Enrollment
274
Illinois · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Northfield, IL
Sunset Ridge Elem School
Federal NCES profile for Sunset Ridge Elem School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 60/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 173840003918
👥 S:T ratio 66
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 84
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Sunset Ridge Elem School earns 60/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 96% of Illinois schools.
- #1 of 3
- public schools in Northfield · Resource Index
- 60
- Resource Index · Higher
- 8.6:1
- small classes for Illinois
- 274
- students enrolled
Sunset Ridge Elem School has class sizes smaller than 96% of Illinois schools. Computed live against every Illinois school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Sunset Ridge Elem School ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Northfield, IL.
School address
District: Sunset Ridge Sd 29 · Illinois
NCES ID 173840003918 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
32.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
8.6:1
vs 14:1 Illinois avg
-39% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sunset Ridge Elem School compares with Illinois and U.S. medians
What stands out at Sunset Ridge Elem School
Sunset Ridge Elem School is a mid-sized elementary school in Northfield, Illinois, enrolling 274 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 8.6:1, Sunset Ridge Elem School is leaner than roughly 96% of Illinois schools and 39% under the state's 14:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Enrollment of 274 puts it in the smaller third of Illinois schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 94% of the 3,845 Illinois schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Its student body is led by White (77%) and Two or More (8%) (diversity index 39/100).
Attendance holds up well here: only 6.6% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
The surrounding Sunset Ridge Sd 29 spends $33,358 per pupil, 96% above the Illinois average, a better-resourced district than most.
Among Northfield's elementary schools, it stands alongside Middlefork Primary School (241 students): Sunset Ridge Elem School is larger than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (8.6:1 vs 11:1).
Its district, Sunset Ridge Sd 29, also runs Middlefork Primary School (241 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 Sunset Ridge Elem School compares
Sunset Ridge Elem School on the metrics families compare, against Illinois and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Illinois | Illinois avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 8.6:1 | ▼ 39% | 14:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 274 | top 69% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
8.6:1
Leaner classes than 94% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
274
Bigger than 29% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
8.6:1
students per teacher
- 39% below state mean
Top 4% in Illinois - lower ratio than 96% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
6.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$33,358
per pupil, district-wide
- above Illinois avg of $17,042
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
6
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.6 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 77.0%
Two or More 8.4%
Asian 8.0%
Hispanic or Latino 5.1%
African American 1.5%
Largest group: White at 77.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 39.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 39.1, Sunset Ridge Elem School is about as mixed as the Illinois school average of 38.9.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Sunset Ridge Sd 29, which includes Sunset Ridge Elem School.
$33,358
Per student
+96%
vs Illinois
Avg $17,042
+101%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 77.2%
State 19.7%
Federal 3.0%
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 Sunset Ridge Elem School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Middlefork Primary School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Sunset Ridge Elem School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 241
- Students per teacher
- 11:1
- Resource Index
- 57/100
Similar elementary schools in Northfield
1 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Illinois, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~274 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Sunset Ridge Elem School's federal record.
- Compare Sunset Ridge Elem School against another school. Compare schools
- Sunset Ridge Sd 29'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 Sunset Ridge Elem School
How many students attend Sunset Ridge Elem School?
Sunset Ridge Elem School has 274 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Northfield, IL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sunset Ridge Elem School?
The student-teacher ratio at Sunset Ridge Elem School is 8.6:1, which is 39% lower than the Illinois average of 14:1 and 45% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sunset Ridge Elem School?
The largest demographic group at Sunset Ridge Elem School is White at 77.0% of enrollment, in Northfield, IL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sunset Ridge Elem School?
Sunset Ridge Elem School has a Resource Investment Index of 60/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Sunset Ridge Elem School rank among public schools in Northfield?
By Resource Investment Index, Sunset Ridge Elem School ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Northfield, IL. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Northfield on the city page.
Is Sunset Ridge Elem School a good school?
Sunset Ridge Elem School earns 60/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 96% of Illinois 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 Sunset Ridge Sd 29?
Besides Sunset Ridge Elem School, Sunset Ridge Sd 29 also operates Middlefork Primary School (241 students). See the Sunset Ridge Sd 29 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.