Enrollment
543
Georgia · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Whigham, GA
Whigham Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Whigham Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 44/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 130246001082
👥 S:T ratio 38
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 68
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Whigham Elementary School earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 70% of Georgia schools.
- 44
- Resource Index · Typical
- 15.5:1
- large classes for Georgia
- 100.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 543
- students enrolled
Whigham Elementary School has class sizes larger than 70% of Georgia schools. Computed live against every Georgia school reporting to NCES.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
35.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.5:1
vs 14.4:1 Georgia avg
+8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 60.7% Georgia avg
+65% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Whigham Elementary School compares with Georgia and U.S. medians
What stands out at Whigham Elementary School
Whigham Elementary School is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Whigham, Georgia, enrolling 543 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 15.5:1 puts it in the larger third of Georgia schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need is high: 100.0% of students qualify for free meals, 65% above the Georgia average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
With 543 students, its enrollment sits close to the Georgia median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,314 scored Georgia schools.
Against 434 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #105.
Its student body is led by White (71%) and African American (16%) (diversity index 47/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 543 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
12.7% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
Its district draws 20.8% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Grady County also operates Cairo High School (1,317 students) and Eastside Elementary School (735 students) alongside Whigham 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 Whigham Elementary School compares
Whigham Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Georgia and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Georgia | Georgia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.5:1 | ▲ 8% | 14.4:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 65% | 60.7% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 543 | top 63% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
15.5:1
Leaner classes than 42% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
543
Bigger than 67% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
100.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 65% above the Georgia average of 60.7%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.5:1
students per teacher
- 8% above state mean
Top 70% in Georgia - lower ratio than 30% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
12.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$11,806
per pupil, district-wide
- below Georgia avg of $13,863
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 543 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
50
in-school suspensions + 7 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 9.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.5 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 70.5%
African American 16.4%
Hispanic or Latino 9.4%
Two or More 3.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Largest group: White at 70.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 46.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 46.6, Whigham Elementary School is less mixed than the Georgia school average of 50.0.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Grady County, which includes Whigham Elementary School.
$11,806
Per student
-15%
vs Georgia
Avg $13,863
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 22.6%
State 56.6%
Federal 20.8%
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 Whigham Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cairo High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Eastside Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Washington Middle School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Southside Elementary School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Shiver Elementary School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Whigham Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,317
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 735
- Students per teacher
- 16.7:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 631
- Students per teacher
- 13.4:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
- Enrollment
- 610
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 579
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Georgia, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~543 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Whigham Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Whigham Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Grady 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 Whigham Elementary School
How many students attend Whigham Elementary School?
Whigham Elementary School has 543 students enrolled. It is a public school in Whigham, GA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Whigham Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Whigham Elementary School is 15.5:1, which is 8% higher than the Georgia average of 14.4:1 and 1% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Whigham Elementary School?
100.0% of students at Whigham Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Georgia average of 60.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Whigham Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Whigham Elementary School is White at 70.5% of enrollment, in Whigham, GA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Whigham Elementary School?
Whigham Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (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 Whigham Elementary School a good school?
Whigham Elementary School earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 70% of Georgia 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 Grady County?
Besides Whigham Elementary School, Grady County also operates Cairo High School (1,317 students), Eastside Elementary School (735 students), and Washington Middle School (631 students). See the Grady 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.