Middle school (grades 6-8) · Colby, WI

Colby Middle

Federal NCES profile for Colby Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 37/100.

2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 550273001226
0/100100/10037/100
👥 S:T ratio
49
🌟 Gifted program
30
🎓 Counselors
59
📋 Attendance
12
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Colby Middle earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Wisconsin median.

#1 of 4
public schools in Colby · Resource Index
37
Resource Index · Typical
12.8:1
students per teacher
51.2%
free-lunch eligible

Colby Middle has class sizes near the Wisconsin median. Computed live against every Wisconsin school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Colby Middle ranks #1 of 4 public schools in Colby, WI.

School address

Enrollment

204

Wisconsin · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

16.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

12.8:1

vs 14.4:1 Wisconsin avg

-11% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

51.2%

vs 38.5% Wisconsin avg

+33% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Colby Middle compares with Wisconsin and U.S. medians

At or below state median
0:135:112.8:1

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Colby Middle

Colby Middle is a higher-need, mid-sized middle school in Colby, Wisconsin, enrolling 204 students.

At 12.8:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Wisconsin median, within a few percentage points of the 14.4:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.

Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 51.2% of students eligible for free meals.

Enrollment of 204 puts it in the smaller third of Wisconsin schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,202 scored Wisconsin schools.

Among 226 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Wisconsin schools statewide, it ranks #181, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is led by White (55%) and Hispanic or Latino (42%) (diversity index 52/100).

Counselor coverage is strong, about 204 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 35.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Colby School District also operates Colby Elementary (354 students) and Colby High (306 students) alongside Colby Middle.

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 Colby Middle compares

Colby Middle on the metrics families compare, against Wisconsin and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Wisconsin Wisconsin avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 12.8:1 ▼ 11% 14.4:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 51.2% ▲ 33% 38.5% 51.7%
Enrollment 204 top 69% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

12.8:1
Leaner classes than 68% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
204
Bigger than 20% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
51.2%
free-lunch eligible - 33% above the Wisconsin average of 38.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.8:1
students per teacher - 11% below state mean
Top 44% in Wisconsin - lower ratio than 56% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
35.3%
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
$13,827
per pupil, district-wide - below Wisconsin avg of $14,919
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 204 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 11 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.

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 55.4%
Hispanic or Latino 41.7%
Two or More 1.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.0%
Asian 0.5%

Largest group: White at 55.4% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 51.9/100

Simpson diversity index - at 51.9, Colby Middle is more mixed than the Wisconsin school average of 35.7.

Programs

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Colby School District, which includes Colby Middle.

$13,827
Per student
-7%
vs Wisconsin
Avg $14,919
-17%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 29.4%
State 57.9%
Federal 12.7%

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 Colby Middle Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Colby Elementary Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Colby High Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Little Stars Pre-School Smaller Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Colby Middle's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Colby School District · 3 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar middle schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Wisconsin, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Colby Middle's federal record.

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 Colby Middle

How many students attend Colby Middle?

Colby Middle has 204 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Colby, WI.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Colby Middle?

The student-teacher ratio at Colby Middle is 12.8:1, which is 11% lower than the Wisconsin average of 14.4:1 and 18% 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 Colby Middle?

51.2% of students at Colby Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Wisconsin average of 38.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Colby Middle?

The largest demographic group at Colby Middle is White at 55.4% of enrollment, in Colby, WI. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 51.9/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Colby Middle?

Colby Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (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).

How does Colby Middle rank among public schools in Colby?

By Resource Investment Index, Colby Middle ranks #1 of 4 public schools in Colby, WI. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Colby on the city page.

Is Colby Middle a good school?

Colby Middle earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Wisconsin 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 Colby School District?

Besides Colby Middle, Colby School District also operates Colby Elementary (354 students), Colby High (306 students), and Little Stars Pre-School (37 students). See the Colby School District district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.