2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 020018000088

Turnagain Elementary — Anchorage, AK

Federal NCES profile for Turnagain Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 38/100.

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0/100100/10038/100
👥 Class size
32
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
51
📋 Attendance
0
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 →

The verdict

Turnagain Elementary earns an F Resource Investment Index (38/100), with class sizes near the Alaska median.

F
Resource Index · 38/100
17.1:1
students per teacher
37.7%
free-lunch eligible
247
students enrolled

School address

Anchorage, AK 99517
District: Anchorage School District · Alaska

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.

Enrollment

247

Alaska · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

18.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

17.1:1

vs 20:1 Alaska avg

-14% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

37.7%

vs 61.5% Alaska avg

-39% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Turnagain Elementary compares with Alaska and U.S. medians

Smaller classes than state median
0:135:117.1:1

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

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

Turnagain Elementary reports 247 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 18.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 14% below the Alaska state mean of 20:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.7:1, it is 9% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.

Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 37.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 39% below the Alaska average and 27% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 247 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 55.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.

On the finance side, the surrounding Anchorage School District spends $17,200 per pupil district-wide, below the Alaska average of $33,240 and above the national average of $16,593. Revenue comes 27.8% from local sources (property taxes), 54.1% from the state, and 18.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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 Turnagain Elementary compares

Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Alaska state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.

Metric This school vs Alaska Alaska avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 17.1:1 ▼ 14% 20:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 37.7% ▼ 39% 61.5% 51.8%
Enrollment 247 top 62% — —

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

Class size vs. every US school

Students per teacher (lower means more individual attention)

17 smaller classes than 30% of 92,598 US schools

0–2: 295 US schools (0%). Below this entry. 2–4: 597 US schools (1%). Below this entry. 4–6: 1,033 US schools (1%). Below this entry. 6–8: 1,939 US schools (2%). Below this entry. 8–10: 4,805 US schools (5%). Below this entry. 10–12: 11,082 US schools (12%). Below this entry. 12–14: 16,971 US schools (18%). Below this entry. 14–16: 18,959 US schools (20%). Below this entry. 16–18: 13,660 US schools (15%). This entry sits in this band. 18–20: 8,300 US schools (9%). Above this entry. 20–22: 5,448 US schools (6%). Above this entry. 22–24: 4,007 US schools (4%). Above this entry. 24–26: 2,663 US schools (3%). Above this entry. 26–28: 1,131 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 28–30: 504 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 30–32: 307 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 32–34: 189 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 34–36: 141 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 36–38: 93 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 38–40: 94 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 40–42: 59 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 42–44: 46 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 44–46: 56 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 46–48: 58 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 48–50: 34 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 50–52: 37 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 52–54: 30 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 54–56: 15 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 56–58: 25 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 58–60: 20 US schools (0%). Above this entry. This school 0 60 every US school, by class size, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25

School size vs. every US school

Total enrollment — where this school sits by size (neither large nor small is 'better')

247 larger than 25% of 95,891 US schools

0–150: 14,035 US schools (15%). Below this entry. 150–300: 16,928 US schools (18%). This entry sits in this band. 300–450: 21,633 US schools (23%). Above this entry. 450–600: 17,006 US schools (18%). Above this entry. 600–750: 10,042 US schools (10%). Above this entry. 750–900: 5,568 US schools (6%). Above this entry. 900–1,050: 3,006 US schools (3%). Above this entry. 1,050–1,200: 1,826 US schools (2%). Above this entry. 1,200–1,350: 1,220 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 1,350–1,500: 908 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 1,500–1,650: 692 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 1,650–1,800: 607 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 1,800–1,950: 502 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 1,950–2,100: 432 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 2,100–2,250: 346 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 2,250–2,400: 252 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 2,400–2,550: 203 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 2,550–2,700: 163 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 2,700–2,850: 115 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 2,850–3,000: 85 US schools (0%). Above this entry. This school 0 3,000 every US school, by enrollment, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 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
37.7%
free-lunch eligible — 39% below the Alaska average of 61.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17.1:1
students per teacher — 14% below state mean
Top 68% in Alaska — lower ratio than 32% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
55.1%
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
$17,200
per pupil, district-wide — below Alaska avg of $33,240
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 247 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.

Overview

Enrollment 247 Top 62% in Alaska — larger than 38% of 496 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 18.0
Students per teacher 17.1:1 -14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 37.7% -39% vs state
NCES ID 020018000088

Student demographics

White 44.5%
Two or More 18.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 11.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 10.9%
Hispanic or Latino 7.7%
Asian 5.3%
African American 1.6%

Largest group: White at 44.5% of enrollment.

Programs & staff

Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 247:1

Discipline & special education

Chronically absent 55.1%
In-school suspensions 2
Out-of-school suspensions 3

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Anchorage School District, which includes Turnagain Elementary.

$17,200
Per student
-48%
vs Alaska
Avg $33,240
+4%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 27.8%
State 54.1%
Federal 18.1%

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

Anchorage School District · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar other schools in Anchorage

6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.

Family Partnership Charter School
Standard public school
1,008 students 87:1 students per teacher
Frontier Charter School
Standard public school
689 students 89.4:1 students per teacher
Northern Lights Abc K-8 School
Standard public school
582 students 19.6:1 students per teacher
Focus Homeschool
Standard public school
549 students 62.7:1 students per teacher
Bowman Elementary
Standard public school
536 students 15.5:1 students per teacher
Polaris K-12 School
Standard public school
483 students 19.8:1 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 Turnagain Elementary

How many students attend Turnagain Elementary?

Turnagain Elementary has 247 students enrolled. It is a other school in Anchorage, AK.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Turnagain Elementary?

The student-teacher ratio at Turnagain Elementary is 17.1:1, which is 14% lower than the Alaska average of 20:1 and 9% higher 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 Turnagain Elementary?

37.7% of students at Turnagain Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Alaska average of 61.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Turnagain Elementary?

The largest demographic group at Turnagain Elementary is White at 44.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in Anchorage, AK.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Turnagain Elementary?

Turnagain Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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.

Is Turnagain Elementary a good school?

Turnagain Elementary earns an F Resource Investment Index (38/100), with class sizes near the Alaska median. The Resource Investment Index reflects staffing, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance reported to NCES, not test scores or academic outcomes, so treat it as a resource snapshot rather than an overall rating.

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Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type — administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page
  • NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) — universe of U.S. public schools and districts. nces.ed.gov/ccd
  • NCES Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) — discipline, absenteeism, and AP-course participation. ocrdata.ed.gov
  • NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey — per-pupil expenditure and revenue sources. nces.ed.gov/ccd/f33agency
  • USDA National School Lunch Program (NSLP) — free and reduced-price lunch eligibility. fns.usda.gov/nslp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS — demographic and socioeconomic context for school catchment areas. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • U.S. Department of Education ESSA Title I — federal Title I program participation. ed.gov