Enrollment
516
Arkansas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Huntsville, AR
Watson Primary School
Federal NCES profile for Watson Primary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 38/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 050813000537
👥 S:T ratio 29
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 10
📋 Attendance 84
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Watson Primary School earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 85% of Arkansas schools.
- #4 of 4
- public schools in Huntsville · Resource Index
- 38
- Resource Index · Typical
- 17.8:1
- large classes for Arkansas
- 56.1%
- free-lunch eligible
Watson Primary School has class sizes larger than 85% of Arkansas schools. Computed live against every Arkansas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Watson Primary School ranks #4 of 4 public schools in Huntsville, AR.
School address
District: Huntsville School District · Arkansas
NCES ID 050813000537 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
29.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.8:1
vs 13.6:1 Arkansas avg
+31% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
56.1%
vs 59.2% Arkansas avg
-5% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Watson Primary School compares with Arkansas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Watson Primary School
Watson Primary School is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Huntsville, Arkansas, enrolling 516 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 17.8:1 puts it in the larger third of Arkansas schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 56.1% lands close to the Arkansas typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 516 puts it in the larger third of Arkansas schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,066 scored Arkansas schools.
Against 237 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #159.
Its student body is predominantly White (84% of enrollment) (diversity index 29/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 449 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance holds up well here: only 6.6% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
Its district draws 23.2% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Huntsville School District also operates Huntsville High School (581 students) and Huntsville Intermediate Sch (479 students) alongside Watson Primary 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 Watson Primary School compares
Watson Primary School on the metrics families compare, against Arkansas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Arkansas | Arkansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.8:1 | ▲ 31% | 13.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 56.1% | ▼ 5% | 59.2% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 516 | top 29% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17.8:1
Leaner classes than 26% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
516
Bigger than 64% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
56.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 5% below the Arkansas average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
17.8:1
students per teacher
- 31% above state mean
Top 85% in Arkansas - lower ratio than 15% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
6.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$11,953
per pupil, district-wide
- below Arkansas avg of $12,251
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.1 FTE
Per 449 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
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
- 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 83.7%
Hispanic or Latino 9.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 3.7%
Two or More 1.9%
Asian 0.6%
African American 0.2%
Largest group: White at 83.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 28.8/100
Simpson diversity index - at 28.8, Watson Primary School is less mixed than the Arkansas school average of 40.4.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Huntsville School District, which includes Watson Primary School.
$11,953
Per student
-2%
vs Arkansas
Avg $12,251
-28%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 28.0%
State 48.9%
Federal 23.2%
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 Watson Primary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Huntsville High School | Similar size | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Huntsville Intermediate Sch | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Huntsville Middle School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| St. Paul Elementary School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| St. Paul High School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Watson Primary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 581
- Students per teacher
- 7.3:1
- Resource Index
- 60/100
- Enrollment
- 479
- Students per teacher
- 18.4:1
- Resource Index
- 62/100
- Enrollment
- 470
- Students per teacher
- 10.9:1
- Resource Index
- 70/100
- Enrollment
- 121
- Students per teacher
- 12.1:1
- Resource Index
- 58/100
- Enrollment
- 120
- Students per teacher
- 8:1
- Resource Index
- 58/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Arkansas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~516 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~17.8:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Watson Primary School's federal record.
- Compare Watson Primary School against another school. Compare schools
- Huntsville School District'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 Watson Primary School
How many students attend Watson Primary School?
Watson Primary School has 516 students enrolled. It is a public school in Huntsville, AR.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Watson Primary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Watson Primary School is 17.8:1, which is 31% higher than the Arkansas average of 13.6:1 and 13% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Watson Primary School?
56.1% of students at Watson Primary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arkansas average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Watson Primary School?
The largest demographic group at Watson Primary School is White at 83.7% of enrollment, in Huntsville, AR.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Watson Primary School?
Watson Primary School has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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).
How does Watson Primary School rank among public schools in Huntsville?
By Resource Investment Index, Watson Primary School ranks #4 of 4 public schools in Huntsville, AR. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Huntsville on the city page.
Is Watson Primary School a good school?
Watson Primary School earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 85% of Arkansas schools. 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 Huntsville School District?
Besides Watson Primary School, Huntsville School District also operates Huntsville High School (581 students), Huntsville Intermediate Sch (479 students), and Huntsville Middle School (470 students). See the Huntsville School District 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.