Enrollment
720
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 482241002250
Sour Lake El — Sour Lake, TX
Federal NCES profile for Sour Lake El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 50/100.
👥 Class size 35
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 45
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: Hardin-Jefferson Isd · Texas
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)
47.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.3:1
vs 14.6:1 Texas avg
+12% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
37.5%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
-39% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sour Lake El compares with Texas 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
Sour Lake El reports 720 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 47.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 12% above the Texas state mean of 14.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 3% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 37.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 39% below the Texas average and 28% below the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 21.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Hardin-Jefferson Isd spends $20,100 per pupil district-wide, above the Texas average of $17,150 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 39.4% from local sources (property taxes), 34.5% from the state, and 26.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (C-), calculated from 3 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 Sour Lake El compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Texas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.3:1 | ▲ 12% | 14.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 37.5% | ▼ 39% | 61.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 720 | top 75% | — | — |
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
37.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 39% below the Texas average of 61.9%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
16.3:1
students per teacher
— 12% above state mean
Top 76% in Texas — lower ratio than 24% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
21.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$20,100
per pupil, district-wide
— above Texas avg of $17,150
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
12
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
Overview
Enrollment 720 Top 75% in Texas — larger than 25% of 9,061 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 47.0
Students per teacher 16.3:1 +12% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 37.5% -39% vs state
NCES ID 482241002250
Student demographics
White 80.6%
Hispanic or Latino 9.2%
African American 5.0%
Two or More 5.0%
Asian 0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: White at 80.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 21.8%
In-school suspensions 12
Out-of-school suspensions 3
Expulsions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Hardin-Jefferson Isd, which includes Sour Lake El.
$20,100
Per student
+17%
vs Texas
Avg $17,150
+3%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 39.4%
State 34.5%
Federal 26.1%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 782
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Enrollment
- 656
- Students per teacher
- 17.6:1
- Enrollment
- 600
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Enrollment
- 3
- Students per teacher
- 6:1
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 Sour Lake El
How many students attend Sour Lake El?
Sour Lake El has 720 students enrolled. It is a other school in SOUR LAKE, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sour Lake El?
The student-teacher ratio at Sour Lake El is 16.3:1, which is 12% higher than the Texas average of 14.6:1 and 3% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Sour Lake El?
37.5% of students at Sour Lake El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sour Lake El?
The largest demographic group at Sour Lake El is White at 80.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in SOUR LAKE, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sour Lake El?
Sour Lake El has a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (C-) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.