Enrollment
498
Hawaii · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 150003000109
Waiau Elementary School — Pearl City, HI
Federal NCES profile for Waiau Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 22/100.
👥 Class size 46
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 13
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: Hawaii Department of Education · Hawaii
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
13.5:1
vs 14.3:1 Hawaii avg
-6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
33.0%
vs 40.0% Hawaii avg
-18% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Waiau Elementary School compares with Hawaii 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
Waiau Elementary School reports 498 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 34.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 13.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 6% below the Hawaii state mean of 14.3:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 15% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 33.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 18% below the Hawaii average and 36% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 498 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 34.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Hawaii Department of Education spends $19,381 per pupil district-wide, above the Hawaii average of $19,381 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 0.8% from local sources (property taxes), 84.7% from the state, and 14.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 22/100 (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 Waiau Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Hawaii state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Hawaii | Hawaii avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.5:1 | ▼ 6% | 14.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 33.0% | ▼ 18% | 40.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 498 | top 55% | — | — |
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
33.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 18% below the Hawaii average of 40.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
13.5:1
students per teacher
— 6% below state mean
Top 31% in Hawaii — lower ratio than 69% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
34.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$19,381
per pupil, district-wide
— above Hawaii avg of $19,381
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 498 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
8
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 498 Top 55% in Hawaii — larger than 45% of 295 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 34.0
Students per teacher 13.5:1 -6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 33.0% -18% vs state
NCES ID 150003000109
Student demographics
Two or More 28.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 28.5%
Hispanic or Latino 25.3%
Asian 14.7%
White 1.8%
African American 0.8%
Largest group: Two or More at 28.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 498:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 34.7%
In-school suspensions 8
Out-of-school suspensions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Hawaii Department of Education, which includes Waiau Elementary School.
$19,381
Per student
+0%
vs Hawaii
Avg $19,381
-1%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 0.8%
State 84.7%
Federal 14.5%
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
- 2,890
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
- Enrollment
- 2,538
- Students per teacher
- 16.1:1
- Enrollment
- 2,382
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Enrollment
- 2,094
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Enrollment
- 1,966
- Students per teacher
- 17.1:1
Similar other schools in Pearl City
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Pearl City Highlands School
Standard public school
515 students 16.1:1 students per teacher
Momilani Elementary School
Standard public school
412 students 19.4:1 students per teacher
Pearl City Elementary School
Standard public school
396 students 13.7:1 students per teacher
Palisades Elementary School
Standard public school
356 students 18.8:1 students per teacher
Manana Elementary School
Standard public school
270 students 15.3:1 students per teacher
Lehua Elementary School
Standard public school
248 students 11.8:1 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 Waiau Elementary School
How many students attend Waiau Elementary School?
Waiau Elementary School has 498 students enrolled. It is a other school in Pearl City, HI.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Waiau Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Waiau Elementary School is 13.5:1, which is 6% lower than the Hawaii average of 14.3:1 and 15% 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 Waiau Elementary School?
33.0% of students at Waiau Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Hawaii average of 40.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Waiau Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Waiau Elementary School is Two or More at 28.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in Pearl City, HI.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Waiau Elementary School?
Waiau Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 22/100 (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.