Enrollment
345
New Jersey · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 340240000046
Buena Regional Middle School — Buena, NJ
Federal NCES profile for Buena Regional Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 65/100.
👥 Class size 66
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 66
📋 Attendance 58
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: Buena Regional School District · New Jersey
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
8.5:1
vs 11.9:1 New Jersey avg
-29% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
50.4%
vs 29.6% New Jersey avg
+70% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Buena Regional Middle School compares with New Jersey 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
Buena Regional Middle School reports 345 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 40.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 8.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 29% below the New Jersey state mean of 11.9:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 47% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 50.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 70% above the New Jersey average and 3% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 173 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 16.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Buena Regional School District spends $31,927 per pupil district-wide, above the New Jersey average of $29,189 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 35.3% from local sources (property taxes), 55.4% from the state, and 9.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 65/100 (B-), 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 Buena Regional Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against New Jersey state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs New Jersey | New Jersey avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 8.5:1 | ▼ 29% | 11.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 50.4% | ▲ 70% | 29.6% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 345 | top 34% | — | — |
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
50.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 70% above the New Jersey average of 29.6%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
8.5:1
students per teacher
— 29% below state mean
Top 10% in New Jersey — lower ratio than 90% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
16.8%
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
$31,927
per pupil, district-wide
— above New Jersey avg of $29,189
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 173 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
44
in-school suspensions + 41 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 12.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 24.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 345 Top 34% in New Jersey — larger than 66% of 2,509 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 40.0
Students per teacher 8.5:1 -29% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 50.4% +70% vs state
NCES ID 340240000046
Student demographics
White 53.0%
Hispanic or Latino 30.7%
African American 12.5%
Asian 1.7%
Two or More 1.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 53.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 173:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 16.8%
In-school suspensions 44
Out-of-school suspensions 41
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Buena Regional School District, which includes Buena Regional Middle School.
$31,927
Per student
+9%
vs New Jersey
Avg $29,189
+64%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 35.3%
State 55.4%
Federal 9.3%
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
- 491
- Students per teacher
- 11.3:1
- Enrollment
- 320
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Enrollment
- 221
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Enrollment
- 192
- Students per teacher
- 11.2:1
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 Buena Regional Middle School
How many students attend Buena Regional Middle School?
Buena Regional Middle School has 345 students enrolled. It is a middle school in BUENA, NJ.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Buena Regional Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Buena Regional Middle School is 8.5:1, which is 29% lower than the New Jersey average of 11.9:1 and 47% 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 Buena Regional Middle School?
50.4% of students at Buena Regional Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the New Jersey average of 29.6%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Buena Regional Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Buena Regional Middle School is White at 53.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in BUENA, NJ.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Buena Regional Middle School?
Buena Regional Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 65/100 (B-) 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.