Enrollment
622
Georgia · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 130534001737
Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School — Vidalia, GA
Federal NCES profile for Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 41/100.
👥 Class size 41
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 53
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: Vidalia City · Georgia
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
44.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.7:1
vs 14.5:1 Georgia avg
+1% 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
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School reports 622 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 44.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 1% above the Georgia state mean of 14.5:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 8% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 86.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 42% above the Georgia average and 67% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 622 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 18.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Vidalia City spends $13,996 per pupil district-wide, below the Georgia average of $15,679 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 29.5% from local sources (property taxes), 47.1% from the state, and 23.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D), calculated from 4 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Georgia state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Georgia | Georgia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.7:1 | ▲ 1% | 14.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 86.4% | ▲ 42% | 60.7% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 622 | top 48% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
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
14.7:1
students per teacher
— 1% above state mean
Top 58% in Georgia — lower ratio than 42% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
18.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$13,996
per pupil, district-wide
— below Georgia avg of $15,679
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints 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
Enrollment 622 Top 48% in Georgia — larger than 52% of 2,315 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 44.0
Students per teacher 14.7:1 +1% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 86.4% +42% vs state
NCES ID 130534001737
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.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 622:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 18.8%
In-school suspensions 54
Out-of-school suspensions 35
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Vidalia City, which includes Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School.
$13,996
Per student
-11%
vs Georgia
Avg $15,679
-28%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 703
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Enrollment
- 498
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Enrollment
- 456
- Students per teacher
- 13.4:1
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
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 a 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 14.7:1, which is 1% higher than the Georgia average of 14.5:1 and 8% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
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%. The school serves a diverse student body in Vidalia, GA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School?
Sally Dailey Meadows Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.