Enrollment
163
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 270013002497
Blue Earth Area Middle — Blue Earth, MN
Federal NCES profile for Blue Earth Area Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 35/100.
👥 Class size 53
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 22
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 →
School address
District: Blue Earth Area School District · Minnesota
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)
12.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.7:1
vs 15.9:1 Minnesota avg
-26% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
41.4%
vs 42.8% Minnesota avg
-3% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Blue Earth Area Middle compares with Minnesota 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
Blue Earth Area Middle reports 163 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 12.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 11.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 26% below the Minnesota state mean of 15.9:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 26% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 41.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 3% below the Minnesota average and 20% below the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 31.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Blue Earth Area School District spends $14,395 per pupil district-wide, below the Minnesota average of $21,113 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 22.7% from local sources (property taxes), 63.5% from the state, and 13.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F), calculated from 3 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 Blue Earth Area Middle compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Minnesota state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Minnesota | Minnesota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.7:1 | ▼ 26% | 15.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 41.4% | ▼ 3% | 42.8% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 163 | top 40% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 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
41.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 3% below the Minnesota average of 42.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
11.7:1
students per teacher
— 26% below state mean
Top 26% in Minnesota — lower ratio than 74% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
31.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$14,395
per pupil, district-wide
— below Minnesota avg of $21,113
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
15
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 9.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 163 Top 40% in Minnesota — larger than 60% of 2,391 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 12.0
Students per teacher 11.7:1 -26% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 41.4% -3% vs state
NCES ID 270013002497
Student demographics
White 74.8%
Hispanic or Latino 21.5%
Two or More 3.7%
Largest group: White at 74.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 31.3%
In-school suspensions 15
Out-of-school suspensions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Blue Earth Area School District, which includes Blue Earth Area Middle.
$14,395
Per student
-32%
vs Minnesota
Avg $21,113
-26%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 22.7%
State 63.5%
Federal 13.8%
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
- 515
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Enrollment
- 378
- Students per teacher
- 18.2:1
- Enrollment
- 8
- Students per teacher
- —
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 Blue Earth Area Middle
How many students attend Blue Earth Area Middle?
Blue Earth Area Middle has 163 students enrolled. It is a middle school in BLUE EARTH, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Blue Earth Area Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Blue Earth Area Middle is 11.7:1, which is 26% lower than the Minnesota average of 15.9:1 and 26% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Blue Earth Area Middle?
41.4% of students at Blue Earth Area Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Minnesota average of 42.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Blue Earth Area Middle?
The largest demographic group at Blue Earth Area Middle is White at 74.8%. The school serves a student body in BLUE EARTH, MN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Blue Earth Area Middle?
Blue Earth Area Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (F) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.