Enrollment
367
Mississippi · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 280087001106
Vardaman Elementary School — Vardaman, MS
Federal NCES profile for Vardaman Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 58/100.
👥 Class size 57
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 27
📋 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 →
The verdict
Vardaman Elementary School earns a C Resource Investment Index (58/100), with class sizes smaller than 88% of Mississippi schools.
- C
- Resource Index · 58/100
- 10.8:1
- small classes for Mississippi
- 79.6%
- free-lunch eligible
- 367
- students enrolled
School address
District: Calhoun Co School Dist · Mississippi
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)
34.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.8:1
vs 13.4:1 Mississippi avg
-19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
79.6%
vs 80.5% Mississippi avg
-1% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Vardaman Elementary School compares with Mississippi 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
Vardaman Elementary School reports 367 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 34.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 10.8:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 19% below the Mississippi state mean of 13.4:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 32% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 79.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 1% below the Mississippi average and 54% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 367 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 Calhoun Co School Dist spends $12,001 per pupil district-wide, below the Mississippi average of $13,402 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 20.8% from local sources (property taxes), 51.8% from the state, and 27.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (C), 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 Vardaman Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Mississippi state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Mississippi | Mississippi avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.8:1 | ▼ 19% | 13.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 79.6% | ▼ 1% | 80.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 367 | top 40% | — | — |
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)
11 Among the smallest classes smaller classes than 86% of 92,598 US schools
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')
367 larger than 42% of 95,891 US schools
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
79.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 1% below the Mississippi average of 80.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
10.8:1
students per teacher
— 19% below state mean
Top 12% in Mississippi — lower ratio than 88% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
9.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$12,001
per pupil, district-wide
— below Mississippi avg of $13,402
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 367 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
20
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
Overview
Enrollment 367 Top 40% in Mississippi — larger than 60% of 877 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 34.0
Students per teacher 10.8:1 -19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 79.6% -1% vs state
NCES ID 280087001106
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 367:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 9.3%
In-school suspensions 20
Out-of-school suspensions 3
Expulsions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Calhoun Co School Dist, which includes Vardaman Elementary School.
$12,001
Per student
-10%
vs Mississippi
Avg $13,402
-38%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 20.8%
State 51.8%
Federal 27.4%
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
- 435
- Students per teacher
- 11.5:1
- Enrollment
- 379
- Students per teacher
- 11:1
- Enrollment
- 316
- Students per teacher
- 9.9:1
- Enrollment
- 274
- Students per teacher
- 10.5:1
- Enrollment
- 235
- Students per teacher
- 9.9:1
Similar other schools in Vardaman
1 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
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 Vardaman Elementary School
How many students attend Vardaman Elementary School?
Vardaman Elementary School has 367 students enrolled. It is a other school in VARDAMAN, MS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Vardaman Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Vardaman Elementary School is 10.8:1, which is 19% lower than the Mississippi average of 13.4:1 and 32% 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 Vardaman Elementary School?
79.6% of students at Vardaman Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Mississippi average of 80.5%.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Vardaman Elementary School?
Vardaman Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (C) 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.