Enrollment
1,375
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 481611006235
Cook Middle — Houston, TX
Federal NCES profile for Cook Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 35/100.
👥 Class size 37
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 34
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: Cypress-Fairbanks Isd · Texas
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)
91.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.7:1
vs 14.6:1 Texas avg
+8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
57.1%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
-8% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Cook Middle compares with Texas 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
Cook Middle reports 1,375 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 91.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 8% above the Texas state mean of 14.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 1% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 57.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 8% below the Texas average and 10% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 500 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 26.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Cypress-Fairbanks Isd spends $14,636 per pupil district-wide, below the Texas average of $17,150 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 56.0% from local sources (property taxes), 28.5% from the state, and 15.5% 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 Cook Middle compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Texas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.7:1 | ▲ 8% | 14.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 57.1% | ▼ 8% | 61.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,375 | top 94% | — | — |
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
57.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 8% below the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.7:1
students per teacher
— 8% above state mean
Top 67% in Texas — lower ratio than 33% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
26.5%
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
$14,636
per pupil, district-wide
— below Texas avg of $17,150
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.8 FTE
Per 500 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
305
in-school suspensions + 200 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 22.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 36.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
Overview
Enrollment 1,375 Top 94% in Texas — larger than 6% of 9,061 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 91.0
Students per teacher 15.7:1 +8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 57.1% -8% vs state
NCES ID 481611006235
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 59.5%
White 14.8%
African American 12.7%
Asian 9.2%
Two or More 2.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 59.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.8
Students per counselor 500:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 26.5%
In-school suspensions 305
Out-of-school suspensions 200
Expulsions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cypress-Fairbanks Isd, which includes Cook Middle.
$14,636
Per student
-15%
vs Texas
Avg $17,150
-25%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 56.0%
State 28.5%
Federal 15.5%
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
- 3,707
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
- Enrollment
- 3,469
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
- Enrollment
- 3,463
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
- Enrollment
- 3,323
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Enrollment
- 3,222
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
Similar middle schools in Houston
6 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
Lanier Middle
Standard public school
1,485 students 20.2:1 students per teacher
Aragon Middle
Standard public school
1,424 students 16.3:1 students per teacher
Burbank Middle
Standard public school
1,412 students 18.2:1 students per teacher
Black Middle
Standard public school
1,364 students 19:1 students per teacher
C E King Middle
Standard public school
1,359 students 16.8:1 students per teacher
Truitt Middle
Standard public school
1,353 students 14.5:1 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 Cook Middle
How many students attend Cook Middle?
Cook Middle has 1,375 students enrolled. It is a middle school in HOUSTON, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Cook Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Cook Middle is 15.7:1, which is 8% higher than the Texas average of 14.6:1 and 1% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Cook Middle?
57.1% of students at Cook Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Cook Middle?
The largest demographic group at Cook Middle is Hispanic or Latino at 59.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in HOUSTON, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Cook Middle?
Cook 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.