Enrollment
589
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 370201002456
Coats-Erwin Middle — Dunn, NC
Federal NCES profile for Coats-Erwin Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 35/100.
👥 Class size 29
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 41
📋 Attendance 0
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: Harnett County Schools · North 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)
34.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.8:1
vs 16.4:1 North Carolina avg
+9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
64.0%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
-3% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Coats-Erwin Middle compares with North 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
Coats-Erwin Middle reports 589 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 34.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.8:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 9% above the North Carolina state mean of 16.4:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 12% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 64.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 3% below the North Carolina average and 24% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 295 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 61.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Harnett County Schools spends $11,473 per pupil district-wide, below the North Carolina average of $13,042 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 13.4% from local sources (property taxes), 62.0% from the state, and 24.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (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 Coats-Erwin Middle compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against North 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 North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.8:1 | ▲ 9% | 16.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 64.0% | ▼ 3% | 66.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 589 | top 63% | — | — |
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
64.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 3% below the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
17.8:1
students per teacher
— 9% above state mean
Top 82% in North Carolina — lower ratio than 18% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
61.6%
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
$11,473
per pupil, district-wide
— below North Carolina avg of $13,042
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 295 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
149
in-school suspensions + 113 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 25.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 44.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 6 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 589 Top 63% in North Carolina — larger than 37% of 2,703 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 34.0
Students per teacher 17.8:1 +9% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 64.0% -3% vs state
NCES ID 370201002456
Student demographics
White 41.8%
Hispanic or Latino 35.7%
African American 17.7%
Two or More 4.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.7%
Asian 0.2%
Largest group: White at 41.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 295:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 61.6%
In-school suspensions 149
Out-of-school suspensions 113
Expulsions 6
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Harnett County Schools, which includes Coats-Erwin Middle.
$11,473
Per student
-12%
vs North Carolina
Avg $13,042
-41%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 13.4%
State 62.0%
Federal 24.6%
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
- 1,981
- Students per teacher
- 19.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,522
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
- Enrollment
- 1,324
- Students per teacher
- 19:1
- Enrollment
- 1,274
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,065
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
Similar middle schools in Dunn
2 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 Coats-Erwin Middle
How many students attend Coats-Erwin Middle?
Coats-Erwin Middle has 589 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Dunn, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Coats-Erwin Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Coats-Erwin Middle is 17.8:1, which is 9% higher than the North Carolina average of 16.4:1 and 12% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Coats-Erwin Middle?
64.0% of students at Coats-Erwin Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Coats-Erwin Middle?
The largest demographic group at Coats-Erwin Middle is White at 41.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Dunn, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Coats-Erwin Middle?
Coats-Erwin Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (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.