4:1 and 23% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Plum Creek Elementary?
26.1% of students at Plum Creek Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kansas average of 42.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Plum Creek Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Plum Creek Elementary is White at 85.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in Hutchinson, KS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Plum Creek Elementary?
Plum Creek Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 30/100 (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.