Enrollment
280
Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Laporte, CO
Cache La Poudre Middle School
Federal NCES profile for Cache La Poudre Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 48/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 080399000524
👥 S:T ratio 44
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 72
📋 Attendance 6
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Cache La Poudre Middle School earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Colorado median.
- 48
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14:1
- students per teacher
- 21.6%
- free-lunch eligible
- 280
- students enrolled
Cache La Poudre Middle School has class sizes near the Colorado median. Computed live against every Colorado school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Poudre School District R-1 · Colorado
NCES ID 080399000524 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
20.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14:1
vs 16.6:1 Colorado avg
-16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
21.6%
vs 38.5% Colorado avg
-44% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Cache La Poudre Middle School compares with Colorado and U.S. medians
What stands out at Cache La Poudre Middle School
Cache La Poudre Middle School is a mid-sized middle school in Laporte, Colorado, enrolling 280 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 14:1 puts it in the smaller third of Colorado schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 21.6% of students eligible for free meals.
With 280 students, its enrollment sits close to the Colorado median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,922 scored Colorado schools.
Against 267 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #96.
Its student body is predominantly White (83% of enrollment) (diversity index 29/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 140 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 37.5% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Discipline events run high: 57 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 280 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 2 expulsions at this campus for 2021-22.
Poudre School District R-1 also operates Rocky Mountain High School (2,044 students) and Fossil Ridge High School (1,846 students) alongside Cache La Poudre 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 Cache La Poudre Middle School compares
Cache La Poudre Middle School on the metrics families compare, against Colorado and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Colorado | Colorado avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14:1 | ▼ 16% | 16.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 21.6% | ▼ 44% | 38.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 280 | top 65% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14:1
Leaner classes than 57% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
280
Bigger than 29% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
21.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 44% below the Colorado average of 38.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
14:1
students per teacher
- 16% below state mean
Top 33% in Colorado - lower ratio than 67% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
37.5%
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
$13,223
per pupil, district-wide
- below Colorado avg of $16,273
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 140 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
36
in-school suspensions + 21 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 12.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 20.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 2 expulsions.
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 83.2%
Hispanic or Latino 12.5%
Two or More 4.3%
Largest group: White at 83.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 29.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 29.0, Cache La Poudre Middle School is less mixed than the Colorado school average of 47.1.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Poudre School District R-1, which includes Cache La Poudre Middle School.
$13,223
Per student
-19%
vs Colorado
Avg $16,273
-20%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 57.5%
State 35.4%
Federal 7.1%
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 Cache La Poudre Middle School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rocky Mountain High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Fossil Ridge High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Fort Collins High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Liberty Common Charter School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Timnath Middle-High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Cache La Poudre Middle School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,044
- Students per teacher
- 19.7:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 1,846
- Students per teacher
- 18.5:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 1,836
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
- Resource Index
- 54/100
- Enrollment
- 1,516
- Students per teacher
- 20.8:1
- Resource Index
- 29/100
- Enrollment
- 1,456
- Students per teacher
- 28:1
- Resource Index
- 0/100
Similar middle schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Colorado, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~280 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~14:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Cache La Poudre Middle School's federal record.
- Compare Cache La Poudre Middle School against another school. Compare schools
- Poudre School District R-1'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 Cache La Poudre Middle School
How many students attend Cache La Poudre Middle School?
Cache La Poudre Middle School has 280 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Laporte, CO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Cache La Poudre Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Cache La Poudre Middle School is 14:1, which is 16% lower than the Colorado average of 16.6:1 and 11% 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 Cache La Poudre Middle School?
21.6% of students at Cache La Poudre Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Cache La Poudre Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Cache La Poudre Middle School is White at 83.2% of enrollment, in Laporte, CO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Cache La Poudre Middle School?
Cache La Poudre Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (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 Cache La Poudre Middle School a good school?
Cache La Poudre Middle School earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Colorado median. 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 Poudre School District R-1?
Besides Cache La Poudre Middle School, Poudre School District R-1 also operates Rocky Mountain High School (2,044 students), Fossil Ridge High School (1,846 students), and Fort Collins High School (1,836 students). See the Poudre School District R-1 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.