Enrollment
158
Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 420471006939
California Area Ms — Coal Center, PA
Federal NCES profile for California Area Ms, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 59/100.
👥 Class size 50
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 79
📋 Attendance 35
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: California Area Sd · Pennsylvania
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)
11.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.5:1
vs 13.5:1 Pennsylvania avg
-7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
58.0%
vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg
-0% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How California Area Ms compares with Pennsylvania 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
California Area Ms reports 158 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 11.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 7% below the Pennsylvania state mean of 13.5:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 21% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 58.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 0% below the Pennsylvania average and 12% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 105 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 25.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding California Area Sd spends $17,667 per pupil district-wide, below the Pennsylvania average of $22,745 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 35.9% from local sources (property taxes), 56.6% from the state, and 7.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 59/100 (C), 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 California Area Ms compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Pennsylvania state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.5:1 | ▼ 7% | 13.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 58.0% | ▼ 0% | 58.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 158 | top 6% | — | — |
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
58.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 0% below the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.5:1
students per teacher
— 7% below state mean
Top 33% in Pennsylvania — lower ratio than 67% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
25.9%
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
$17,667
per pupil, district-wide
— below Pennsylvania avg of $22,745
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.5 FTE
Per 105 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 158 Top 6% in Pennsylvania — larger than 94% of 2,930 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 11.0
Students per teacher 12.5:1 -7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 58.0% -0% vs state
NCES ID 420471006939
Student demographics
White 82.9%
Two or More 10.1%
Hispanic or Latino 3.8%
African American 2.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.6%
Largest group: White at 82.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.5
Students per counselor 105:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 25.9%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 4
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for California Area Sd, which includes California Area Ms.
$17,667
Per student
-22%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $22,745
-9%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 35.9%
State 56.6%
Federal 7.4%
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
- 485
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
- Enrollment
- 290
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
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 California Area Ms
How many students attend California Area Ms?
California Area Ms has 158 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Coal Center, PA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at California Area Ms?
The student-teacher ratio at California Area Ms is 12.5:1, which is 7% lower than the Pennsylvania average of 13.5:1 and 21% 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 California Area Ms?
58.0% of students at California Area Ms are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of California Area Ms?
The largest demographic group at California Area Ms is White at 82.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in Coal Center, PA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for California Area Ms?
California Area Ms has a Resource Investment Index of 59/100 (C) 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.