Enrollment
791
South Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 450270001493
Carolina Springs Middle — Lexington, SC
Federal NCES profile for Carolina Springs Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 32/100.
👥 Class size 45
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 13
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: Lexington 01 · South Carolina
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)
66.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.8:1
vs 14.3:1 South Carolina avg
-3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
40.9%
vs 74.0% South Carolina avg
-45% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Carolina Springs Middle compares with South Carolina 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
Carolina Springs Middle reports 791 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 66.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 13.8:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 3% below the South Carolina state mean of 14.3:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 13% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 40.9% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 45% below the South Carolina average and 21% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 791 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 34.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Lexington 01 spends $16,643 per pupil district-wide, below the South Carolina average of $17,182 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 40.8% from local sources (property taxes), 51.0% from the state, and 8.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (F), 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 Carolina Springs Middle compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against South Carolina state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs South Carolina | South Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.8:1 | ▼ 3% | 14.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 40.9% | ▼ 45% | 74.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 791 | top 75% | — | — |
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
40.9%
free-lunch eligible
— 45% below the South Carolina average of 74.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
13.8:1
students per teacher
— 3% below state mean
Top 45% in South Carolina — lower ratio than 55% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
34.8%
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
$16,643
per pupil, district-wide
— below South Carolina avg of $17,182
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 791 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
94
in-school suspensions + 27 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 11.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 15.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 20 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 791 Top 75% in South Carolina — larger than 25% of 1,215 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 66.0
Students per teacher 13.8:1 -3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 40.9% -45% vs state
NCES ID 450270001493
Student demographics
White 48.3%
African American 30.6%
Hispanic or Latino 12.4%
Two or More 7.0%
Asian 1.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Largest group: White at 48.3% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 791:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 34.8%
In-school suspensions 94
Out-of-school suspensions 27
Expulsions 20
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Lexington 01, which includes Carolina Springs Middle.
$16,643
Per student
-3%
vs South Carolina
Avg $17,182
-15%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 40.8%
State 51.0%
Federal 8.2%
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
- 2,536
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Enrollment
- 2,117
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
- Enrollment
- 2,025
- Students per teacher
- 16.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,138
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
- Enrollment
- 1,033
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
Similar middle schools in Lexington
4 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
Beechwood Middle
Standard public school
1,033 students 14.7:1 students per teacher
Lakeside Middle
Standard public school
893 students 13.8:1 students per teacher
Meadow Glen Middle
Standard public school
778 students 12.1:1 students per teacher
Pleasant Hill Middle
Standard public school
750 students 13.4:1 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 Carolina Springs Middle
How many students attend Carolina Springs Middle?
Carolina Springs Middle has 791 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Lexington, SC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Carolina Springs Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Carolina Springs Middle is 13.8:1, which is 3% lower than the South Carolina average of 14.3:1 and 13% 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 Carolina Springs Middle?
40.9% of students at Carolina Springs Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the South Carolina average of 74.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Carolina Springs Middle?
The largest demographic group at Carolina Springs Middle is White at 48.3%. The school serves a diverse student body in Lexington, SC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Carolina Springs Middle?
Carolina Springs Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (F) 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.