Enrollment
370
Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 080435000627
Tope Elementary School — Grand Junction, CO
Federal NCES profile for Tope Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 34/100.
👥 Class size 14
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 53
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: Mesa County Valley School District No. 51 · Colorado
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)
17.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
21.5:1
vs 16.9:1 Colorado avg
+27% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
34.0%
vs 38.5% Colorado avg
-12% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Tope Elementary School compares with Colorado 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
Tope Elementary School reports 370 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 17.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 21.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 27% above the Colorado state mean of 16.9:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 35% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 34.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 12% below the Colorado average and 34% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 771 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 18.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Mesa County Valley School District No. 51 spends $13,239 per pupil district-wide, below the Colorado average of $20,949 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 38.9% from local sources (property taxes), 46.3% from the state, and 14.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (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 Tope Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Colorado state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Colorado | Colorado avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 21.5:1 | ▲ 27% | 16.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 34.0% | ▼ 12% | 38.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 370 | top 52% | — | — |
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
34.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 12% below the Colorado average of 38.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
21.5:1
students per teacher
— 27% above state mean
Top 93% in Colorado — lower ratio than 7% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
18.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$13,239
per pupil, district-wide
— below Colorado avg of $20,949
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.5 FTE
Per 771 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
14
in-school suspensions + 10 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 370 Top 52% in Colorado — larger than 48% of 1,923 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 17.0
Students per teacher 21.5:1 +27% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 34.0% -12% vs state
NCES ID 080435000627
Student demographics
White 68.1%
Hispanic or Latino 24.6%
Two or More 5.7%
African American 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.5%
Asian 0.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: White at 68.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.5
Students per counselor 771:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 18.6%
In-school suspensions 14
Out-of-school suspensions 10
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mesa County Valley School District No. 51, which includes Tope Elementary School.
$13,239
Per student
-37%
vs Colorado
Avg $20,949
-32%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 38.9%
State 46.3%
Federal 14.7%
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
- 1,832
- Students per teacher
- 19:1
- Enrollment
- 1,427
- Students per teacher
- 19.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,352
- Students per teacher
- 19.4:1
- Enrollment
- 1,073
- Students per teacher
- 19.7:1
- Enrollment
- 704
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
Similar other schools in Grand Junction
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Caprock Academy
Standard public school
871 students 14.5:1 students per teacher
Independence Academy
Standard public school
491 students 17.3:1 students per teacher
Grand River Academy
Standard public school
461 students 16.4:1 students per teacher
Appleton Elementary School
Standard public school
439 students 18.1:1 students per teacher
Thunder Mountain Elementary School
Standard public school
432 students 15.8:1 students per teacher
Pear Park Elementary School
Standard public school
428 students 15.2:1 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 Tope Elementary School
How many students attend Tope Elementary School?
Tope Elementary School has 370 students enrolled. It is a other school in GRAND JUNCTION, CO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Tope Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Tope Elementary School is 21.5:1, which is 27% higher than the Colorado average of 16.9:1 and 35% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Tope Elementary School?
34.0% of students at Tope Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Tope Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Tope Elementary School is White at 68.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in GRAND JUNCTION, CO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Tope Elementary School?
Tope Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (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.