Enrollment
117
Kansas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 200639001181
Plymell Elementary — Garden City, KS
Federal NCES profile for Plymell Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 47/100.
👥 Class size 44
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 53
📋 Attendance 21
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: Garden City · Kansas
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)
10.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.1:1
vs 14.4:1 Kansas avg
-2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
27.7%
vs 42.7% Kansas avg
-35% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Plymell 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
Plymell Elementary reports 117 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 10.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 2% below the Kansas state mean of 14.4:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 11% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 27.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 35% below the Kansas average and 47% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 234 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 31.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Garden City spends $14,751 per pupil district-wide, below the Kansas average of $17,342 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 22.3% from local sources (property taxes), 68.1% from the state, and 9.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 47/100 (D), 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 Plymell 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 | 14.1:1 | ▼ 2% | 14.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 27.7% | ▼ 35% | 42.7% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 117 | top 19% | — | — |
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
27.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 35% 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
14.1:1
students per teacher
— 2% below state mean
Top 59% in Kansas — lower ratio than 41% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
31.6%
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
$14,751
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
Counselors0.5 FTE
Per 234 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 5 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 117 Top 19% in Kansas — larger than 81% of 1,354 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 10.0
Students per teacher 14.1:1 -2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 27.7% -35% vs state
NCES ID 200639001181
Student demographics
White 54.7%
Hispanic or Latino 44.4%
Two or More 0.9%
Largest group: White at 54.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.5
Students per counselor 234:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 31.6%
In-school suspensions 3
Out-of-school suspensions 5
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Garden City, which includes Plymell Elementary.
$14,751
Per student
-15%
vs Kansas
Avg $17,342
-24%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 22.3%
State 68.1%
Federal 9.6%
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
- 1,946
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Enrollment
- 796
- Students per teacher
- 57.1:1
- Enrollment
- 583
- Students per teacher
- 13.4:1
- Enrollment
- 425
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Enrollment
- 377
- Students per teacher
- 11.8:1
Similar elementary schools in Garden City
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Kenneth Henderson Middle
Standard public school
425 students 13.2:1 students per teacher
Charles O Stones Intermediate Ctr
Standard public school
377 students 11.8:1 students per teacher
Florence Wilson Elem
Standard public school
376 students 14:1 students per teacher
Bernadine Sitts Intermediate Ctr
Standard public school
367 students 12.2:1 students per teacher
Victor Ornelas Elem
Standard public school
351 students 13.3:1 students per teacher
Alta Brown Elem
Standard public school
336 students 11.8:1 students per teacher
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 Plymell Elementary
How many students attend Plymell Elementary?
Plymell Elementary has 117 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Garden City, KS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Plymell Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Plymell Elementary is 14.1:1, which is 2% lower than the Kansas average of 14.4:1 and 11% 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 Plymell Elementary?
27.7% of students at Plymell Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kansas average of 42.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Plymell Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Plymell Elementary is White at 54.7%. The school serves a student body in Garden City, KS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Plymell Elementary?
Plymell Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 47/100 (D) 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.