Other / mixed grade configuration · New Castle, IN

Westwood Elementary School

Federal NCES profile for Westwood Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 47/100.

2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 180744001291
0/100100/10047/100
👥 S:T ratio
40
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
49
📋 Attendance
31
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Westwood Elementary School earns 47/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Indiana median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Indiana schools.

#2 of 7
schools in New Castle · Resource Index
47
Resource Index · Typical
15.1:1
students per teacher
34.2%
free-lunch eligible

Westwood Elementary School has class sizes near the Indiana median. Computed live against every Indiana school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Westwood Elementary School ranks #2 of 7 schools in New Castle, IN.

Enrollment

256

Indiana · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

17.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

15.1:1

vs 15.9:1 Indiana avg

-5% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

34.2%

vs 49.5% Indiana avg

-31% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Westwood Elementary School compares with Indiana and U.S. medians

At or below state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Westwood Elementary School

Westwood Elementary School is a small combined-grade school in New Castle, Indiana, enrolling 256 students.

At 15.1:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Indiana median, within a few percentage points of the 15.9:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.

Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 34.2% of students eligible for free meals.

Enrollment of 256 puts it in the smaller third of Indiana schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,862 scored Indiana schools.

Against 217 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #150.

Its student body is predominantly White (95% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 11/100).

Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 256 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 27.7% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Its district draws 19.0% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Among New Castle's public schools, it stands alongside Blue River Valley Elementary Sch (331 students): Westwood Elementary School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (15.1:1 vs 15:1).

New Castle Community School Corp also operates New Castle High School (828 students) and New Castle Middle School (627 students) alongside Westwood 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 Westwood Elementary School compares

Westwood Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Indiana and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Indiana Indiana avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 15.1:1 ▼ 5% 15.9:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 34.2% ▼ 31% 49.5% 51.7%
Enrollment 256 top 85% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

15.1:1
Leaner classes than 46% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
256
Bigger than 26% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
34.2%
free-lunch eligible - 31% below the Indiana average of 49.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15.1:1
students per teacher - 5% below state mean
Top 47% in Indiana - lower ratio than 53% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
27.7%
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
$13,350
per pupil, district-wide - above Indiana avg of $12,079
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 256 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
5
in-school suspensions + 19 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 9.4 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 94.5%
Hispanic or Latino 2.7%
Two or More 2.0%
Asian 0.8%

Largest group: White at 94.5% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 10.6/100

Simpson diversity index - at 10.6, Westwood Elementary School is less mixed than the Indiana school average of 39.0.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for New Castle Community School Corp, which includes Westwood Elementary School.

$13,350
Per student
+11%
vs Indiana
Avg $12,079
-20%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 24.4%
State 56.6%
Federal 19.0%

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 Westwood Elementary School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
New Castle High School Larger Higher economic need Similar S:T ratio
New Castle Middle School Larger Higher economic need Lower S:T ratio
Wilbur Wright Elementary School Similar size Higher economic need Similar S:T ratio
Parker Elementary School Similar size Higher economic need Similar S:T ratio
Eastwood Elementary School Similar size Higher economic need Lower S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Westwood Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

New Castle Community School Corp · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar other schools in New Castle

6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.

Similar other schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Indiana, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Westwood Elementary School's federal record.

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 Westwood Elementary School

How many students attend Westwood Elementary School?

Westwood Elementary School has 256 students enrolled. It is a public school in New Castle, IN.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Westwood Elementary School?

The student-teacher ratio at Westwood Elementary School is 15.1:1, which is 5% lower than the Indiana average of 15.9:1 and 4% lower 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 Westwood Elementary School?

34.2% of students at Westwood Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Indiana average of 49.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Westwood Elementary School?

The largest demographic group at Westwood Elementary School is White at 94.5% of enrollment, in New Castle, IN.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Westwood Elementary School?

Westwood Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 47/100 (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 Westwood Elementary School rank among schools in New Castle?

By Resource Investment Index, Westwood Elementary School ranks #2 of 7 schools in New Castle, IN. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in New Castle on the city page.

Is Westwood Elementary School a good school?

Westwood Elementary School earns 47/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Indiana median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Indiana 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 New Castle Community School Corp?

Besides Westwood Elementary School, New Castle Community School Corp also operates New Castle High School (828 students), New Castle Middle School (627 students), and Wilbur Wright Elementary School (305 students). See the New Castle Community School Corp district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.