Enrollment
542
Kentucky · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Falmouth, KY
Southern Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Southern Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 42/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 210474001163
👥 S:T ratio 50
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 14
📋 Attendance 35
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Southern Elementary School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 79% of Kentucky schools.
- 42
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.6:1
- small classes for Kentucky
- 63.3%
- free-lunch eligible
- 542
- students enrolled
Southern Elementary School has class sizes smaller than 79% of Kentucky schools. Computed live against every Kentucky school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Pendleton County · Kentucky
NCES ID 210474001163 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
43.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.6:1
vs 15.2:1 Kentucky avg
-17% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
63.3%
vs 59.2% Kentucky avg
+7% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Southern Elementary School compares with Kentucky and U.S. medians
What stands out at Southern Elementary School
Southern Elementary School is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Falmouth, Kentucky, enrolling 542 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.6:1 puts it in the smaller third of Kentucky schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 63.3% lands close to the Kentucky typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 542 puts it in the larger third of Kentucky schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,389 scored Kentucky schools.
Against 494 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #220.
Its student body is predominantly White (94% of enrollment) (diversity index 12/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 430 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 26.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 16.6% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Pendleton County also operates Pendleton County High School (667 students) and Northern Elementary School (501 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 Kentucky and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Kentucky | Kentucky avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.6:1 | ▼ 17% | 15.2:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 63.3% | ▲ 7% | 59.2% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 542 | top 32% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.6:1
Leaner classes than 70% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
542
Bigger than 67% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
63.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 7% above the Kentucky average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.6:1
students per teacher
- 17% below state mean
Top 21% in Kentucky - lower ratio than 79% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
26.2%
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
$11,391
per pupil, district-wide
- below Kentucky avg of $13,211
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.3 FTE
Per 430 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.6 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 93.5%
Two or More 3.7%
Hispanic or Latino 1.8%
African American 0.9%
Largest group: White at 93.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 12.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 12.4, Southern Elementary School is less mixed than the Kentucky school average of 34.5.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Pendleton County, which includes Southern Elementary School.
$11,391
Per student
-14%
vs Kentucky
Avg $13,211
-31%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 24.0%
State 59.4%
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.
How Southern Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pendleton County High School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Northern Elementary School | Similar size | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Phillip Sharp Middle School | Similar size | Similar economic need | 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
- 667
- Students per teacher
- 17.6:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
- Enrollment
- 501
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 420
- Students per teacher
- 15:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Kentucky, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~542 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Southern Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Southern Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Pendleton County'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 542 students enrolled. It is a public school in Falmouth, KY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Southern Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Southern Elementary School is 12.6:1, which is 17% lower than the Kentucky average of 15.2:1 and 20% 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 Southern Elementary School?
63.3% of students at Southern Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kentucky average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Southern Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Southern Elementary School is White at 93.5% of enrollment, in Falmouth, KY.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Southern Elementary School?
Southern Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (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).
Is Southern Elementary School a good school?
Southern Elementary School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 79% of Kentucky 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 Pendleton County?
Besides Southern Elementary School, Pendleton County also operates Pendleton County High School (667 students), Northern Elementary School (501 students), and Phillip Sharp Middle School (420 students). See the Pendleton County 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.