Enrollment
62
Kansas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Abilene, KS
Rural Center Elem
Federal NCES profile for Rural Center Elem, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 48/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 200462001251
👥 S:T ratio 50
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 62
📋 Attendance 48
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Rural Center Elem earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Kansas median.
- #1 of 4
- schools in Abilene · Resource Index
- 48
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.4:1
- students per teacher
- 29.1%
- free-lunch eligible
Rural Center Elem has class sizes near the Kansas median. Computed live against every Kansas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Rural Center Elem ranks #1 of 4 schools in Abilene, KS.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
5.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.4:1
vs 13.8:1 Kansas avg
-10% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
29.1%
vs 42.7% Kansas avg
-32% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Rural Center Elem compares with Kansas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Rural Center Elem
Rural Center Elem is a small combined-grade school in Abilene, Kansas, enrolling 62 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.4:1 puts it in the smaller third of Kansas schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 29.1% of students eligible for free meals.
This is a small campus: fewer students than 91% of Kansas schools, with 62 enrolled.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,346 scored Kansas schools.
Against 56 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #33.
Its student body is predominantly White (89% of enrollment) (diversity index 21/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 188 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 21.0% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Among Abilene's public schools, it stands alongside Kennedy Elem (276 students): Rural Center Elem is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (12.4:1 vs 17.3:1).
Chapman also operates Chapman High (383 students) and Chapman Elem (282 students) alongside Rural Center Elem.
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 Rural Center Elem compares
Rural Center Elem on the metrics families compare, against Kansas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Kansas | Kansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.4:1 | ▼ 10% | 13.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 29.1% | ▼ 32% | 42.7% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 62 | top 91% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.4:1
Leaner classes than 72% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
62
Bigger than 7% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
29.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 32% below the Kansas average of 42.7%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
12.4:1
students per teacher
- 10% below state mean
Top 36% in Kansas - lower ratio than 64% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
21.0%
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
$12,972
per pupil, district-wide
- below Kansas avg of $15,487
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.3 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 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 88.7%
African American 4.8%
Two or More 3.2%
Hispanic or Latino 1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.6%
Largest group: White at 88.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 20.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 20.9, Rural Center Elem is less mixed than the Kansas school average of 39.4.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Chapman, which includes Rural Center Elem.
$12,972
Per student
-16%
vs Kansas
Avg $15,487
-22%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 25.3%
State 67.7%
Federal 7.0%
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.
How Rural Center Elem Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chapman High | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Chapman Elem | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Chapman Middle School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Enterprise Elem | Larger | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Blue Ridge Elem | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Rural Center Elem's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 383
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
- Enrollment
- 282
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
- Enrollment
- 250
- Students per teacher
- 16.7:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
- Enrollment
- 86
- Students per teacher
- 9.6:1
- Resource Index
- 48/100
- Enrollment
- 71
- Students per teacher
- 10.1:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
Similar other schools in Abilene
3 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Kansas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~62 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~12.4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Rural Center Elem's federal record.
- Compare Rural Center Elem against another school. Compare schools
- Chapman'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 Rural Center Elem
How many students attend Rural Center Elem?
Rural Center Elem has 62 students enrolled. It is a public school in Abilene, KS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Rural Center Elem?
The student-teacher ratio at Rural Center Elem is 12.4:1, which is 10% lower than the Kansas average of 13.8:1 and 21% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Rural Center Elem?
29.1% of students at Rural Center Elem are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kansas average of 42.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Rural Center Elem?
The largest demographic group at Rural Center Elem is White at 88.7% of enrollment, in Abilene, KS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Rural Center Elem?
Rural Center Elem has a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (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 Rural Center Elem rank among schools in Abilene?
By Resource Investment Index, Rural Center Elem ranks #1 of 4 schools in Abilene, KS. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Abilene on the city page.
Is Rural Center Elem a good school?
Rural Center Elem earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Kansas 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 Chapman?
Besides Rural Center Elem, Chapman also operates Chapman High (383 students), Chapman Elem (282 students), and Chapman Middle School (250 students). See the Chapman 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.