Enrollment
389
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · West Plains, MO
Richards Elem.
Federal NCES profile for Richards Elem., including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 49/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 292637001546
👥 S:T ratio 42
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 61
📋 Attendance 64
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Richards Elem. earns 49/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 74% of Missouri schools.
- #5 of 8
- schools in West Plains · Resource Index
- 49
- Resource Index · Higher
- 14.4:1
- large classes for Missouri
- 49.2%
- free-lunch eligible
Richards Elem. has class sizes larger than 74% of Missouri schools. Computed live against every Missouri school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Richards Elem. ranks #5 of 8 schools in West Plains, MO.
School address
District: Richards R-V · Missouri
NCES ID 292637001546 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
27.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.4:1
vs 12.8:1 Missouri avg
+12% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
49.2%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
+7% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Richards Elem. compares with Missouri and U.S. medians
What stands out at Richards Elem.
Richards Elem. is a mid-sized combined-grade school in West Plains, Missouri, enrolling 389 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 14.4:1 puts it in the larger third of Missouri schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 49.2% of students eligible for free meals.
With 389 students, its enrollment sits close to the Missouri median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,313 scored Missouri schools.
Against 423 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #171.
Its student body is predominantly White (95% of enrollment) (diversity index 9/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 195 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
14.4% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
The surrounding Richards R-V spends $9,779 per pupil, 24% below the Missouri average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
Its district draws 21.0% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Richards R-V operates only this one school, so Richards Elem. has no district-mates to compare against locally.
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 Richards Elem. compares
Richards Elem. on the metrics families compare, against Missouri and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.4:1 | ▲ 12% | 12.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 49.2% | ▲ 7% | 46.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 389 | top 37% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.4:1
Leaner classes than 53% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
389
Bigger than 46% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
49.2%
free-lunch eligible
- 7% above the Missouri average of 46.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.4:1
students per teacher
- 12% above state mean
Top 74% in Missouri - lower ratio than 26% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
14.4%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$9,779
per pupil, district-wide
- below Missouri avg of $12,931
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 195 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
10
in-school suspensions + 16 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
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
White 95.4%
Two or More 2.3%
Hispanic or Latino 1.5%
African American 0.8%
Largest group: White at 95.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 8.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 8.9, Richards Elem. is less mixed than the Missouri school average of 31.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Richards R-V, which includes Richards Elem..
$9,779
Per student
-24%
vs Missouri
Avg $12,931
-41%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 37.6%
State 41.4%
Federal 21.0%
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.
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Missouri, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~389 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~14.4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Richards Elem.'s federal record.
- Compare Richards Elem. against another school. Compare schools
- Richards R-V'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 Richards Elem.
How many students attend Richards Elem.?
Richards Elem. has 389 students enrolled. It is a public school in West Plains, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Richards Elem.?
The student-teacher ratio at Richards Elem. is 14.4:1, which is 12% higher than the Missouri average of 12.8:1 and 8% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Richards Elem.?
49.2% of students at Richards Elem. are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Richards Elem.?
The largest demographic group at Richards Elem. is White at 95.4% of enrollment, in West Plains, MO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Richards Elem.?
Richards Elem. has a Resource Investment Index of 49/100 (higher 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 Richards Elem. rank among schools in West Plains?
By Resource Investment Index, Richards Elem. ranks #5 of 8 schools in West Plains, MO. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in West Plains on the city page.
Is Richards Elem. a good school?
Richards Elem. earns 49/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 74% of Missouri schools. 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 Richards R-V?
None reported; Richards R-V operates only Richards Elem. as a public school district in NCES's records.
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.