Elementary school (grades K-5) · Lakewood, CO

Rooney Ranch Elementary School

Federal NCES profile for Rooney Ranch Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 39/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 080480001009
0/100100/10039/100
👥 S:T ratio
30
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
0
📋 Attendance
56
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Rooney Ranch Elementary School earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Colorado median.

#8 of 13
elementary schools in Lakewood · Resource Index
39
Resource Index · Typical
17.6:1
students per teacher
5.9%
free-lunch eligible

Rooney Ranch Elementary School has class sizes near the Colorado median. Computed live against every Colorado school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Rooney Ranch Elementary School ranks #8 of 13 elementary schools in Lakewood, CO.

Enrollment

492

Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

28.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

17.6:1

vs 16.6:1 Colorado avg

+6% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

5.9%

vs 38.5% Colorado avg

-85% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Rooney Ranch Elementary School compares with Colorado and U.S. medians

Slightly above state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Rooney Ranch Elementary School

Rooney Ranch Elementary School is a lower-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Lakewood, Colorado, enrolling 492 students.

Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 17.6:1 puts it in the larger third of Colorado schools by student-teacher ratio.

Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 5.9% free-meal eligibility runs 85% below the Colorado average.

Enrollment of 492 puts it in the larger third of Colorado schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,922 scored Colorado schools.

Among 288 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Colorado schools statewide, it ranks #214, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is predominantly White (82% of enrollment) (diversity index 31/100).

Counselor access is stretched at roughly 984 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.

17.7% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.

Jefferson County School District No. R-1 also operates Arvada West High School (1,923 students) and Ralston Valley Senior High School (1,875 students) alongside Rooney Ranch Elementary School.

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 Rooney Ranch Elementary School compares

Rooney Ranch Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Colorado and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Colorado Colorado avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 17.6:1 ▲ 6% 16.6:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 5.9% ▼ 85% 38.5% 51.7%
Enrollment 492 top 30% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

17.6:1
Leaner classes than 27% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
492
Bigger than 61% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
5.9%
free-lunch eligible - 85% below the Colorado average of 38.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17.6:1
students per teacher - 6% above state mean
Top 68% in Colorado - lower ratio than 32% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
17.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$13,124
per pupil, district-wide - below Colorado avg of $16,273
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.5 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.2 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 82.1%
Hispanic or Latino 11.0%
Two or More 4.1%
Asian 2.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%

Largest group: White at 82.1% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 31.1/100

Simpson diversity index - at 31.1, Rooney Ranch Elementary School is less mixed than the Colorado school average of 47.1.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Jefferson County School District No. R-1, which includes Rooney Ranch Elementary School.

$13,124
Per student
-19%
vs Colorado
Avg $16,273
-21%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 55.3%
State 36.9%
Federal 7.8%

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.

How Rooney Ranch Elementary School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Arvada West High School Larger Higher economic need Higher S:T ratio
Ralston Valley Senior High School Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Chatfield High School Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Lakewood High School Larger Higher economic need Similar S:T ratio
Columbine High School Larger Higher economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Rooney Ranch Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Jefferson County School District No. R-1 · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Colorado, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Rooney Ranch Elementary School's federal record.

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 Rooney Ranch Elementary School

How many students attend Rooney Ranch Elementary School?

Rooney Ranch Elementary School has 492 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Lakewood, CO.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Rooney Ranch Elementary School?

The student-teacher ratio at Rooney Ranch Elementary School is 17.6:1, which is 6% higher than the Colorado average of 16.6:1 and 12% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Rooney Ranch Elementary School?

5.9% of students at Rooney Ranch Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Rooney Ranch Elementary School?

The largest demographic group at Rooney Ranch Elementary School is White at 82.1% of enrollment, in Lakewood, CO.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Rooney Ranch Elementary School?

Rooney Ranch Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 39/100 (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 Rooney Ranch Elementary School rank among elementary schools in Lakewood?

By Resource Investment Index, Rooney Ranch Elementary School ranks #8 of 13 elementary schools in Lakewood, CO. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Lakewood on the city page.

Is Rooney Ranch Elementary School a good school?

Rooney Ranch Elementary School earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Colorado 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 Jefferson County School District No. R-1?

Besides Rooney Ranch Elementary School, Jefferson County School District No. R-1 also operates Arvada West High School (1,923 students), Ralston Valley Senior High School (1,875 students), and Chatfield High School (1,808 students). See the Jefferson County School District No. R-1 district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.