Enrollment
506
Georgia · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Hiram, GA
Sam D. Panter Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Sam D. Panter Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 40/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 130402001781
👥 S:T ratio 51
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 39
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Sam D. Panter Elementary School earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 77% of Georgia schools.
- #2 of 3
- schools in Hiram · Resource Index
- 40
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.3:1
- small classes for Georgia
- 52.4%
- free-lunch eligible
Sam D. Panter Elementary School has class sizes smaller than 77% of Georgia schools. Computed live against every Georgia school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Sam D. Panter Elementary School ranks #2 of 3 schools in Hiram, GA.
School address
District: Paulding County · Georgia
NCES ID 130402001781 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
41.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.3:1
vs 14.4:1 Georgia avg
-15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
52.4%
vs 60.7% Georgia avg
-14% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sam D. Panter Elementary School compares with Georgia and U.S. medians
What stands out at Sam D. Panter Elementary School
Sam D. Panter Elementary School is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Hiram, Georgia, enrolling 506 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.3:1 puts it in the smaller third of Georgia schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 52.4% lands close to the Georgia typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 506 puts it in the smaller third of Georgia schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,314 scored Georgia schools.
Against 359 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #231.
Its student body is led by White (51%) and African American (25%) (diversity index 65/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 506 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 24.5% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Among Hiram's public schools, it stands alongside Hiram Elementary School (797 students): Sam D. Panter Elementary School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (12.3:1 vs 14.5:1).
Paulding County also operates North Paulding High School (3,015 students) and Paulding County High School (2,099 students) alongside Sam D. Panter 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 Sam D. Panter Elementary School compares
Sam D. Panter 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 | 12.3:1 | ▼ 15% | 14.4:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 52.4% | ▼ 14% | 60.7% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 506 | top 68% | - | - |
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.
506
Bigger than 62% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
52.4%
free-lunch eligible
- 14% below the Georgia average of 60.7%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.3:1
students per teacher
- 15% below state mean
Top 23% in Georgia - lower ratio than 77% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
24.5%
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
$11,640
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 506 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 15 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.0 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 50.6%
African American 25.3%
Hispanic or Latino 16.2%
Two or More 7.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Asian 0.2%
Largest group: White at 50.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 64.8/100
Simpson diversity index - at 64.8, Sam D. Panter 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 Paulding County, which includes Sam D. Panter Elementary School.
$11,640
Per student
-16%
vs Georgia
Avg $13,863
-30%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 36.7%
State 51.2%
Federal 12.1%
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 Sam D. Panter Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Paulding High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Paulding County High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| East Paulding High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| South Paulding High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Hiram High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Sam D. Panter Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 3,015
- Students per teacher
- 20:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 2,099
- Students per teacher
- 19.1:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 1,985
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
- Enrollment
- 1,881
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 1,460
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
Similar other schools in Hiram
2 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Similar other 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.
Similar enrollment (~506 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~12.3:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Sam D. Panter Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Sam D. Panter Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Paulding County'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 Sam D. Panter Elementary School
How many students attend Sam D. Panter Elementary School?
Sam D. Panter Elementary School has 506 students enrolled. It is a public school in Hiram, GA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sam D. Panter Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Sam D. Panter Elementary School is 12.3:1, which is 15% lower than the Georgia average of 14.4:1 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 Sam D. Panter Elementary School?
52.4% of students at Sam D. Panter Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Georgia average of 60.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sam D. Panter Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Sam D. Panter Elementary School is White at 50.6% of enrollment, in Hiram, GA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 64.8/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sam D. Panter Elementary School?
Sam D. Panter Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (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 Sam D. Panter Elementary School rank among schools in Hiram?
By Resource Investment Index, Sam D. Panter Elementary School ranks #2 of 3 schools in Hiram, GA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Hiram on the city page.
Is Sam D. Panter Elementary School a good school?
Sam D. Panter Elementary School earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 77% of Georgia 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 Paulding County?
Besides Sam D. Panter Elementary School, Paulding County also operates North Paulding High School (3,015 students), Paulding County High School (2,099 students), and East Paulding High School (1,985 students). See the Paulding County 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.