Other / mixed grade configuration · Norfolk, VA

Willard Elementary

Federal NCES profile for Willard Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 45/100.

2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 510267001087
0/100100/10045/100
👥 S:T ratio
52
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
12
📋 Attendance
47
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Willard Elementary earns 45/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 80% of Virginia schools.

#16 of 29
schools in Norfolk · Resource Index
45
Resource Index · Typical
11.9:1
small classes for Virginia
97.8%
free-lunch eligible

Willard Elementary has class sizes smaller than 80% of Virginia schools. Computed live against every Virginia school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Willard Elementary ranks #16 of 29 schools in Norfolk, VA.

Enrollment

441

Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

37.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

11.9:1

vs 13.9:1 Virginia avg

-14% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

97.8%

vs 57.6% Virginia avg

+70% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Willard Elementary compares with Virginia and U.S. medians

Smaller classes than 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 Willard Elementary

Willard Elementary is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Norfolk, Virginia, enrolling 441 students.

Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11.9:1 puts it in the smaller third of Virginia schools by student-teacher ratio.

Economic need is high: 97.8% of students qualify for free meals, 70% above the Virginia average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.

Enrollment of 441 puts it in the smaller third of Virginia schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,868 scored Virginia schools.

Against 290 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #178.

Its student body is led by African American (57%) and Hispanic or Latino (18%) (diversity index 62/100).

Counselor access is stretched at roughly 441 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.

Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 21.1% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.

Its district draws 19.3% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Among Norfolk's public schools, it stands alongside Crossroads Prek-8 School (790 students): Willard Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (11.9:1 vs 12.5:1).

Norfolk City Public Schools also operates Granby High (1,980 students) and Matthew Fontaine Maury High (1,713 students) alongside Willard Elementary.

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 Willard Elementary compares

Willard Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Virginia and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Virginia Virginia avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 11.9:1 ▼ 14% 13.9:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 97.8% ▲ 70% 57.6% 51.7%
Enrollment 441 top 68% - -

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

11.9:1
Leaner classes than 76% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
441
Bigger than 54% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
97.8%
free-lunch eligible - 70% above the Virginia average of 57.6%
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
11.9:1
students per teacher - 14% below state mean
Top 20% in Virginia - lower ratio than 80% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
21.1%
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
$15,139
per pupil, district-wide - above Virginia avg of $14,649
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 441 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
15
in-school suspensions + 14 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.6 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

African American 56.9%
Hispanic or Latino 17.9%
White 13.8%
Two or More 10.0%
Asian 1.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%

Largest group: African American at 56.9% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 61.5/100

Simpson diversity index - at 61.5, Willard Elementary is more mixed than the Virginia school average of 53.7.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Norfolk City Public Schools, which includes Willard Elementary.

$15,139
Per student
+3%
vs Virginia
Avg $14,649
-9%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 34.5%
State 46.2%
Federal 19.3%

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 Willard Elementary Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Granby High Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Matthew Fontaine Maury High Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Norview High Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Norview Middle Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Blair Middle Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio

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

Other Schools in This District

Norfolk City Public Schools · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar other schools in Norfolk

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 Virginia, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Willard Elementary'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 Willard Elementary

How many students attend Willard Elementary?

Willard Elementary has 441 students enrolled. It is a public school in Norfolk, VA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Willard Elementary?

The student-teacher ratio at Willard Elementary is 11.9:1, which is 14% lower than the Virginia average of 13.9:1 and 24% 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 Willard Elementary?

97.8% of students at Willard Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Virginia average of 57.6%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Willard Elementary?

The largest demographic group at Willard Elementary is African American at 56.9% of enrollment, in Norfolk, VA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 61.5/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Willard Elementary?

Willard Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (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 Willard Elementary rank among schools in Norfolk?

By Resource Investment Index, Willard Elementary ranks #16 of 29 schools in Norfolk, VA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Norfolk on the city page.

Is Willard Elementary a good school?

Willard Elementary earns 45/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 80% of Virginia 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 Norfolk City Public Schools?

Besides Willard Elementary, Norfolk City Public Schools also operates Granby High (1,980 students), Matthew Fontaine Maury High (1,713 students), and Norview High (1,585 students). See the Norfolk City Public Schools 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.