Enrollment
585
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Houston, TX
Sheldon El
Federal NCES profile for Sheldon El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 39/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 483999010799
👥 S:T ratio 40
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 48
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Sheldon El earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median.
- #42 of 114
- elementary schools in Houston · Resource Index
- 39
- Resource Index · Typical
- 15:1
- students per teacher
- 78.3%
- free-lunch eligible
Sheldon El has class sizes near the Texas median. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Sheldon El ranks #42 of 114 elementary schools in Houston, TX.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
39.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
+2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
78.3%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+26% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sheldon El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Sheldon El
Sheldon El is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Houston, Texas, enrolling 585 students.
At 15:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Texas median, within a few percentage points of the 14.7:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 78.3% of students eligible for free meals.
With 585 students, its enrollment sits close to the Texas median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Against 2,228 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #1,120.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (73%) and African American (17%) (diversity index 43/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 585 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 20.9% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Sheldon Isd also operates C E King H S (3,716 students) and C E King Middle (1,359 students) alongside Sheldon El.
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 Sheldon El compares
Sheldon El on the metrics families compare, against Texas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15:1 | ▲ 2% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 78.3% | ▲ 26% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 585 | top 39% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
15:1
Leaner classes than 47% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
585
Bigger than 71% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
78.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 26% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15:1
students per teacher
- 2% above state mean
Top 59% in Texas - lower ratio than 41% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
20.9%
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
$12,093
per pupil, district-wide
- below Texas avg of $13,644
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 585 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.5 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
Hispanic or Latino 73.2%
African American 17.3%
White 7.4%
Two or More 1.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 73.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 42.8/100
Simpson diversity index - at 42.8, Sheldon El is about as mixed as the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Sheldon Isd, which includes Sheldon El.
$12,093
Per student
-11%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-27%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 53.1%
State 33.9%
Federal 13.0%
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 Sheldon El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| C E King H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| C E King Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Michael R Null Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| L E Monahan El | Similar size | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Sheldon Lake El | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Sheldon El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 3,716
- Students per teacher
- 19:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 1,359
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 1,050
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 635
- Students per teacher
- 15.5:1
- Resource Index
- 35/100
- Enrollment
- 622
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Texas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~585 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~15:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Sheldon El's federal record.
- Compare Sheldon El against another school. Compare schools
- Sheldon Isd'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 Sheldon El
How many students attend Sheldon El?
Sheldon El has 585 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Houston, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sheldon El?
The student-teacher ratio at Sheldon El is 15:1, which is 2% higher than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 4% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Sheldon El?
78.3% of students at Sheldon El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sheldon El?
The largest demographic group at Sheldon El is Hispanic or Latino at 73.2% of enrollment, in Houston, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sheldon El?
Sheldon El has a Resource Investment Index of 39/100 (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 Sheldon El rank among elementary schools in Houston?
By Resource Investment Index, Sheldon El ranks #42 of 114 elementary schools in Houston, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Houston on the city page.
Is Sheldon El a good school?
Sheldon El earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas 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 Sheldon Isd?
Besides Sheldon El, Sheldon Isd also operates C E King H S (3,716 students), C E King Middle (1,359 students), and Michael R Null Middle (1,050 students). See the Sheldon Isd 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.