Enrollment
353
Alabama · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Valley Grande, AL
Valley Grande Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Valley Grande Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 29/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 010111000409
👥 S:T ratio 22
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 26
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Valley Grande Elementary School earns 29/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 79% of Alabama schools.
- 29
- Resource Index · Lower
- 19.6:1
- large classes for Alabama
- 54.8%
- free-lunch eligible
- 353
- students enrolled
Valley Grande Elementary School has class sizes larger than 79% of Alabama schools. Computed live against every Alabama school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Dallas County · Alabama
NCES ID 010111000409 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
18.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
19.6:1
vs 17.7:1 Alabama avg
+11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
54.8%
vs 58.8% Alabama avg
-7% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Valley Grande Elementary School compares with Alabama and U.S. medians
What stands out at Valley Grande Elementary School
Valley Grande Elementary School is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Valley Grande, Alabama, enrolling 353 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 19.6:1 puts it in the larger third of Alabama schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 54.8% lands close to the Alabama typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 353 puts it in the smaller third of Alabama schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,365 scored Alabama schools.
Among 337 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Alabama schools statewide, it ranks #302, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by African American (59%) and White (29%) (diversity index 57/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 706 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 29.7% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The surrounding Dallas County spends $15,350 per pupil, 23% above the Alabama average, a better-resourced district than most.
Its district draws 27.0% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Dallas County also operates Dallas County High School (334 students) and Southside High School (285 students) alongside Valley Grande Elementary School.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Valley Grande Elementary School compares
Valley Grande Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Alabama and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Alabama | Alabama avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 19.6:1 | ▲ 11% | 17.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 54.8% | ▼ 7% | 58.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 353 | top 73% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
19.6:1
Leaner classes than 17% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
353
Bigger than 40% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
54.8%
free-lunch eligible
- 7% below the Alabama average of 58.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
19.6:1
students per teacher
- 11% above state mean
Top 79% in Alabama - lower ratio than 21% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
29.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$15,350
per pupil, district-wide
- above Alabama avg of $12,491
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.5 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 12 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
African American 58.6%
White 29.2%
Two or More 7.4%
Hispanic or Latino 3.4%
Asian 1.4%
Largest group: African American at 58.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 56.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 56.5, Valley Grande Elementary School is more mixed than the Alabama school average of 42.5.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Dallas County, which includes Valley Grande Elementary School.
$15,350
Per student
+23%
vs Alabama
Avg $12,491
-7%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 15.5%
State 57.5%
Federal 27.0%
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.
How Valley Grande Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas County High School | Similar size | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Southside High School | Similar size | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Brantley Elementary School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Keith Middlehigh School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| William R Martin Middle School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Valley Grande Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 334
- Students per teacher
- 17.6:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 285
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Resource Index
- 29/100
- Enrollment
- 204
- Students per teacher
- 25.5:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 188
- Students per teacher
- 13.4:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 180
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Alabama, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~353 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Valley Grande Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Valley Grande Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Dallas County's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Valley Grande Elementary School
How many students attend Valley Grande Elementary School?
Valley Grande Elementary School has 353 students enrolled. It is a public school in Valley Grande, AL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Valley Grande Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Valley Grande Elementary School is 19.6:1, which is 11% higher than the Alabama average of 17.7:1 and 25% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Valley Grande Elementary School?
54.8% of students at Valley Grande Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Alabama average of 58.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Valley Grande Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Valley Grande Elementary School is African American at 58.6% of enrollment, in Valley Grande, AL. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 56.5/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Valley Grande Elementary School?
Valley Grande Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 29/100 (lower reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Valley Grande Elementary School a good school?
Valley Grande Elementary School earns 29/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 79% of Alabama schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Dallas County?
Besides Valley Grande Elementary School, Dallas County also operates Dallas County High School (334 students), Southside High School (285 students), and Brantley Elementary School (204 students). See the Dallas County district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.