Enrollment
522
Georgia · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Shellman, GA
Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy
Federal NCES profile for Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 38/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 130024304253Charter school
👥 S:T ratio 40
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 40
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Georgia median.
- 38
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14.9:1
- students per teacher
- 97.5%
- free-lunch eligible
- 522
- students enrolled
Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy has class sizes near the Georgia median. Computed live against every Georgia school reporting to NCES.
School address
NCES ID 130024304253 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
35.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.9:1
vs 14.4:1 Georgia avg
+3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
97.5%
vs 60.7% Georgia avg
+61% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy compares with Georgia and U.S. medians
What stands out at Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy
Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy is a high-poverty, mid-sized charter combined-grade school in Shellman, Georgia, enrolling 522 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 14.9:1 puts it in the larger third of Georgia schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 97.5% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 522 puts it in the smaller third of Georgia schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,314 scored Georgia schools.
Against 483 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #261.
Its student body is led by White (69%) and African American (21%) (diversity index 48/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 522 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 23.9% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 28.6% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
State Charter Schools Ii- Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charte is a single-school charter district, so Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy operates independently rather than alongside district-mates.
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 Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy compares
Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy on the metrics families compare, against Georgia and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Georgia | Georgia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.9:1 | ▲ 3% | 14.4:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 97.5% | ▲ 61% | 60.7% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 522 | top 66% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.9:1
Leaner classes than 48% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
522
Bigger than 64% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
97.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 61% above the Georgia average of 60.7%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.9:1
students per teacher
- 3% above state mean
Top 63% in Georgia - lower ratio than 37% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
23.9%
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
$12,863
per pupil, district-wide
- below Georgia avg of $13,863
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 522 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 27 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 5.6 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 68.8%
African American 21.3%
Two or More 5.7%
Hispanic or Latino 4.2%
Largest group: White at 68.8% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 47.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 47.6, Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy is less mixed than the Georgia school average of 50.0.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for State Charter Schools Ii- Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charte, which includes Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy.
$12,863
Per student
-7%
vs Georgia
Avg $13,863
-22%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 7.1%
State 64.3%
Federal 28.6%
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.
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Georgia, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~522 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy's federal record.
- Compare Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy against another school. Compare schools
- State Charter Schools Ii- Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charte'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 Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy
How many students attend Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy?
Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy has 522 students enrolled. It is a public school in Shellman, GA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy?
The student-teacher ratio at Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy is 14.9:1, which is 3% higher than the Georgia average of 14.4:1 and 5% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy?
97.5% of students at Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Georgia average of 60.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy?
The largest demographic group at Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy is White at 68.8% of enrollment, in Shellman, GA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy?
Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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 Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy a good school?
Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Georgia 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 State Charter Schools Ii- Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charte?
None; State Charter Schools Ii- Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charte is a single-school charter district, and Southwest Georgia S.T.E.M. Charter Academy is its only campus.
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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.