Enrollment
318
Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 421458000624
Schaeffer Sch — Lancaster, PA
Federal NCES profile for Schaeffer Sch, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 53/100.
👥 Class size 33
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 36
📋 Attendance 74
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: Manheim Township Sd · Pennsylvania
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)
20.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.7:1
vs 13.5:1 Pennsylvania avg
+24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
43.5%
vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg
-25% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Schaeffer Sch compares with Pennsylvania 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
Schaeffer Sch reports 318 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 20.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 24% above the Pennsylvania state mean of 13.5:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 5% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 43.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 25% below the Pennsylvania average and 16% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 318 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 10.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Manheim Township Sd spends $19,195 per pupil district-wide, below the Pennsylvania average of $22,745 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 73.6% from local sources (property taxes), 19.8% from the state, and 6.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 53/100 (C-), 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 Schaeffer Sch compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Pennsylvania state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.7:1 | ▲ 24% | 13.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 43.5% | ▼ 25% | 58.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 318 | top 26% | — | — |
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
43.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 25% below the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
16.7:1
students per teacher
— 24% above state mean
Top 91% in Pennsylvania — lower ratio than 9% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
10.4%
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
$19,195
per pupil, district-wide
— below Pennsylvania avg of $22,745
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 318 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 8 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 318 Top 26% in Pennsylvania — larger than 74% of 2,930 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 20.0
Students per teacher 16.7:1 +24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 43.5% -25% vs state
NCES ID 421458000624
Student demographics
White 61.0%
Hispanic or Latino 16.0%
Two or More 10.1%
African American 7.9%
Asian 5.0%
Largest group: White at 61.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 318:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 10.4%
In-school suspensions 2
Out-of-school suspensions 8
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Manheim Township Sd, which includes Schaeffer Sch.
$19,195
Per student
-16%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $22,745
-2%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 73.6%
State 19.8%
Federal 6.6%
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
- 1,953
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Enrollment
- 929
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Enrollment
- 914
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
- Enrollment
- 488
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Enrollment
- 468
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
Similar elementary schools in Lancaster
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Landis Run Intermediate School
Standard public school
929 students 14.8:1 students per teacher
Hambright El Sch
Standard public school
574 students 14.9:1 students per teacher
Centerville El Sch
Standard public school
544 students 14.6:1 students per teacher
Fritz El Sch
Standard public school
526 students 13:1 students per teacher
Smoketown El Sch
Standard public school
470 students 12.1:1 students per teacher
Nitrauer Sch
Standard public school
468 students 17.9:1 students per teacher
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 Schaeffer Sch
How many students attend Schaeffer Sch?
Schaeffer Sch has 318 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Lancaster, PA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Schaeffer Sch?
The student-teacher ratio at Schaeffer Sch is 16.7:1, which is 24% higher than the Pennsylvania average of 13.5:1 and 5% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Schaeffer Sch?
43.5% of students at Schaeffer Sch are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Schaeffer Sch?
The largest demographic group at Schaeffer Sch is White at 61.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in Lancaster, PA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Schaeffer Sch?
Schaeffer Sch has a Resource Investment Index of 53/100 (C-) 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.