Enrollment
729
Delaware · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · New Castle, DE
Southern Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Southern Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 27/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 100023000118
👥 S:T ratio 53
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 27
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Southern Elementary School earns 27/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 74% of Delaware schools.
- #5 of 8
- elementary schools in New Castle · Resource Index
- 27
- Resource Index · Lower
- 11.8:1
- small classes for Delaware
- 729
- students enrolled
Southern Elementary School has class sizes smaller than 74% of Delaware schools. Computed live against every Delaware school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Southern Elementary School ranks #5 of 8 elementary schools in New Castle, DE.
School address
District: Colonial School District · Delaware
NCES ID 100023000118 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
62.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.8:1
vs 13.9:1 Delaware avg
-15% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Southern Elementary School compares with Delaware and U.S. medians
What stands out at Southern Elementary School
Southern Elementary School is a mid-sized elementary school in New Castle, Delaware, enrolling 729 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11.8:1 puts it in the smaller third of Delaware schools by student-teacher ratio.
Enrollment of 729 puts it in the larger third of Delaware schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index trails 92% of the 222 Delaware schools with a score on record, one of the lower results on this measure.
Its student body is led by African American (50%) and White (34%) (diversity index 62/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 365 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 43.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Among New Castle's elementary schools, it stands alongside Charter School of New Castle (788 students): Southern Elementary School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (11.8:1 vs 18.8:1).
Colonial School District also operates Penn (William) High School (2,069 students) and Wilbur (Kathleen H.) Elementary (1,052 students) alongside Southern Elementary School.
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 Southern Elementary School compares
Southern Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Delaware and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Delaware | Delaware avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.8:1 | ▼ 15% | 13.9:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 729 | top 29% | - | - |
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.
729
Bigger than 82% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
11.8:1
students per teacher
- 15% below state mean
Top 26% in Delaware - lower ratio than 74% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
43.3%
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
$19,934
per pupil, district-wide
- above Delaware avg of $16,990
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 365 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
31
in-school suspensions + 49 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 11.0 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
African American 49.7%
White 34.4%
Hispanic or Latino 9.3%
Two or More 4.0%
Asian 2.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: African American at 49.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 62.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 62.4, Southern Elementary School is about as mixed as the Delaware school average of 61.3.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Colonial School District, which includes Southern Elementary School.
$19,934
Per student
+17%
vs Delaware
Avg $16,990
+20%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 35.1%
State 53.5%
Federal 11.4%
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 Southern Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Penn (William) High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Wilbur (Kathleen H.) Elementary | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Bedford (Gunning) Middle School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Read (George) Middle School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Mccullough (Calvin R. ) Middle School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Southern Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,069
- Students per teacher
- 16.7:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 1,052
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Resource Index
- 22/100
- Enrollment
- 846
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Resource Index
- 21/100
- Enrollment
- 662
- Students per teacher
- 13:1
- Resource Index
- 28/100
- Enrollment
- 615
- Students per teacher
- 14.6:1
- Resource Index
- 28/100
Similar elementary schools in New Castle
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Charter School of New Castle
Standard public school
788 students 18.8:1 students per teacher
Castle Hills Elementary School
Standard public school
462 students 11.6:1 students per teacher
Eisenberg (Harry O.) Elementary School
Standard public school
436 students 12.8:1 students per teacher
Pleasantville Elementary School
Standard public school
389 students 12.2:1 students per teacher
New Castle Elementary School
Standard public school
383 students 11.6:1 students per teacher
Downie (Carrie) Elementary School
Standard public school
324 students 13:1 students per teacher
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Delaware, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~729 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Southern Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Southern Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Colonial School District'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 Southern Elementary School
How many students attend Southern Elementary School?
Southern Elementary School has 729 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in New Castle, DE.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Southern Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Southern Elementary School is 11.8:1, which is 15% lower than the Delaware average of 13.9:1 and 25% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Southern Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Southern Elementary School is African American at 49.7% of enrollment, in New Castle, DE. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 62.4/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Southern Elementary School?
Southern Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 27/100 (lower 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 Southern Elementary School rank among elementary schools in New Castle?
By Resource Investment Index, Southern Elementary School ranks #5 of 8 elementary schools in New Castle, DE. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in New Castle on the city page.
Is Southern Elementary School a good school?
Southern Elementary School earns 27/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 74% of Delaware 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 Colonial School District?
Besides Southern Elementary School, Colonial School District also operates Penn (William) High School (2,069 students), Wilbur (Kathleen H.) Elementary (1,052 students), and Bedford (Gunning) Middle School (846 students). See the Colonial School District 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.