Enrollment
434
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 190786000389
Prairie Crest Elementary — Cedar Rapids, IA
Federal NCES profile for Prairie Crest Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 42/100.
👥 Class size 43
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 13
📋 Attendance 43
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: College Comm School District · Iowa
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)
29.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.3:1
vs 15:1 Iowa avg
-5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
34.6%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
-5% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Prairie Crest Elementary compares with Iowa 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
Prairie Crest Elementary reports 434 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 29.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 5% below the Iowa state mean of 15:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 10% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 34.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 5% below the Iowa average and 33% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 434 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 23.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding College Comm School District spends $22,009 per pupil district-wide, above the Iowa average of $17,211 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 50.5% from local sources (property taxes), 41.8% from the state, and 7.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (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 Prairie Crest Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Iowa state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.3:1 | ▼ 5% | 15:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 34.6% | ▼ 5% | 36.4% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 434 | top 72% | — | — |
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
34.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 5% below the Iowa average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
14.3:1
students per teacher
— 5% below state mean
Top 53% in Iowa — lower ratio than 47% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
23.0%
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
$22,009
per pupil, district-wide
— above Iowa avg of $17,211
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 434 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
7
in-school suspensions + 6 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 434 Top 72% in Iowa — larger than 28% of 1,326 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 29.0
Students per teacher 14.3:1 -5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 34.6% -5% vs state
NCES ID 190786000389
Student demographics
White 60.8%
African American 19.1%
Two or More 8.5%
Hispanic or Latino 6.0%
Asian 4.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 1.4%
Largest group: White at 60.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 434:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 23.0%
In-school suspensions 7
Out-of-school suspensions 6
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for College Comm School District, which includes Prairie Crest Elementary.
$22,009
Per student
+28%
vs Iowa
Avg $17,211
+13%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 50.5%
State 41.8%
Federal 7.7%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,766
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
- Enrollment
- 868
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Enrollment
- 846
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Enrollment
- 466
- Students per teacher
- 14.2:1
- Enrollment
- 438
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
Similar other schools in Cedar Rapids
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Prairie Point
Standard public school
868 students 17.4:1 students per teacher
Viola Gibson Elementary School
Standard public school
565 students 16.9:1 students per teacher
West Willow Elementary School
Standard public school
555 students 17.8:1 students per teacher
Maple Grove Elementary
Standard public school
539 students 15.1:1 students per teacher
Prairie Hill Elementary School
Standard public school
466 students 14.2:1 students per teacher
Prairie Ridge Elementary
Standard public school
438 students 14.7:1 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 Prairie Crest Elementary
How many students attend Prairie Crest Elementary?
Prairie Crest Elementary has 434 students enrolled. It is a other school in Cedar Rapids, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Prairie Crest Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Prairie Crest Elementary is 14.3:1, which is 5% lower than the Iowa average of 15:1 and 10% 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 Prairie Crest Elementary?
34.6% of students at Prairie Crest Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Prairie Crest Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Prairie Crest Elementary is White at 60.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Cedar Rapids, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Prairie Crest Elementary?
Prairie Crest Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (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.