Enrollment
988
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 481500009352
Tough El — The Woodlands, TX
Federal NCES profile for Tough El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 47/100.
👥 Class size 35
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 1
📋 Attendance 84
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: Conroe 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)
64.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.2:1
vs 14.6:1 Texas avg
+11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
4.9%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
-92% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Tough 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
Tough El reports 988 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 64.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 11% 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 2% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 4.9% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 92% below the Texas average and 91% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 494 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 6.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Conroe Isd spends $14,087 per pupil district-wide, below the Texas average of $17,150 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 62.2% from local sources (property taxes), 25.0% from the state, and 12.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 47/100 (D), 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 Tough 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 | 16.2:1 | ▲ 11% | 14.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 4.9% | ▼ 92% | 61.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 988 | top 89% | — | — |
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
4.9%
free-lunch eligible
— 92% below the Texas average of 61.9%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
16.2:1
students per teacher
— 11% above state mean
Top 74% in Texas — lower ratio than 26% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
6.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$14,087
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
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 494 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 988 Top 89% in Texas — larger than 11% of 9,061 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 64.0
Students per teacher 16.2:1 +11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 4.9% -92% vs state
NCES ID 481500009352
Student demographics
White 46.9%
Hispanic or Latino 27.2%
Asian 16.1%
Two or More 7.1%
African American 2.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: White at 46.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 494:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 6.6%
In-school suspensions 3
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Conroe Isd, which includes Tough El.
$14,087
Per student
-18%
vs Texas
Avg $17,150
-28%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 62.2%
State 25.0%
Federal 12.8%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 5,252
- Students per teacher
- 16.7:1
- Enrollment
- 4,444
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
- Enrollment
- 3,836
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
- Enrollment
- 3,313
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Enrollment
- 2,783
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
Similar other schools in The Woodlands
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Deretchin El
Standard public school
1,209 students 16.3:1 students per teacher
Timber Creek El
Standard public school
970 students 16.1:1 students per teacher
Creekview El
Standard public school
937 students 15.4:1 students per teacher
Bush El
Standard public school
881 students 16.6:1 students per teacher
Powell El
Standard public school
830 students 17.5:1 students per teacher
Buckalew El
Standard public school
823 students 16.7:1 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 Tough El
How many students attend Tough El?
Tough El has 988 students enrolled. It is a other school in THE WOODLANDS, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Tough El?
The student-teacher ratio at Tough El is 16.2:1, which is 11% higher than the Texas average of 14.6:1 and 2% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Tough El?
4.9% of students at Tough El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Tough El?
The largest demographic group at Tough El is White at 46.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in THE WOODLANDS, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Tough El?
Tough El has a Resource Investment Index of 47/100 (D) 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.