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Niles, Michigan - 11 schools
An equity score of 48/100 ranks Niles Community Schools #370 of 707 districts in Michigan (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $11,915 per pupil, Niles Community Schools ranks #568 of 821 Michigan districts by per-pupil spending (Michigan districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
3,303
Total Enrollment
11
Schools
$11,915
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Niles Community Schools operates 11 public schools serving 3,303 students, placing it among the smaller districts in Michigan. The school portfolio breaks down into 5 combined, 3 high, 2 elementary, 1 middle schools, a compact enough portfolio that families can compare every campus directly before they move, rent, or enrol. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Berrien County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $11,915 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 821 Michigan districts by per-pupil spending. See how Michigan compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 19.6% local, 69.2% state, and 11.2% federal, a state-revenue-heavy mix that insulates the district somewhat from local property-tax volatility, though it ties funding to state budget cycles. The district's equity score is 48/100, ranked #370 of 707 in Michigan against a state average of 50, in line with the typical spread seen across the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 11 schools offering Advanced Placement (9 AP courses district-wide), a 367.5:1 student-counselor ratio, well above the ASCA benchmark though still under the roughly 408:1 national average, and 32.8% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 70.1% White, 10.1% African American, 7.7% Hispanic or Latino across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Ballard Elementary School, with a diversity index of 58.7/100.
Its largest campus is Niles Senior High School, enrolling 828 students (27% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Northside Child Development Center, at 13 students, a 64x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Niles Senior High School accounts for 25.1% of all Niles Community Schools student enrollment
That concentration means Niles Community Schools-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: high. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Niles Community Schools school enrollment varies 64× across entities
Niles Community Schools school enrollment ranges from 13 students (lowest) to 828 students (highest), a spread of 815 students. That ratio is an extreme outlier spread — among the widest gaps observed anywhere in this dataset. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Niles Community Schools has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 58.1% of the population qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch
free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is the federal threshold for Title I funding allocations, established under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). Areas above 75% eligibility receive concentration grants on top of the basic Title I formula. Regions with eligibility this high typically draw a substantially larger federal funding share relative to their local tax base, which can either offset or reinforce existing gaps depending on allocation policy.
Niles Community Schools student-counselor ratio is 368:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Niles Community Schools chronic absenteeism rate is 32.8% — high (typically associated with higher-than-average disruption; recent CRDC data showed elevated rates persisting after pandemic-era schooling changes)
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Niles Community Schools has 11 schools, including 3 high, 2 elementary, 5 combined, 1 middle. Total enrollment is 3,303 students.
How much does Niles Community Schools spend per student?
Niles Community Schools spends $11,915 per student. The district has an equity score of 48/100, ranking #370 in Michigan.
What is the demographic composition of Niles Community Schools?
Niles Community Schools students are 70.1% White, 10.1% African American, 7.7% Hispanic or Latino, 0.2% Asian, averaged across 11 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Niles Community Schools?
Niles Community Schools has an equity score of 48/100, ranking #370 out of 707 districts in Michigan.