Enrollment
574
Alabama · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Salem, AL
Wacoochee Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Wacoochee Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 32/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 010207002188
👥 S:T ratio 30
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 27
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Wacoochee Elementary School earns 32/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Alabama median.
- 32
- Resource Index · Typical
- 17.4:1
- students per teacher
- 53.3%
- free-lunch eligible
- 574
- students enrolled
Wacoochee Elementary School has class sizes near the Alabama median. Computed live against every Alabama school reporting to NCES.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
33.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.4:1
vs 17.7:1 Alabama avg
-2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
53.3%
vs 58.8% Alabama avg
-9% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Wacoochee Elementary School compares with Alabama and U.S. medians
What stands out at Wacoochee Elementary School
Wacoochee Elementary School is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Salem, Alabama, enrolling 574 students.
At 17.4:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Alabama median, within a few percentage points of the 17.7:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 53.3% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 574 puts it in the larger third of Alabama schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,365 scored Alabama schools.
Among 475 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Alabama schools statewide, it ranks #359, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by White (75%) and African American (12%) (diversity index 42/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 574 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 29.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Lee County also operates Smiths Station High School (1,588 students) and Smiths Station Junior High School (910 students) alongside Wacoochee 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 Wacoochee Elementary School compares
Wacoochee 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 | 17.4:1 | ▼ 2% | 17.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 53.3% | ▼ 9% | 58.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 574 | top 34% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17.4:1
Leaner classes than 28% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
574
Bigger than 70% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
53.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 9% 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
17.4:1
students per teacher
- 2% below state mean
Top 50% in Alabama - lower ratio than 50% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
29.3%
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
$11,578
per pupil, district-wide
- below Alabama avg of $12,491
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 574 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
5
in-school suspensions + 30 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.1 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
White 74.6%
African American 12.2%
Hispanic or Latino 7.3%
Two or More 5.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 74.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 42.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 42.0, Wacoochee Elementary School is about as mixed as the Alabama school average of 42.5.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Lee County, which includes Wacoochee Elementary School.
$11,578
Per student
-7%
vs Alabama
Avg $12,491
-30%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 32.3%
State 53.3%
Federal 14.4%
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.
How Wacoochee Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smiths Station High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Smiths Station Junior High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| West Smiths Station Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| East Smiths Station Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Beauregard Elementary School | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Wacoochee Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,588
- Students per teacher
- 20.6:1
- Resource Index
- 16/100
- Enrollment
- 910
- Students per teacher
- 17.8:1
- Resource Index
- 35/100
- Enrollment
- 811
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 785
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 783
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
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 (~574 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~17.4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Wacoochee Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Wacoochee Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Lee 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 Wacoochee Elementary School
How many students attend Wacoochee Elementary School?
Wacoochee Elementary School has 574 students enrolled. It is a public school in Salem, AL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Wacoochee Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Wacoochee Elementary School is 17.4:1, which is 2% lower than the Alabama average of 17.7:1 and 11% higher than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Wacoochee Elementary School?
53.3% of students at Wacoochee Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Alabama average of 58.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Wacoochee Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Wacoochee Elementary School is White at 74.6% of enrollment, in Salem, AL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Wacoochee Elementary School?
Wacoochee Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (typical 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 Wacoochee Elementary School a good school?
Wacoochee Elementary School earns 32/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Alabama median. 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 Lee County?
Besides Wacoochee Elementary School, Lee County also operates Smiths Station High School (1,588 students), Smiths Station Junior High School (910 students), and West Smiths Station Elementary School (811 students). See the Lee 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.