Enrollment
293
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Houston, TX
Step Charter El
Federal NCES profile for Step Charter El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 38/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 480027511245Charter school
👥 S:T ratio 31
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 41
📋 Attendance 51
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Step Charter El earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 81% of Texas schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Texas schools.
- #49 of 114
- elementary schools in Houston · Resource Index
- 38
- Resource Index · Typical
- 17.2:1
- large classes for Texas
- 100.0%
- free-lunch eligible
Step Charter El has class sizes larger than 81% of Texas schools. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Step Charter El ranks #49 of 114 elementary schools in Houston, TX.
School address
District: Step Charter School · Texas
NCES ID 480027511245 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
17.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.2:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
+17% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+62% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Step Charter El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Step Charter El
Step Charter El is a high-poverty, mid-sized charter elementary school in Houston, Texas, enrolling 293 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 17.2:1 puts it in the larger third of Texas schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need is high: 100.0% of students qualify for free meals, 62% above the Texas average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
Enrollment of 293 puts it in the smaller third of Texas schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Against 560 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #359.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (52%) and Asian (23%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 65/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 293 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 19.5% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 16.5% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Its district, Step Charter School, also runs Step Charter Ii (324 students).
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 Step Charter El compares
Step Charter El on the metrics families compare, against Texas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.2:1 | ▲ 17% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 62% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 293 | top 76% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17.2:1
Leaner classes than 29% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
293
Bigger than 31% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
100.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 62% above the Texas average of 61.9%
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
17.2:1
students per teacher
- 17% above state mean
Top 81% in Texas - lower ratio than 19% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
19.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$13,106
per pupil, district-wide
- below Texas avg of $13,644
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 293 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 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
Hispanic or Latino 51.5%
Asian 22.5%
African American 18.8%
White 4.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.7%
Two or More 1.4%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 51.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 64.7/100
Simpson diversity index - at 64.7, Step Charter El is more mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Step Charter School, which includes Step Charter El.
$13,106
Per student
-4%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-21%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 0.3%
State 83.2%
Federal 16.5%
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 Step Charter El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Step Charter Ii | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Step Charter El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 324
- Students per teacher
- 19.1:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Texas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~293 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~17.2:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Step Charter El's federal record.
- Compare Step Charter El against another school. Compare schools
- Step Charter School'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 Step Charter El
How many students attend Step Charter El?
Step Charter El has 293 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Houston, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Step Charter El?
The student-teacher ratio at Step Charter El is 17.2:1, which is 17% higher than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 10% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Step Charter El?
100.0% of students at Step Charter El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Step Charter El?
The largest demographic group at Step Charter El is Hispanic or Latino at 51.5% of enrollment, in Houston, TX. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 64.7/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Step Charter El?
Step Charter El 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).
How does Step Charter El rank among elementary schools in Houston?
By Resource Investment Index, Step Charter El ranks #49 of 114 elementary schools in Houston, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Houston on the city page.
Is Step Charter El a good school?
Step Charter El earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 81% of Texas schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Texas 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 Step Charter School?
Besides Step Charter El, Step Charter School also operates Step Charter Ii (324 students). See the Step Charter School 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.