Elementary school (grades K-5) · Vidalia, GA

Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School

Federal NCES profile for Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 42/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 130534001737
0/100100/10042/100
👥 S:T ratio
44
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
0
📋 Attendance
53
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Georgia median.

#4 of 4
public schools in Vidalia · Resource Index
42
Resource Index · Typical
14.1:1
students per teacher
86.4%
free-lunch eligible

Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School has class sizes near the Georgia median. Computed live against every Georgia school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School ranks #4 of 4 public schools in Vidalia, GA.

School address

Enrollment

622

Georgia · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

44.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

14.1:1

vs 14.4:1 Georgia avg

-2% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

86.4%

vs 60.7% Georgia avg

+42% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School compares with Georgia and U.S. medians

At or below 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 Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School

Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Vidalia, Georgia, enrolling 622 students.

At 14.1:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Georgia median, within a few percentage points of the 14.4:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.

Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 86.4% of students eligible for free meals.

With 622 students, its enrollment sits close to the Georgia median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,314 scored Georgia schools.

Against 580 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #181.

Its student body is led by African American (52%) and White (31%) (diversity index 61/100).

Counselor access is stretched at roughly 622 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.

Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 18.8% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.

Its district draws 23.5% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Vidalia City also operates Vidalia Comprehensive High School (703 students) and J. R. Trippe Middle School (498 students) alongside Sally Dailey Meadows 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 Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School compares

Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Georgia and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Georgia Georgia avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 14.1:1 ▼ 2% 14.4:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 86.4% ▲ 42% 60.7% 51.7%
Enrollment 622 top 52% - -

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

14.1:1
Leaner classes than 56% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
622
Bigger than 75% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
86.4%
free-lunch eligible - 42% above the Georgia average of 60.7%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.1:1
students per teacher - 2% below state mean
Top 51% in Georgia - lower ratio than 49% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
18.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$12,758
per pupil, district-wide - below Georgia avg of $13,863
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 622 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
54
in-school suspensions + 35 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 8.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 14.3 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

African American 52.3%
White 31.4%
Hispanic or Latino 10.9%
Two or More 4.3%
Asian 1.1%

Largest group: African American at 52.3% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 61.4/100

Simpson diversity index - at 61.4, Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School is more mixed than the Georgia school average of 50.0.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Vidalia City, which includes Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School.

$12,758
Per student
-8%
vs Georgia
Avg $13,863
-23%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 29.5%
State 47.1%
Federal 23.5%

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 Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Vidalia Comprehensive High School Similar size Lower economic need Similar S:T ratio
J. R. Trippe Middle School Similar size Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
J. D. Dickerson Primary School Smaller Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio

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

Other Schools in This District

Vidalia City · 3 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools statewide

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

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Sally Dailey Meadows 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 Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School

How many students attend Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School?

Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School has 622 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Vidalia, GA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School?

The student-teacher ratio at Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School is 14.1:1, which is 2% lower than the Georgia average of 14.4:1 and 10% 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 Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School?

86.4% of students at Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Georgia average of 60.7%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School?

The largest demographic group at Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School is African American at 52.3% of enrollment, in Vidalia, GA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 61.4/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School?

Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (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 Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School rank among public schools in Vidalia?

By Resource Investment Index, Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School ranks #4 of 4 public schools in Vidalia, GA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Vidalia on the city page.

Is Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School a good school?

Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Georgia 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 Vidalia City?

Besides Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School, Vidalia City also operates Vidalia Comprehensive High School (703 students), J. R. Trippe Middle School (498 students), and J. D. Dickerson Primary School (456 students). See the Vidalia City 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.