Enrollment
170
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Sunbury, NC
T S Cooper Elementary
Federal NCES profile for T S Cooper Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 61/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 370168000723
👥 S:T ratio 55
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 66
📋 Attendance 53
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
T S Cooper Elementary earns 61/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 90% of North Carolina schools.
- 61
- Resource Index · Higher
- 11.3:1
- small classes for North Carolina
- 54.6%
- free-lunch eligible
- 170
- students enrolled
T S Cooper Elementary has class sizes smaller than 90% of North Carolina schools. Computed live against every North Carolina school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Gates County Schools · North Carolina
NCES ID 370168000723 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
15.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.3:1
vs 15.8:1 North Carolina avg
-28% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
54.6%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
-17% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How T S Cooper Elementary compares with North Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at T S Cooper Elementary
T S Cooper Elementary is a higher-need, small elementary school in Sunbury, North Carolina, enrolling 170 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 11.3:1, T S Cooper Elementary is leaner than roughly 90% of North Carolina schools and 28% under the state's 15.8:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 54.6% lands close to the North Carolina typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
This is a small campus: fewer students than 91% of North Carolina schools, with 170 enrolled.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 97% of the 2,698 North Carolina schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Among 92 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need North Carolina schools statewide, it ranks #10, a top-tier result once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by White (62%) and African American (25%) (diversity index 54/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 170 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 18.8% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
The surrounding Gates County Schools spends $16,417 per pupil, 37% above the North Carolina average, a better-resourced district than most.
Its district draws 17.8% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Gates County Schools also operates Gates County Senior High (432 students) and Central Middle School (336 students) alongside T S Cooper Elementary.
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 T S Cooper Elementary compares
T S Cooper Elementary on the metrics families compare, against North Carolina and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.3:1 | ▼ 28% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 54.6% | ▼ 17% | 66.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 170 | top 91% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.3:1
Leaner classes than 81% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
170
Bigger than 17% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
54.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 17% below the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
11.3:1
students per teacher
- 28% below state mean
Top 10% in North Carolina - lower ratio than 90% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
18.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$16,417
per pupil, district-wide
- above North Carolina avg of $12,017
Close to the U.S. public-school average per-pupil spend.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 170 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
13
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 7.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.0 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
White 62.4%
African American 25.3%
Two or More 6.5%
Hispanic or Latino 5.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.6%
Largest group: White at 62.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 54.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 54.0, T S Cooper Elementary is less mixed than the North Carolina school average of 56.1.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Gates County Schools, which includes T S Cooper Elementary.
$16,417
Per student
+37%
vs North Carolina
Avg $12,017
-1%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 17.1%
State 65.1%
Federal 17.8%
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 T S Cooper Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gates County Senior High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Central Middle School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Gatesville Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Buckland Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to T S Cooper Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 432
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Resource Index
- 48/100
- Enrollment
- 336
- Students per teacher
- 12.9:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 252
- Students per teacher
- 12:1
- Resource Index
- 55/100
- Enrollment
- 220
- Students per teacher
- 11.6:1
- Resource Index
- 58/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of North Carolina, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~170 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11.3:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on T S Cooper Elementary's federal record.
- Compare T S Cooper Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Gates County Schools'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 T S Cooper Elementary
How many students attend T S Cooper Elementary?
T S Cooper Elementary has 170 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Sunbury, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at T S Cooper Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at T S Cooper Elementary is 11.3:1, which is 28% lower than the North Carolina average of 15.8:1 and 28% 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 T S Cooper Elementary?
54.6% of students at T S Cooper Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of T S Cooper Elementary?
The largest demographic group at T S Cooper Elementary is White at 62.4% of enrollment, in Sunbury, NC. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 54.0/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for T S Cooper Elementary?
T S Cooper Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 61/100 (higher 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 T S Cooper Elementary a good school?
T S Cooper Elementary earns 61/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 90% of North Carolina 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 Gates County Schools?
Besides T S Cooper Elementary, Gates County Schools also operates Gates County Senior High (432 students), Central Middle School (336 students), and Gatesville Elementary (252 students). See the Gates County Schools 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.