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Palmerton, Pennsylvania - 5 schools
An equity score of 51/100 ranks Palmerton Area Sd #296 of 648 districts in Pennsylvania (state average 49). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $16,623 per pupil, Palmerton Area Sd ranks #401 of 671 Pennsylvania districts by per-pupil spending (Pennsylvania districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
1,651
Total Enrollment
5
Schools
$16,623
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Palmerton Area Sd operates 5 public schools serving 1,651 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Pennsylvania. The school portfolio breaks down into 3 elementary, 1 high, 1 middle schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Carbon County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $16,623 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 671 Pennsylvania districts by per-pupil spending. See how Pennsylvania compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 56.4% local, 36.3% state, and 7.2% federal, a local-revenue-heavy mix that leaves the district more exposed to property-tax swings and local ballot measures than state-funded peers. The district's equity score is 51/100, ranked #296 of 648 in Pennsylvania against a state average of 49, in line with the typical spread seen across the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 5 schools offering Advanced Placement (5 AP courses district-wide), a 305.4:1 student-counselor ratio, somewhat above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 33.5% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 87.4% White, 8.8% Hispanic or Latino, 0.8% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Parkside Education Center, with a diversity index of 30.2/100.
Its largest campus is Palmerton Area Hs, enrolling 478 students (30% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Parkside Education Center, at 150 students, a 3x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Palmerton Area Hs accounts for 29.0% of all Palmerton Area Sd student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Palmerton Area Sd-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.
Palmerton Area Sd school enrollment varies 3.2× across entities
Palmerton Area Sd school enrollment ranges from 150 students (lowest) to 478 students (highest), a spread of 328 students. That relatively narrow ratio reflects an unusually homogeneous campus portfolio, most districts have a wider mix of school sizes. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Palmerton Area Sd student-counselor ratio is 305:1 — near the typical range (US average ~408) — within the typical range for U.S. public districts
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 Variation between sub-units within Palmerton Area Sd is typically wider than the Palmerton Area Sd-aggregate figure suggests.
Palmerton Area Sd chronic absenteeism rate is 33.5% — 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.
Palmerton Area Sd has 5 schools, including 1 high, 3 elementary, 1 middle. Total enrollment is 1,651 students.
How much does Palmerton Area Sd spend per student?
Palmerton Area Sd spends $16,623 per student. The district has an equity score of 51/100, ranking #296 in Pennsylvania.
What is the demographic composition of Palmerton Area Sd?
Palmerton Area Sd students are 87.4% White, 8.8% Hispanic or Latino, 0.8% African American, 0.3% Asian, averaged across 5 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Palmerton Area Sd?
Palmerton Area Sd has an equity score of 51/100, ranking #296 out of 648 districts in Pennsylvania.