Other / mixed grade configuration · Phoenix, AZ

Southwest Elementary School

Federal NCES profile for Southwest Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 19/100.

2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 040708001325
0/100100/10019/100
👥 S:T ratio
41
🌟 Gifted program
30
🎓 Counselors
5
📋 Attendance
0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Southwest Elementary School earns 19/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Arizona median.

#150 of 179
schools in Phoenix · Resource Index
19
Resource Index · Lower
14.8:1
students per teacher
77.9%
free-lunch eligible

Southwest Elementary School has class sizes near the Arizona median. Computed live against every Arizona school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Southwest Elementary School ranks #150 of 179 schools in Phoenix, AZ.

Enrollment

475

Arizona · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

32.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

14.8:1

vs 17:1 Arizona avg

-13% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

77.9%

vs 48.3% Arizona avg

+61% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Southwest Elementary School compares with Arizona and U.S. medians

Smaller classes than state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Southwest Elementary School

Southwest Elementary School is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Phoenix, Arizona, enrolling 475 students.

Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 14.8:1 puts it in the smaller third of Arizona schools by student-teacher ratio.

Economic need is high: 77.9% of students qualify for free meals, 61% above the Arizona average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.

With 475 students, its enrollment sits close to the Arizona median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,064 scored Arizona schools.

Among 264 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Arizona schools statewide, it ranks #213, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (84% of enrollment) (diversity index 28/100).

Counselor access is stretched at roughly 475 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 44.8% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Its district draws 29.3% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Among Phoenix's public schools, it stands alongside Pan-American Charter School (1,221 students): Southwest Elementary School is smaller than that campus by headcount.

Roosevelt Elementary District (4279) also operates Valley View School (577 students) and Sunland Elementary School (573 students) alongside Southwest 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 Southwest Elementary School compares

Southwest Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Arizona and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Arizona Arizona avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 14.8:1 ▼ 13% 17:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 77.9% ▲ 61% 48.3% 51.7%
Enrollment 475 top 42% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

14.8:1
Leaner classes than 49% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
475
Bigger than 58% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
77.9%
free-lunch eligible - 61% above the Arizona average of 48.3%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.8:1
students per teacher - 13% below state mean
Top 34% in Arizona - lower ratio than 66% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
44.8%
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
$13,151
per pupil, district-wide - above Arizona avg of $13,145
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 475 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 10 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.3 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

Hispanic or Latino 84.4%
African American 6.3%
White 4.4%
Two or More 2.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.1%
Asian 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 84.4% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 28.1/100

Simpson diversity index - at 28.1, Southwest Elementary School is less mixed than the Arizona school average of 47.2.

Programs

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Roosevelt Elementary District (4279), which includes Southwest Elementary School.

$13,151
Per student
+0%
vs Arizona
Avg $13,145
-21%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 39.7%
State 31.1%
Federal 29.3%

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 Southwest Elementary School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Valley View School Similar size Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Sunland Elementary School Similar size Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Ed & Verma Pastor Elementary School Similar size Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Irene Lopez School Similar size Higher economic need Higher S:T ratio
C O Greenfield School Similar size Higher economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Southwest Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Roosevelt Elementary District (4279) · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar other schools in Phoenix

6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.

Similar other schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Arizona, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Southwest Elementary School's federal record.

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 Southwest Elementary School

How many students attend Southwest Elementary School?

Southwest Elementary School has 475 students enrolled. It is a public school in Phoenix, AZ.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Southwest Elementary School?

The student-teacher ratio at Southwest Elementary School is 14.8:1, which is 13% lower than the Arizona average of 17:1 and 6% 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 Southwest Elementary School?

77.9% of students at Southwest Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arizona average of 48.3%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Southwest Elementary School?

The largest demographic group at Southwest Elementary School is Hispanic or Latino at 84.4% of enrollment, in Phoenix, AZ.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Southwest Elementary School?

Southwest Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 19/100 (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 Southwest Elementary School rank among schools in Phoenix?

By Resource Investment Index, Southwest Elementary School ranks #150 of 179 schools in Phoenix, AZ. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Phoenix on the city page.

Is Southwest Elementary School a good school?

Southwest Elementary School earns 19/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Arizona median. 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 Roosevelt Elementary District (4279)?

Besides Southwest Elementary School, Roosevelt Elementary District (4279) also operates Valley View School (577 students), Sunland Elementary School (573 students), and Ed & Verma Pastor Elementary School (485 students). See the Roosevelt Elementary District (4279) district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.