Enrollment
78
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Whiting, IA
Whiting Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Whiting Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 62/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 193162001841
👥 S:T ratio 65
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 52
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Whiting Elementary School earns 62/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 97% of Iowa schools. It is also one of the smallest schools in Iowa.
- 62
- Resource Index · Higher
- 8.7:1
- small classes for Iowa
- 48.4%
- free-lunch eligible
- 78
- students enrolled
Whiting Elementary School has class sizes smaller than 97% of Iowa schools. Computed live against every Iowa school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Whiting Comm School District · Iowa
NCES ID 193162001841 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
9.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
8.7:1
vs 14.8:1 Iowa avg
-41% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
48.4%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
+33% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Whiting Elementary School compares with Iowa and U.S. medians
What stands out at Whiting Elementary School
Small campus with unusually lean teacher staffing
Whiting Elementary School sits near the smaller end of the Iowa enrollment distribution while also reporting a lower student-teacher ratio than most state schools. That pairing is consistent with a compact, teacher-dense setting, though small scale can limit the number of specialized courses or support roles a campus can sustain. The program and staffing sections below show whether the lean ratio extends beyond classroom teachers into broader student services.
Higher need paired with broader reported resources
Whiting Elementary School serves a higher-need student population than most Iowa campuses while its Resource Investment Index still lands in the state's upper tier. That combination is more informative than either figure alone: reported staffing and program capacity are comparatively strong despite a funding context that often carries greater service demands. It does not prove equal outcomes, but it identifies a campus whose federal resource signals are not simply tracking a lower-need intake.
A combined-grade campus has a different support burden
Whiting Elementary School serves a combined grade span rather than a conventional elementary, middle, or high-school band. That structure can require the same campus to cover transitions, counseling needs, and programs for students at substantially different developmental stages, so a single staffing ratio deserves more caution than it would at a narrower-grade school. Federal totals show the available people and programs, but not how those resources are divided among grade levels.
Whiting Elementary School is a small combined-grade school in Whiting, Iowa, enrolling 78 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 8.7:1, Whiting Elementary School is leaner than roughly 97% of Iowa schools and 41% under the state's 14.8:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 48.4% of students eligible for free meals.
This is a small campus: fewer students than 95% of Iowa schools, with 78 enrolled.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 94% of the 1,322 Iowa schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Among 48 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Iowa schools statewide, it ranks #6, a top-tier result once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by White (59%) and Hispanic or Latino (17%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 59/100).
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 19.2% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
The surrounding Whiting Comm School District spends $17,718 per pupil, 32% above the Iowa average, a better-resourced district than most.
Among Whiting's public schools, it stands alongside Whiting Senior High School (61 students): Whiting Elementary School is larger than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (8.7:1 vs 5.5:1).
Its district, Whiting Comm School District, also runs Whiting Senior High School (61 students).
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 Whiting Elementary School compares
Whiting Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Iowa and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 8.7:1 | ▼ 41% | 14.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 48.4% | ▲ 33% | 36.4% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 78 | top 95% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
8.7:1
Leaner classes than 93% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
78
Bigger than 8% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
48.4%
free-lunch eligible
- 33% above the Iowa average of 36.4%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
8.7:1
students per teacher
- 41% below state mean
Top 3% in Iowa - lower ratio than 97% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
19.2%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$17,718
per pupil, district-wide
- above Iowa avg of $13,441
Close to the U.S. public-school average per-pupil spend.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
5
in-school suspensions + 9 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 17.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Student demographics
White 59.0%
Hispanic or Latino 16.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 14.1%
Two or More 10.3%
Largest group: White at 59.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 59.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 59.4, Whiting Elementary School is more mixed than the Iowa school average of 33.8.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Whiting Comm School District, which includes Whiting Elementary School.
$17,718
Per student
+32%
vs Iowa
Avg $13,441
+0%
vs U.S.
Avg $17,658
Revenue mix
Local 55.0%
State 36.0%
Federal 9.0%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2022-23 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Whiting Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whiting Senior High School | Similar size | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Whiting Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 61
- Students per teacher
- 5.5:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
Similar other schools in Whiting
1 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Iowa, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~78 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Whiting Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Whiting Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Whiting Comm 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 Whiting Elementary School
How many students attend Whiting Elementary School?
Whiting Elementary School has 78 students enrolled. It is a public school in Whiting, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Whiting Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Whiting Elementary School is 8.7:1, which is 41% lower than the Iowa average of 14.8:1 and 45% 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 Whiting Elementary School?
48.4% of students at Whiting Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Whiting Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Whiting Elementary School is White at 59.0% of enrollment, in Whiting, IA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 59.4/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Whiting Elementary School?
Whiting Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 62/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, gifted-program reporting, chronic absenteeism. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
What other schools are in Whiting Comm School District?
Besides Whiting Elementary School, Whiting Comm School District also operates Whiting Senior High School (61 students). See the Whiting Comm 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, the data changelog, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.