Enrollment
617
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 271023000443
Detroit Lakes Middle — Detroit Lakes, MN
Federal NCES profile for Detroit Lakes Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 34/100.
👥 Class size 39
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 38
📋 Attendance 29
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: Detroit Lakes Public School Dist. · Minnesota
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)
39.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.3:1
vs 15.9:1 Minnesota avg
-4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
37.2%
vs 42.8% Minnesota avg
-13% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Detroit Lakes Middle compares with Minnesota 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
Detroit Lakes Middle reports 617 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 39.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 4% below the Minnesota state mean of 15.9:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 4% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 37.2% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 13% below the Minnesota average and 28% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 309 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 28.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Detroit Lakes Public School Dist. spends $19,087 per pupil district-wide, below the Minnesota average of $21,113 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 24.0% from local sources (property taxes), 65.1% from the state, and 11.0% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (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 Detroit Lakes Middle compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Minnesota state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Minnesota | Minnesota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.3:1 | ▼ 4% | 15.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 37.2% | ▼ 13% | 42.8% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 617 | top 83% | — | — |
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
37.2%
free-lunch eligible
— 13% below the Minnesota average of 42.8%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15.3:1
students per teacher
— 4% below state mean
Top 58% in Minnesota — lower ratio than 42% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
28.5%
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
$19,087
per pupil, district-wide
— below Minnesota avg of $21,113
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 309 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 617 Top 83% in Minnesota — larger than 17% of 2,391 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 39.0
Students per teacher 15.3:1 -4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 37.2% -13% vs state
NCES ID 271023000443
Student demographics
White 71.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 19.6%
Two or More 3.7%
Hispanic or Latino 2.8%
African American 1.8%
Asian 0.6%
Largest group: White at 71.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 309:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 28.5%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Detroit Lakes Public School Dist., which includes Detroit Lakes Middle.
$19,087
Per student
-10%
vs Minnesota
Avg $21,113
-2%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 24.0%
State 65.1%
Federal 11.0%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 791
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
- Enrollment
- 565
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Enrollment
- 562
- Students per teacher
- 12.6:1
- Enrollment
- 64
- Students per teacher
- —
- Enrollment
- 57
- Students per teacher
- 12.4:1
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 Detroit Lakes Middle
How many students attend Detroit Lakes Middle?
Detroit Lakes Middle has 617 students enrolled. It is a middle school in DETROIT LAKES, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Detroit Lakes Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Detroit Lakes Middle is 15.3:1, which is 4% lower than the Minnesota average of 15.9:1 and 4% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Detroit Lakes Middle?
37.2% of students at Detroit Lakes Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Minnesota average of 42.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Detroit Lakes Middle?
The largest demographic group at Detroit Lakes Middle is White at 71.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in DETROIT LAKES, MN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Detroit Lakes Middle?
Detroit Lakes Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (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.