Enrollment
75
South Dakota · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 460795000073
Valley Springs Elementary - 04 — Valley Springs, SD
Federal NCES profile for Valley Springs Elementary - 04, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 56/100.
👥 Class size 57
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 80
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: Brandon Valley School District 49-2 · South Dakota
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)
7.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.7:1
vs 13.5:1 South Dakota avg
-21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
10.7%
vs 28.8% South Dakota avg
-63% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Valley Springs Elementary - 04 compares with South Dakota 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
Valley Springs Elementary - 04 reports 75 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 7.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 10.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 21% below the South Dakota state mean of 13.5:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 33% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 10.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 63% below the South Dakota average and 79% below the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 8.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Brandon Valley School District 49-2 spends $11,135 per pupil district-wide, below the South Dakota average of $16,140 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 45.9% from local sources (property taxes), 41.0% from the state, and 13.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (C), calculated from 3 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 Valley Springs Elementary - 04 compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against South Dakota state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs South Dakota | South Dakota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.7:1 | ▼ 21% | 13.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 10.7% | ▼ 63% | 28.8% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 75 | top 41% | — | — |
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
10.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 63% below the South Dakota average of 28.8%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
10.7:1
students per teacher
— 21% below state mean
Top 24% in South Dakota — lower ratio than 76% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
8.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$11,135
per pupil, district-wide
— below South Dakota avg of $16,140
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 75 Top 41% in South Dakota — larger than 59% of 698 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 7.0
Students per teacher 10.7:1 -21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 10.7% -63% vs state
NCES ID 460795000073
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 8.0%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Brandon Valley School District 49-2, which includes Valley Springs Elementary - 04.
$11,135
Per student
-31%
vs South Dakota
Avg $16,140
-43%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 45.9%
State 41.0%
Federal 13.1%
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
- 1,381
- Students per teacher
- 21.3:1
- Enrollment
- 829
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
- Enrollment
- 759
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Enrollment
- 728
- Students per teacher
- 14.9:1
- Enrollment
- 542
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
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 Valley Springs Elementary - 04
How many students attend Valley Springs Elementary - 04?
Valley Springs Elementary - 04 has 75 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Valley Springs, SD.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Valley Springs Elementary - 04?
The student-teacher ratio at Valley Springs Elementary - 04 is 10.7:1, which is 21% lower than the South Dakota average of 13.5:1 and 33% 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 Valley Springs Elementary - 04?
10.7% of students at Valley Springs Elementary - 04 are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Dakota average of 28.8%.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Valley Springs Elementary - 04?
Valley Springs Elementary - 04 has a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (C) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.