Enrollment
263
Missouri · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Sparta, MO
Sparta Elem.
Federal NCES profile for Sparta Elem., including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 45/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 292874001775
👥 S:T ratio 52
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 47
📋 Attendance 50
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Sparta Elem. earns 45/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Missouri median.
- #1 of 3
- public schools in Sparta · Resource Index
- 45
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12:1
- students per teacher
- 40.6%
- free-lunch eligible
Sparta Elem. has class sizes near the Missouri median. Computed live against every Missouri school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Sparta Elem. ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Sparta, MO.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
22.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12:1
vs 12.8:1 Missouri avg
-6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
40.6%
vs 46.1% Missouri avg
-12% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sparta Elem. compares with Missouri and U.S. medians
What stands out at Sparta Elem.
Sparta Elem. is a mid-sized elementary school in Sparta, Missouri, enrolling 263 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12:1 puts it in the smaller third of Missouri schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 40.6% lands close to the Missouri typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 263 students, its enrollment sits close to the Missouri median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,313 scored Missouri schools.
Against 439 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #302.
Its student body is predominantly White (97% of enrollment) (diversity index 7/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 263 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 20.2% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
The surrounding Sparta R-Iii spends $9,064 per pupil, 30% below the Missouri average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
Its district draws 19.2% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Sparta R-Iii also operates Sparta High (227 students) and Sparta Middle (187 students) alongside Sparta Elem..
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 Sparta Elem. compares
Sparta Elem. on the metrics families compare, against Missouri and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Missouri | Missouri avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12:1 | ▼ 6% | 12.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 40.6% | ▼ 12% | 46.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 263 | top 59% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12:1
Leaner classes than 75% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
263
Bigger than 27% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
40.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 12% below the Missouri average of 46.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12:1
students per teacher
- 6% below state mean
Top 40% in Missouri - lower ratio than 60% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
20.2%
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
$9,064
per pupil, district-wide
- below Missouri avg of $12,931
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 263 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.1 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 96.6%
Two or More 2.3%
African American 0.4%
Hispanic or Latino 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
Largest group: White at 96.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 6.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 6.6, Sparta Elem. is less mixed than the Missouri school average of 31.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Sparta R-Iii, which includes Sparta Elem..
$9,064
Per student
-30%
vs Missouri
Avg $12,931
-45%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 37.2%
State 43.6%
Federal 19.2%
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 Sparta Elem. Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sparta High | Similar size | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Sparta Middle | Smaller | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Sparta Prek Center | Smaller | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Sparta Elem.'s own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 227
- Students per teacher
- 14.2:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 187
- Students per teacher
- 13.4:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 57
- Students per teacher
- 28.5:1
- Resource Index
- 15/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Missouri, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~263 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~12:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Sparta Elem.'s federal record.
- Compare Sparta Elem. against another school. Compare schools
- Sparta R-Iii'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 Sparta Elem.
How many students attend Sparta Elem.?
Sparta Elem. has 263 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Sparta, MO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sparta Elem.?
The student-teacher ratio at Sparta Elem. is 12:1, which is 6% lower than the Missouri average of 12.8:1 and 24% 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 Sparta Elem.?
40.6% of students at Sparta Elem. are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Missouri average of 46.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sparta Elem.?
The largest demographic group at Sparta Elem. is White at 96.6% of enrollment, in Sparta, MO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sparta Elem.?
Sparta Elem. has a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (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).
How does Sparta Elem. rank among public schools in Sparta?
By Resource Investment Index, Sparta Elem. ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Sparta, MO. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Sparta on the city page.
Is Sparta Elem. a good school?
Sparta Elem. earns 45/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Missouri 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 Sparta R-Iii?
Besides Sparta Elem., Sparta R-Iii also operates Sparta High (227 students), Sparta Middle (187 students), and Sparta Prek Center (57 students). See the Sparta R-Iii 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.