Enrollment
418
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Huxley, IA
Ballard Middle School
Federal NCES profile for Ballard Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 43/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 190420000106
👥 S:T ratio 38
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 16
📋 Attendance 47
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Ballard Middle School earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 72% of Iowa schools.
- 43
- Resource Index · Typical
- 15.5:1
- large classes for Iowa
- 12.5%
- free-lunch eligible
- 418
- students enrolled
Ballard Middle School has class sizes larger than 72% of Iowa schools. Computed live against every Iowa school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Ballard Comm School District · Iowa
NCES ID 190420000106 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
27.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.5:1
vs 14.8:1 Iowa avg
+5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
12.5%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
-66% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Ballard Middle School compares with Iowa and U.S. medians
What stands out at Ballard Middle School
Ballard Middle School is a lower-poverty, mid-sized middle school in Huxley, Iowa, enrolling 418 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 15.5:1 puts it in the larger third of Iowa schools by student-teacher ratio.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 12.5% free-meal eligibility runs 66% below the Iowa average.
Enrollment of 418 puts it in the larger third of Iowa schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,322 scored Iowa schools.
Among 217 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Iowa schools statewide, it ranks #165, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly White (93% of enrollment) (diversity index 14/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 418 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 21.3% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Ballard Comm School District also operates Ballard High School (586 students) and Ballard West Elementary (451 students) alongside Ballard Middle School.
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 Ballard Middle School compares
Ballard Middle 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 | 15.5:1 | ▲ 5% | 14.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 12.5% | ▼ 66% | 36.4% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 418 | top 30% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
15.5:1
Leaner classes than 42% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
418
Bigger than 50% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
12.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 66% below the Iowa average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15.5:1
students per teacher
- 5% above state mean
Top 72% in Iowa - lower ratio than 28% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
21.3%
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
$11,121
per pupil, district-wide
- below Iowa avg of $12,854
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 418 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
24
in-school suspensions + 13 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 8.9 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
White 92.6%
Hispanic or Latino 3.3%
Two or More 2.6%
African American 1.0%
Asian 0.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 92.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 14.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 14.1, Ballard Middle School is less mixed than the Iowa school average of 33.8.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Ballard Comm School District, which includes Ballard Middle School.
$11,121
Per student
-13%
vs Iowa
Avg $12,854
-33%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 43.0%
State 49.4%
Federal 7.5%
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 Ballard Middle School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ballard High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Ballard West Elementary | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Ballard East Elementary | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Ballard Middle School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 586
- Students per teacher
- 17.8:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
- Enrollment
- 451
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
- Enrollment
- 417
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
Similar middle 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 (~418 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~15.5:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Ballard Middle School's federal record.
- Compare Ballard Middle School against another school. Compare schools
- Ballard 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 Ballard Middle School
How many students attend Ballard Middle School?
Ballard Middle School has 418 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Huxley, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ballard Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Ballard Middle School is 15.5:1, which is 5% higher than the Iowa average of 14.8:1 and 1% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Ballard Middle School?
12.5% of students at Ballard Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Ballard Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Ballard Middle School is White at 92.6% of enrollment, in Huxley, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Ballard Middle School?
Ballard Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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).
Is Ballard Middle School a good school?
Ballard Middle School earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 72% of Iowa 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 Ballard Comm School District?
Besides Ballard Middle School, Ballard Comm School District also operates Ballard High School (586 students), Ballard West Elementary (451 students), and Ballard East Elementary (417 students). See the Ballard 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, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.