Enrollment
674
Wisconsin · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 550921002927 Charter school
Bridges Virtual Academy — Merrill, WI
Federal NCES profile for Bridges Virtual Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 52/100.
👥 Class size 27
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 98
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: Merrill Area School District · Wisconsin
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)
40.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.3:1
vs 15.1:1 Wisconsin avg
+21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
24.1%
vs 38.5% Wisconsin avg
-37% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Bridges Virtual Academy compares with Wisconsin 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
Bridges Virtual Academy reports 674 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 40.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 18.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 21% above the Wisconsin state mean of 15.1:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 15% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 24.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 37% below the Wisconsin average and 53% below the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 0.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Merrill Area School District spends $14,829 per pupil district-wide, below the Wisconsin average of $18,610 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 39.3% from local sources (property taxes), 48.5% from the state, and 12.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 52/100 (C-), 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 Bridges Virtual Academy compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Wisconsin state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Wisconsin | Wisconsin avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.3:1 | ▲ 21% | 15.1:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 24.1% | ▼ 37% | 38.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 674 | top 89% | — | — |
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
24.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 37% below the Wisconsin average of 38.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
18.3:1
students per teacher
— 21% above state mean
Top 91% in Wisconsin — lower ratio than 9% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
0.9%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$14,829
per pupil, district-wide
— below Wisconsin avg of $18,610
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
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 674 Top 89% in Wisconsin — larger than 11% of 2,205 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 40.0
Students per teacher 18.3:1 +21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 24.1% -37% vs state
NCES ID 550921002927
Student demographics
White 80.9%
Hispanic or Latino 8.2%
Two or More 6.8%
African American 2.1%
Asian 1.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: White at 80.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 0.9%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Merrill Area School District, which includes Bridges Virtual Academy.
$14,829
Per student
-20%
vs Wisconsin
Avg $18,610
-24%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 39.3%
State 48.5%
Federal 12.2%
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
- 756
- Students per teacher
- 16.7:1
- Enrollment
- 507
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Enrollment
- 337
- Students per teacher
- 11.7:1
- Enrollment
- 257
- Students per teacher
- 12.1:1
- Enrollment
- 124
- Students per teacher
- 21.4:1
Similar other schools in Merrill
1 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) 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 Bridges Virtual Academy
How many students attend Bridges Virtual Academy?
Bridges Virtual Academy has 674 students enrolled. It is a other school in Merrill, WI.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Bridges Virtual Academy?
The student-teacher ratio at Bridges Virtual Academy is 18.3:1, which is 21% higher than the Wisconsin average of 15.1:1 and 15% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Bridges Virtual Academy?
24.1% of students at Bridges Virtual Academy are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Wisconsin average of 38.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Bridges Virtual Academy?
The largest demographic group at Bridges Virtual Academy is White at 80.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in Merrill, WI.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Bridges Virtual Academy?
Bridges Virtual Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 52/100 (C-) 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.