Enrollment
419
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 190336000034
Algona Middle School — Algona, IA
Federal NCES profile for Algona Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 46/100.
👥 Class size 41
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 16
📋 Attendance 55
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
The verdict
Algona Middle School earns a D Resource Investment Index (46/100), with class sizes near the Iowa median.
- D
- Resource Index · 46/100
- 14.7:1
- students per teacher
- 32.7%
- free-lunch eligible
- 419
- students enrolled
School address
District: Algona Comm School District · Iowa
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
30.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.7:1
vs 15:1 Iowa avg
-2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
32.7%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
-10% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Algona Middle School compares with Iowa and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Algona Middle School reports 419 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 30.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 2% below the Iowa state mean of 15:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.7:1, it is 6% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 32.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 10% below the Iowa average and 37% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 419 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 17.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Algona Comm School District spends $12,427 per pupil district-wide, below the Iowa average of $12,854 and below the national average of $16,593. Revenue comes 48.9% from local sources (property taxes), 40.9% from the state, and 10.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (D), calculated from 4 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Algona Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Iowa state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.7:1 | ▼ 2% | 15:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 32.7% | ▼ 10% | 36.4% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 419 | top 70% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
Class size vs. every US school
Students per teacher (lower means more individual attention)
15 smaller classes than 52% of 92,598 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25
School size vs. every US school
Total enrollment — where this school sits by size (neither large nor small is 'better')
419 larger than 50% of 95,891 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
32.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 10% below the Iowa average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
14.7:1
students per teacher
— 2% below state mean
Top 59% in Iowa — lower ratio than 41% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
17.9%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$12,427
per pupil, district-wide
— below Iowa avg of $12,854
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 419 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
116
in-school suspensions + 11 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 27.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 30.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 419 Top 70% in Iowa — larger than 30% of 1,326 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 30.0
Students per teacher 14.7:1 -2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 32.7% -10% vs state
NCES ID 190336000034
Student demographics
White 87.1%
Hispanic or Latino 11.0%
Asian 1.0%
Two or More 0.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 87.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 419:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 17.9%
In-school suspensions 116
Out-of-school suspensions 11
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Algona Comm School District, which includes Algona Middle School.
$12,427
Per student
-3%
vs Iowa
Avg $12,854
-25%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 48.9%
State 40.9%
Federal 10.2%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 458
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Enrollment
- 283
- Students per teacher
- 22.7:1
- Enrollment
- 226
- Students per teacher
- 15.3:1
- Enrollment
- 197
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
Similar elementary schools in Algona
2 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Algona Middle School
How many students attend Algona Middle School?
Algona Middle School has 419 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Algona, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Algona Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Algona Middle School is 14.7:1, which is 2% lower than the Iowa average of 15:1 and 6% 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 Algona Middle School?
32.7% of students at Algona Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Algona Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Algona Middle School is White at 87.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in Algona, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Algona Middle School?
Algona Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (D) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.
Is Algona Middle School a good school?
Algona Middle School earns a D Resource Investment Index (46/100), with class sizes near the Iowa median. The Resource Investment Index reflects staffing, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance reported to NCES, not test scores or academic outcomes, so treat it as a resource snapshot rather than an overall rating.