Enrollment
86
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Salem, IA
Salem Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Salem Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 68/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 191989001175
👥 S:T ratio 51
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 83
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Salem Elementary School earns 68/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 74% of Iowa schools.
- 68
- Resource Index · Higher
- 12.3:1
- small classes for Iowa
- 35.1%
- free-lunch eligible
- 86
- students enrolled
Salem Elementary School has class sizes smaller than 74% of Iowa schools. Computed live against every Iowa school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Mount Pleasant Comm School District · Iowa
NCES ID 191989001175 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
7.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.3:1
vs 14.8:1 Iowa avg
-17% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
35.1%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
-4% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Salem Elementary School compares with Iowa and U.S. medians
What stands out at Salem Elementary School
Salem Elementary School is a small elementary school in Salem, Iowa, enrolling 86 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.3:1 puts it in the smaller third of Iowa schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 35.1% lands close to the Iowa typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
This is a small campus: fewer students than 94% of Iowa schools, with 86 enrolled.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 99% of the 1,322 Iowa schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Among 63 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Iowa schools statewide, it ranks #2, a top-tier result once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly White (94% of enrollment) (diversity index 11/100).
Attendance holds up well here: only 7.0% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
Mount Pleasant Comm School District also operates Mount Pleasant High School (545 students) and Mount Pleasant Middle School (383 students) alongside Salem 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 Salem Elementary School compares
Salem Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Iowa and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.3:1 | ▼ 17% | 14.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 35.1% | ▼ 4% | 36.4% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 86 | top 94% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.3:1
Leaner classes than 73% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
86
Bigger than 9% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
35.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 4% 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
12.3:1
students per teacher
- 17% below state mean
Top 26% in Iowa - lower ratio than 74% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
7.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$12,800
per pupil, district-wide
- below Iowa avg of $12,854
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 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 94.2%
African American 2.3%
Two or More 2.3%
Hispanic or Latino 1.2%
Largest group: White at 94.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 11.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 11.1, Salem Elementary School is less mixed than the Iowa school average of 33.8.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mount Pleasant Comm School District, which includes Salem Elementary School.
$12,800
Per student
0%
vs Iowa
Avg $12,854
-23%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 35.1%
State 53.4%
Federal 11.5%
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 Salem Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Pleasant High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Mount Pleasant Middle School | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Van Allen Elementary School | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Harlan Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Lincoln Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Salem Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 545
- Students per teacher
- 13:1
- Resource Index
- 30/100
- Enrollment
- 383
- Students per teacher
- 12.4:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
- Enrollment
- 362
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
- Resource Index
- 59/100
- Enrollment
- 220
- Students per teacher
- 13.8:1
- Resource Index
- 57/100
- Enrollment
- 202
- Students per teacher
- 11.2:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Iowa, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~86 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Salem Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Salem Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Mount Pleasant Comm School District'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 Salem Elementary School
How many students attend Salem Elementary School?
Salem Elementary School has 86 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Salem, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Salem Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Salem Elementary School is 12.3:1, which is 17% lower than the Iowa average of 14.8:1 and 22% 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 Salem Elementary School?
35.1% of students at Salem Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Salem Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Salem Elementary School is White at 94.2% of enrollment, in Salem, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Salem Elementary School?
Salem Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 68/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Salem Elementary School a good school?
Salem Elementary School earns 68/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 74% of Iowa 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 Mount Pleasant Comm School District?
Besides Salem Elementary School, Mount Pleasant Comm School District also operates Mount Pleasant High School (545 students), Mount Pleasant Middle School (383 students), and Van Allen Elementary School (362 students). See the Mount Pleasant Comm School District 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.