Enrollment
130
Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 080450006304
Prairie Heights Elementary School — Fountain, CO
Federal NCES profile for Prairie Heights Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 58/100.
👥 Class size 25
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 79
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)
7.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.7:1
vs 16.9:1 Colorado avg
+11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
48.9%
vs 38.5% Colorado avg
+27% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Prairie Heights Elementary School compares with Colorado 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 Heights Elementary School reports 130 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 7.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 18.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 11% above the Colorado state mean of 16.9:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 18% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 48.9% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 27% above the Colorado average and 6% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 103 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1.
On the finance side, the surrounding Hanover School District No. 28 in the County of El Paso an spends $18,346 per pupil district-wide, below the Colorado average of $20,949 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 34.0% from local sources (property taxes), 56.1% from the state, and 9.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (C), calculated from 3 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 Heights Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Colorado state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Colorado | Colorado avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.7:1 | ▲ 11% | 16.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 48.9% | ▲ 27% | 38.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 130 | top 15% | — | — |
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
48.9%
free-lunch eligible
— 27% above the Colorado average of 38.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
18.7:1
students per teacher
— 11% above state mean
Top 80% in Colorado — lower ratio than 20% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Funding equity
$18,346
per pupil, district-wide
— below Colorado avg of $20,949
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.3 FTE
Per 103 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 10 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 130 Top 15% in Colorado — larger than 85% of 1,923 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 7.0
Students per teacher 18.7:1 +11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 48.9% +27% vs state
NCES ID 080450006304
Student demographics
White 50.0%
Hispanic or Latino 40.8%
African American 3.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 3.1%
Two or More 2.3%
Asian 0.8%
Largest group: White at 50.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.3
Students per counselor 103:1
Discipline & special education
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 10
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Hanover School District No. 28 in the County of El Paso an, which includes Prairie Heights Elementary School.
$18,346
Per student
-12%
vs Colorado
Avg $20,949
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 34.0%
State 56.1%
Federal 9.8%
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
- 134
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
Similar other schools in Fountain
3 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
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 Heights Elementary School
How many students attend Prairie Heights Elementary School?
Prairie Heights Elementary School has 130 students enrolled. It is a other school in FOUNTAIN, CO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Prairie Heights Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Prairie Heights Elementary School is 18.7:1, which is 11% higher than the Colorado average of 16.9:1 and 18% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Prairie Heights Elementary School?
48.9% of students at Prairie Heights Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Prairie Heights Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Prairie Heights Elementary School is White at 50.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in FOUNTAIN, CO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Prairie Heights Elementary School?
Prairie Heights Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (C) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.