Enrollment
654
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 370042000130
Union Elementary — Shallotte, NC
Federal NCES profile for Union Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 46/100.
👥 Class size 38
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 77
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: Brunswick County Schools · North Carolina
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)
37.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.4:1
vs 16.4:1 North Carolina avg
-6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
99.5%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
+51% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Union Elementary compares with North Carolina 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
Union Elementary reports 654 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 37.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 6% below the North Carolina state mean of 16.4:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 3% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 99.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 51% above the North Carolina average and 92% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 654 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 9.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Brunswick County Schools spends $14,887 per pupil district-wide, above the North Carolina average of $13,042 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 34.5% from local sources (property taxes), 46.4% from the state, and 19.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (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 Union Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against North Carolina state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.4:1 | ▼ 6% | 16.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 99.5% | ▲ 51% | 66.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 654 | top 71% | — | — |
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
99.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 51% above 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
15.4:1
students per teacher
— 6% below state mean
Top 55% in North Carolina — lower ratio than 45% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
9.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$14,887
per pupil, district-wide
— above North Carolina avg of $13,042
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 654 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
23
in-school suspensions + 44 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 654 Top 71% in North Carolina — larger than 29% of 2,703 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 37.0
Students per teacher 15.4:1 -6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 99.5% +51% vs state
NCES ID 370042000130
Student demographics
White 65.4%
Hispanic or Latino 15.4%
African American 11.2%
Two or More 7.0%
Asian 0.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 65.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 654:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 9.3%
In-school suspensions 23
Out-of-school suspensions 44
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Brunswick County Schools, which includes Union Elementary.
$14,887
Per student
+14%
vs North Carolina
Avg $13,042
-24%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 34.5%
State 46.4%
Federal 19.1%
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
- Enrollment
- 1,620
- Students per teacher
- 18.8:1
- Enrollment
- 1,466
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Enrollment
- 1,154
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Enrollment
- 812
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Enrollment
- 806
- Students per teacher
- 16.6:1
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 Union Elementary
How many students attend Union Elementary?
Union Elementary has 654 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Shallotte, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Union Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Union Elementary is 15.4:1, which is 6% lower than the North Carolina average of 16.4:1 and 3% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Union Elementary?
99.5% of students at Union Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Union Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Union Elementary is White at 65.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Shallotte, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Union Elementary?
Union Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (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.