Enrollment
565
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 190654000731
Viola Gibson Elementary School — Cedar Rapids, IA
Federal NCES profile for Viola Gibson Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 38/100.
👥 Class size 32
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 51
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: Cedar Rapids Comm School District · Iowa
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)
35.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.9:1
vs 15:1 Iowa avg
+13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
11.0%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
-70% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Viola Gibson Elementary School compares with Iowa 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
Viola Gibson Elementary School reports 565 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 35.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 13% above the Iowa state mean of 15:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 6% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 11.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 70% below the Iowa average and 79% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 577 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 19.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Cedar Rapids Comm School District spends $17,848 per pupil district-wide, above the Iowa average of $17,211 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 37.7% from local sources (property taxes), 48.5% from the state, and 13.9% 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 Viola Gibson Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Iowa state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.9:1 | ▲ 13% | 15:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 11.0% | ▼ 70% | 36.4% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 565 | top 86% | — | — |
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
11.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 70% below the Iowa average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
16.9:1
students per teacher
— 13% above state mean
Top 84% in Iowa — lower ratio than 16% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
19.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$17,848
per pupil, district-wide
— above Iowa avg of $17,211
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 577 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 565 Top 86% in Iowa — larger than 14% of 1,326 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 35.0
Students per teacher 16.9:1 +13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 11.0% -70% vs state
NCES ID 190654000731
Student demographics
White 85.0%
Two or More 6.9%
Hispanic or Latino 5.0%
African American 1.6%
Asian 1.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 85.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 577:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 19.5%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cedar Rapids Comm School District, which includes Viola Gibson Elementary School.
$17,848
Per student
+4%
vs Iowa
Avg $17,211
-8%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 37.7%
State 48.5%
Federal 13.9%
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
- 1,648
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,501
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,182
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Enrollment
- 710
- Students per teacher
- 15.5:1
- Enrollment
- 593
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
Similar other schools in Cedar Rapids
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Prairie Point
Standard public school
868 students 17.4:1 students per teacher
West Willow Elementary School
Standard public school
555 students 17.8:1 students per teacher
Maple Grove Elementary
Standard public school
539 students 15.1:1 students per teacher
Prairie Hill Elementary School
Standard public school
466 students 14.2:1 students per teacher
Prairie Ridge Elementary
Standard public school
438 students 14.7:1 students per teacher
Prairie Crest Elementary
Standard public school
434 students 14.3:1 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 Viola Gibson Elementary School
How many students attend Viola Gibson Elementary School?
Viola Gibson Elementary School has 565 students enrolled. It is a other school in Cedar Rapids, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Viola Gibson Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Viola Gibson Elementary School is 16.9:1, which is 13% higher than the Iowa average of 15:1 and 6% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Viola Gibson Elementary School?
11.0% of students at Viola Gibson Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Viola Gibson Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Viola Gibson Elementary School is White at 85.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in Cedar Rapids, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Viola Gibson Elementary School?
Viola Gibson Elementary School 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.