Enrollment
400
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Plano, TX
Shepard El
Federal NCES profile for Shepard El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 51/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 483510003971
👥 S:T ratio 53
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 20
📋 Attendance 63
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Shepard El earns 51/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 78% of Texas schools.
- #14 of 29
- elementary schools in Plano · Resource Index
- 51
- Resource Index · Higher
- 11.8:1
- small classes for Texas
- 19.0%
- free-lunch eligible
Shepard El has class sizes smaller than 78% of Texas schools. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Shepard El ranks #14 of 29 elementary schools in Plano, TX.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
34.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.8:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
-20% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
19.0%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
-69% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Shepard El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Shepard El
Shepard El is a lower-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Plano, Texas, enrolling 400 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11.8:1 puts it in the smaller third of Texas schools by student-teacher ratio.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 19.0% free-meal eligibility runs 69% below the Texas average.
With 400 students, its enrollment sits close to the Texas median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Against 395 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #148.
Its student body is led by White (57%) and Hispanic or Latino (17%) (diversity index 62/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 400 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
14.8% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
Plano Isd also operates Plano East Sr H S (3,033 students) and Plano West Senior H S (2,559 students) alongside Shepard 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 Shepard El compares
Shepard 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 | 11.8:1 | ▼ 20% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 19.0% | ▼ 69% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 400 | top 64% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.8:1
Leaner classes than 77% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
400
Bigger than 47% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
19.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 69% below the Texas average of 61.9%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
11.8:1
students per teacher
- 20% below state mean
Top 22% in Texas - lower ratio than 78% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
14.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$11,203
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 400 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.8 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 56.8%
Hispanic or Latino 17.0%
Asian 13.3%
Two or More 8.5%
African American 4.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: White at 56.8% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 62.2/100
Simpson diversity index - at 62.2, Shepard El is more mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Plano Isd, which includes Shepard El.
$11,203
Per student
-18%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-32%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 80.7%
State 7.3%
Federal 12.0%
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 Shepard El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plano East Sr H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Plano West Senior H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Plano Sr H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Shepton H S | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Jasper H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Shepard El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 3,033
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
- Enrollment
- 2,559
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 2,267
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 1,360
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 1,301
- Students per teacher
- 17.6:1
- Resource Index
- 54/100
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 (~400 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11.8:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Shepard El's federal record.
- Compare Shepard El against another school. Compare schools
- Plano 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 Shepard El
How many students attend Shepard El?
Shepard El has 400 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Plano, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Shepard El?
The student-teacher ratio at Shepard El is 11.8:1, which is 20% lower than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 25% 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 Shepard El?
19.0% of students at Shepard El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Shepard El?
The largest demographic group at Shepard El is White at 56.8% of enrollment, in Plano, TX. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 62.2/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Shepard El?
Shepard El has a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (higher 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 Shepard El rank among elementary schools in Plano?
By Resource Investment Index, Shepard El ranks #14 of 29 elementary schools in Plano, 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 Plano on the city page.
Is Shepard El a good school?
Shepard El earns 51/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 78% of Texas 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 Plano Isd?
Besides Shepard El, Plano Isd also operates Plano East Sr H S (3,033 students), Plano West Senior H S (2,559 students), and Plano Sr H S (2,267 students). See the Plano 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.