Enrollment
604
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Dallas, TX
Stephen C Foster El
Federal NCES profile for Stephen C Foster El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 48/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 481623001258
👥 S:T ratio 44
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 39
📋 Attendance 41
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Stephen C Foster El earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Texas schools.
- #64 of 232
- schools in Dallas · Resource Index
- 48
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14:1
- students per teacher
- 94.8%
- free-lunch eligible
Stephen C Foster El has class sizes near the Texas median. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Stephen C Foster El ranks #64 of 232 schools in Dallas, TX.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
43.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
-5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
94.8%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+53% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Stephen C Foster El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Stephen C Foster El
Stephen C Foster El is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Dallas, Texas, enrolling 604 students.
At 14:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Texas median, within a few percentage points of the 14.7:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need is high: 94.8% of students qualify for free meals, 53% above the Texas average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
With 604 students, its enrollment sits close to the Texas median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Among 1,597 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Texas schools statewide, it ranks #136, a top-tier result once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (93% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 13/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 305 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 23.8% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 19.6% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Dallas Isd also operates Skyline H S (3,837 students) and Bryan Adams H S Leadership Academy (2,208 students) alongside Stephen C Foster El.
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 Stephen C Foster El compares
Stephen C Foster 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 | 14:1 | ▼ 5% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 94.8% | ▲ 53% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 604 | top 37% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14:1
Leaner classes than 57% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
604
Bigger than 73% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
94.8%
free-lunch eligible
- 53% 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
14:1
students per teacher
- 5% below state mean
Top 47% in Texas - lower ratio than 53% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
23.8%
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
$12,650
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
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 305 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 93.2%
African American 3.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.7%
White 1.0%
Two or More 0.7%
Asian 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 93.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 13.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 13.0, Stephen C Foster El is less mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Dallas Isd, which includes Stephen C Foster El.
$12,650
Per student
-7%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-24%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 72.4%
State 8.0%
Federal 19.6%
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 Stephen C Foster El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skyline H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Bryan Adams H S Leadership Academy | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| W T White H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Sunset H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Moises E Molina H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Stephen C Foster El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 3,837
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Resource Index
- 48/100
- Enrollment
- 2,208
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 2,204
- Students per teacher
- 16.7:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 2,164
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
- Enrollment
- 2,006
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
Similar other 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 (~604 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~14:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Stephen C Foster El's federal record.
- Compare Stephen C Foster El against another school. Compare schools
- Dallas Isd'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 Stephen C Foster El
How many students attend Stephen C Foster El?
Stephen C Foster El has 604 students enrolled. It is a public school in Dallas, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Stephen C Foster El?
The student-teacher ratio at Stephen C Foster El is 14:1, which is 5% lower than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 11% 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 Stephen C Foster El?
94.8% of students at Stephen C Foster El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Stephen C Foster El?
The largest demographic group at Stephen C Foster El is Hispanic or Latino at 93.2% of enrollment, in Dallas, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Stephen C Foster El?
Stephen C Foster El has a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (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 Stephen C Foster El rank among schools in Dallas?
By Resource Investment Index, Stephen C Foster El ranks #64 of 232 schools in Dallas, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Dallas on the city page.
Is Stephen C Foster El a good school?
Stephen C Foster El earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median. It is also less 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 Dallas Isd?
Besides Stephen C Foster El, Dallas Isd also operates Skyline H S (3,837 students), Bryan Adams H S Leadership Academy (2,208 students), and W T White H S (2,204 students). See the Dallas Isd 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.