Enrollment
540
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 483039006972
Thompson El — Mesquite, TX
Federal NCES profile for Thompson El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 31/100.
👥 Class size 32
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 21
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: Mesquite Isd · Texas
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
36.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.9:1
vs 14.6:1 Texas avg
+16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
82.7%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+34% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Thompson El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Thompson El reports 540 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 36.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 16% above the Texas state mean of 14.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 6% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 82.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 34% above the Texas average and 60% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 540 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 31.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Mesquite Isd spends $14,391 per pupil district-wide, below the Texas average of $17,150 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 30.4% from local sources (property taxes), 54.7% from the state, and 14.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (F), calculated from 4 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Thompson El compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Texas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.9:1 | ▲ 16% | 14.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 82.7% | ▲ 34% | 61.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 540 | top 56% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
82.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 34% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
16.9:1
students per teacher
— 16% above state mean
Top 82% in Texas — lower ratio than 18% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
31.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$14,391
per pupil, district-wide
— below Texas avg of $17,150
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 540 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
33
in-school suspensions + 21 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 540 Top 56% in Texas — larger than 44% of 9,061 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 36.0
Students per teacher 16.9:1 +16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 82.7% +34% vs state
NCES ID 483039006972
Student demographics
African American 70.7%
Hispanic or Latino 18.9%
White 5.0%
Two or More 4.4%
Asian 0.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: African American at 70.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 540:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 31.5%
In-school suspensions 33
Out-of-school suspensions 21
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mesquite Isd, which includes Thompson El.
$14,391
Per student
-16%
vs Texas
Avg $17,150
-26%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 30.4%
State 54.7%
Federal 14.9%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,757
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
- Enrollment
- 2,294
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Enrollment
- 2,099
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Enrollment
- 1,997
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Enrollment
- 1,605
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
Similar other schools in Mesquite
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
West Mesquite H S
Standard public school
1,997 students 14.7:1 students per teacher
Legacy Prep Charter Academy Mesquite West Campus
Standard public school
991 students 15.3:1 students per teacher
Rutherford El
Standard public school
803 students 16.2:1 students per teacher
Trinity Basin Preparatory Inc
Standard public school
800 students 18.7:1 students per teacher
Hanby El
Standard public school
768 students 16.1:1 students per teacher
Tisinger El
Standard public school
739 students 16.8:1 students per teacher
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Thompson El
How many students attend Thompson El?
Thompson El has 540 students enrolled. It is a other school in MESQUITE, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Thompson El?
The student-teacher ratio at Thompson El is 16.9:1, which is 16% higher than the Texas average of 14.6:1 and 6% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Thompson El?
82.7% of students at Thompson El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Thompson El?
The largest demographic group at Thompson El is African American at 70.7%. The school serves a diverse student body in MESQUITE, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Thompson El?
Thompson El has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (F) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.