Enrollment
659
Washington · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 530732001250
Chief Joseph Middle School — Richland, WA
Federal NCES profile for Chief Joseph Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 47/100.
👥 Class size 18
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 56
📋 Attendance 42
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: Richland School District · Washington
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)
34.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.5:1
vs 17.8:1 Washington avg
+15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
60.5%
vs 45.0% Washington avg
+34% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Chief Joseph Middle School compares with Washington 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
Chief Joseph Middle School reports 659 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 34.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 20.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 15% above the Washington state mean of 17.8:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 29% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 60.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 34% above the Washington average and 17% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 220 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 23.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Richland School District spends $18,933 per pupil district-wide, below the Washington average of $23,175 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 24.0% from local sources (property taxes), 65.7% from the state, and 10.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 47/100 (D), 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 Chief Joseph Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Washington state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Washington | Washington avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.5:1 | ▲ 15% | 17.8:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 60.5% | ▲ 34% | 45.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 659 | top 84% | — | — |
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
60.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 34% above the Washington average of 45.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
20.5:1
students per teacher
— 15% above state mean
Top 83% in Washington — lower ratio than 17% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
23.1%
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
$18,933
per pupil, district-wide
— below Washington avg of $23,175
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 220 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
21
in-school suspensions + 48 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 659 Top 84% in Washington — larger than 16% of 2,465 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 34.0
Students per teacher 20.5:1 +15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 60.5% +34% vs state
NCES ID 530732001250
Student demographics
White 60.9%
Hispanic or Latino 26.4%
Two or More 7.8%
Asian 2.3%
African American 1.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.5%
Largest group: White at 60.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.0
Students per counselor 220:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 23.1%
In-school suspensions 21
Out-of-school suspensions 48
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Richland School District, which includes Chief Joseph Middle School.
$18,933
Per student
-18%
vs Washington
Avg $23,175
-3%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 24.0%
State 65.7%
Federal 10.3%
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
- 2,218
- Students per teacher
- 22.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,959
- Students per teacher
- 21.5:1
- Enrollment
- 805
- Students per teacher
- 22.2:1
- Enrollment
- 791
- Students per teacher
- 19.7:1
- Enrollment
- 756
- Students per teacher
- 33:1
Similar middle schools in Richland
1 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) 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 Chief Joseph Middle School
How many students attend Chief Joseph Middle School?
Chief Joseph Middle School has 659 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Richland, WA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Chief Joseph Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Chief Joseph Middle School is 20.5:1, which is 15% higher than the Washington average of 17.8:1 and 29% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Chief Joseph Middle School?
60.5% of students at Chief Joseph Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Washington average of 45.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Chief Joseph Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Chief Joseph Middle School is White at 60.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in Richland, WA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Chief Joseph Middle School?
Chief Joseph Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 47/100 (D) 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.