Enrollment
740
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Houston, TX
Ponderosa El
Federal NCES profile for Ponderosa El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 40/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 484122004718
👥 S:T ratio 37
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 41
📋 Attendance 14
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Ponderosa El earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median.
- #218 of 435
- schools in Houston · Resource Index
- 40
- Resource Index · Typical
- 15.7:1
- students per teacher
- 80.2%
- free-lunch eligible
Ponderosa El has class sizes near the Texas median. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Ponderosa El ranks #218 of 435 schools in Houston, TX.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
47.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.7:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
+7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
80.2%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+30% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Ponderosa El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Ponderosa El
Ponderosa El is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Houston, Texas, enrolling 740 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 15.7:1 puts it in the larger third of Texas schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 80.2% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 740 puts it in the larger third of Texas schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Against 1,990 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #809.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (62%) and African American (30%) (diversity index 52/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 296 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 34.5% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 20.7% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 1 expulsion at this campus for 2021-22.
Spring Isd also operates Spring H S (2,594 students) and Andy Dekaney H S (2,485 students) alongside Ponderosa El.
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 Ponderosa El compares
Ponderosa El on the metrics families compare, against Texas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.7:1 | ▲ 7% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 80.2% | ▲ 30% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 740 | top 23% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
15.7:1
Leaner classes than 41% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
740
Bigger than 83% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
80.2%
free-lunch eligible
- 30% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.7:1
students per teacher
- 7% above state mean
Top 68% in Texas - lower ratio than 32% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
34.5%
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
$11,574
per pupil, district-wide
- below Texas avg of $13,644
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.5 FTE
Per 296 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
12
in-school suspensions + 21 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
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
Hispanic or Latino 62.4%
African American 29.6%
White 4.1%
Two or More 2.8%
Asian 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 62.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 52.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 52.1, Ponderosa El is more mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Spring Isd, which includes Ponderosa El.
$11,574
Per student
-15%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-30%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 44.2%
State 35.1%
Federal 20.7%
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 Ponderosa El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Andy Dekaney H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Westfield H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Carl Wunsche Sr H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Rickey C Bailey Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Ponderosa El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,594
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
- Resource Index
- 54/100
- Enrollment
- 2,485
- Students per teacher
- 18.4:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 2,264
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 1,503
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
- Enrollment
- 982
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Texas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~740 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~15.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Ponderosa El's federal record.
- Compare Ponderosa El against another school. Compare schools
- Spring Isd'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 Ponderosa El
How many students attend Ponderosa El?
Ponderosa El has 740 students enrolled. It is a public school in Houston, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ponderosa El?
The student-teacher ratio at Ponderosa El is 15.7:1, which is 7% higher than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 0% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Ponderosa El?
80.2% of students at Ponderosa El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Ponderosa El?
The largest demographic group at Ponderosa El is Hispanic or Latino at 62.4% of enrollment, in Houston, TX. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 52.1/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Ponderosa El?
Ponderosa El has a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (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).
How does Ponderosa El rank among schools in Houston?
By Resource Investment Index, Ponderosa El ranks #218 of 435 schools in Houston, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Houston on the city page.
Is Ponderosa El a good school?
Ponderosa El earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas 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 Spring Isd?
Besides Ponderosa El, Spring Isd also operates Spring H S (2,594 students), Andy Dekaney H S (2,485 students), and Westfield H S (2,264 students). See the Spring Isd 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.