Enrollment
383
Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Cheswick, PA
Deer Lakes Ms
Federal NCES profile for Deer Lakes Ms, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 47/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 420754000431
👥 S:T ratio 55
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 23
📋 Attendance 41
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Deer Lakes Ms earns 47/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 81% of Pennsylvania schools.
- #2 of 4
- public schools in Cheswick · Resource Index
- 47
- Resource Index · Typical
- 11.3:1
- small classes for Pennsylvania
- 35.1%
- free-lunch eligible
Deer Lakes Ms has class sizes smaller than 81% of Pennsylvania schools. Computed live against every Pennsylvania school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Deer Lakes Ms ranks #2 of 4 public schools in Cheswick, PA.
School address
District: Deer Lakes Sd · Pennsylvania
NCES ID 420754000431 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
34.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.3:1
vs 13.6:1 Pennsylvania avg
-17% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
35.1%
vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg
-40% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Deer Lakes Ms compares with Pennsylvania and U.S. medians
What stands out at Deer Lakes Ms
Deer Lakes Ms is a mid-sized middle school in Cheswick, Pennsylvania, enrolling 383 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11.3:1 puts it in the smaller third of Pennsylvania schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 35.1% of students eligible for free meals.
With 383 students, its enrollment sits close to the Pennsylvania median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,889 scored Pennsylvania schools.
Against 595 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #382.
Its student body is predominantly White (93% of enrollment) (diversity index 13/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 383 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 23.8% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Deer Lakes Sd also operates Deer Lakes Hs (581 students) and Curtisville Pri Ctr (390 students) alongside Deer Lakes Ms.
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 Deer Lakes Ms compares
Deer Lakes Ms on the metrics families compare, against Pennsylvania and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.3:1 | ▼ 17% | 13.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 35.1% | ▼ 40% | 58.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 383 | top 63% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.3:1
Leaner classes than 81% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
383
Bigger than 45% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
35.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 40% below the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
11.3:1
students per teacher
- 17% below state mean
Top 19% in Pennsylvania - lower ratio than 81% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
23.8%
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
$18,445
per pupil, district-wide
- above Pennsylvania avg of $17,970
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 383 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
7
in-school suspensions + 10 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.4 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 93.0%
Two or More 3.7%
Hispanic or Latino 2.3%
African American 1.0%
Largest group: White at 93.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 13.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 13.3, Deer Lakes Ms is less mixed than the Pennsylvania school average of 37.3.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Deer Lakes Sd, which includes Deer Lakes Ms.
$18,445
Per student
+3%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $17,970
+11%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 58.6%
State 34.5%
Federal 7.0%
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 Deer Lakes Ms Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deer Lakes Hs | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Curtisville Pri Ctr | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| East Union Intrmd Sch | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Deer Lakes Ms's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 581
- Students per teacher
- 15.3:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 390
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Resource Index
- 48/100
- Enrollment
- 335
- Students per teacher
- 11.2:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
Similar middle schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Pennsylvania, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~383 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11.3:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Deer Lakes Ms's federal record.
- Compare Deer Lakes Ms against another school. Compare schools
- Deer Lakes Sd's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
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 Deer Lakes Ms
How many students attend Deer Lakes Ms?
Deer Lakes Ms has 383 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Cheswick, PA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Deer Lakes Ms?
The student-teacher ratio at Deer Lakes Ms is 11.3:1, which is 17% lower than the Pennsylvania average of 13.6:1 and 28% 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 Deer Lakes Ms?
35.1% of students at Deer Lakes Ms are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Deer Lakes Ms?
The largest demographic group at Deer Lakes Ms is White at 93.0% of enrollment, in Cheswick, PA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Deer Lakes Ms?
Deer Lakes Ms has a Resource Investment Index of 47/100 (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 Deer Lakes Ms rank among public schools in Cheswick?
By Resource Investment Index, Deer Lakes Ms ranks #2 of 4 public schools in Cheswick, PA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Cheswick on the city page.
Is Deer Lakes Ms a good school?
Deer Lakes Ms earns 47/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 81% of Pennsylvania schools. 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 Deer Lakes Sd?
Besides Deer Lakes Ms, Deer Lakes Sd also operates Deer Lakes Hs (581 students), Curtisville Pri Ctr (390 students), and East Union Intrmd Sch (335 students). See the Deer Lakes Sd district page for the complete list.
Related tools
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.