Enrollment
774
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 370472003519
South Lakes Elementary — Fuquay-Varina, NC
Federal NCES profile for South Lakes Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 40/100.
👥 Class size 40
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 51
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: Wake County Schools · North Carolina
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)
54.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.1:1
vs 16.4:1 North Carolina avg
-8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
19.4%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
-71% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How South Lakes Elementary compares with North Carolina 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
South Lakes Elementary reports 774 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 54.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 8% below the North Carolina state mean of 16.4:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 5% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 19.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 71% below the North Carolina average and 63% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 774 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 19.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Wake County Schools spends $14,074 per pupil district-wide, above the North Carolina average of $13,042 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 28.9% from local sources (property taxes), 54.5% from the state, and 16.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (D), 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 South Lakes Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against North Carolina state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.1:1 | ▼ 8% | 16.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 19.4% | ▼ 71% | 66.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 774 | top 81% | — | — |
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
19.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 71% below the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15.1:1
students per teacher
— 8% below state mean
Top 51% in North Carolina — lower ratio than 49% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
19.6%
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
$14,074
per pupil, district-wide
— above North Carolina avg of $13,042
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 774 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
27
in-school suspensions + 14 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 5.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 774 Top 81% in North Carolina — larger than 19% of 2,703 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 54.0
Students per teacher 15.1:1 -8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 19.4% -71% vs state
NCES ID 370472003519
Student demographics
White 49.0%
Asian 19.8%
African American 14.1%
Hispanic or Latino 12.4%
Two or More 3.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: White at 49.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 774:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 19.6%
In-school suspensions 27
Out-of-school suspensions 14
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Wake County Schools, which includes South Lakes Elementary.
$14,074
Per student
+8%
vs North Carolina
Avg $13,042
-28%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 28.9%
State 54.5%
Federal 16.6%
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
- 2,748
- Students per teacher
- 21:1
- Enrollment
- 2,643
- Students per teacher
- 17.5:1
- Enrollment
- 2,609
- Students per teacher
- 20.6:1
- Enrollment
- 2,498
- Students per teacher
- 19.1:1
- Enrollment
- 2,449
- Students per teacher
- 19.7:1
Similar other schools in Fuquay-Varina
3 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
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 South Lakes Elementary
How many students attend South Lakes Elementary?
South Lakes Elementary has 774 students enrolled. It is a other school in Fuquay-Varina, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at South Lakes Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at South Lakes Elementary is 15.1:1, which is 8% lower than the North Carolina average of 16.4:1 and 5% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at South Lakes Elementary?
19.4% of students at South Lakes Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of South Lakes Elementary?
The largest demographic group at South Lakes Elementary is White at 49.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in Fuquay-Varina, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for South Lakes Elementary?
South Lakes Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (D) 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.