Enrollment
735
Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Dover, PA
Dover Area Ms
Federal NCES profile for Dover Area Ms, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 48/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 420768007686
👥 S:T ratio 51
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 23
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Dover Area Ms earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Pennsylvania median.
- #4 of 6
- public schools in Dover · Resource Index
- 48
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.3:1
- students per teacher
- 46.7%
- free-lunch eligible
Dover Area Ms has class sizes near the Pennsylvania median. Computed live against every Pennsylvania school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Dover Area Ms ranks #4 of 6 public schools in Dover, PA.
School address
District: Dover Area Sd · Pennsylvania
NCES ID 420768007686 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
60.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.3:1
vs 13.6:1 Pennsylvania avg
-10% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
46.7%
vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg
-20% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Dover Area Ms compares with Pennsylvania and U.S. medians
What stands out at Dover Area Ms
Dover Area Ms is a mid-sized middle school in Dover, Pennsylvania, enrolling 735 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.3:1 puts it in the smaller third of Pennsylvania schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 46.7% lands close to the Pennsylvania typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 735 puts it in the larger third of Pennsylvania schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,889 scored Pennsylvania schools.
Against 419 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #179.
Its student body is led by White (75%) and Hispanic or Latino (15%) (diversity index 41/100).
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 30.6% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Discipline events run high: 172 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 735 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
Dover Area Sd also operates Dover Area Hs (979 students) and North Salem El Sch (384 students) alongside Dover Area 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 Dover Area Ms compares
Dover Area 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 | 12.3:1 | ▼ 10% | 13.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 46.7% | ▼ 20% | 58.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 735 | top 19% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.3:1
Leaner classes than 73% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
735
Bigger than 82% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
46.7%
free-lunch eligible
- 20% below the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.3:1
students per teacher
- 10% below state mean
Top 33% in Pennsylvania - lower ratio than 67% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
30.6%
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
$17,112
per pupil, district-wide
- below Pennsylvania avg of $17,970
Close to the U.S. public-school average per-pupil spend.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
89
in-school suspensions + 83 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 12.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 23.4 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 75.0%
Hispanic or Latino 14.7%
African American 5.3%
Two or More 3.9%
Asian 0.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: White at 75.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 41.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 41.1, Dover Area Ms is more mixed than the Pennsylvania school average of 37.3.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Dover Area Sd, which includes Dover Area Ms.
$17,112
Per student
-5%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $17,970
+3%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 53.6%
State 38.1%
Federal 8.3%
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 Dover Area Ms Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dover Area Hs | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| North Salem El Sch | Smaller | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Leib El Sch | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Dover Area El Sch | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Weigelstown El Sch | Smaller | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Dover Area Ms's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 979
- Students per teacher
- 15.5:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
- Enrollment
- 384
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Resource Index
- 58/100
- Enrollment
- 372
- Students per teacher
- 14.9:1
- Resource Index
- 57/100
- Enrollment
- 356
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Resource Index
- 53/100
- Enrollment
- 323
- Students per teacher
- 12.9:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
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 (~735 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~12.3:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Dover Area Ms's federal record.
- Compare Dover Area Ms against another school. Compare schools
- Dover Area 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 Dover Area Ms
How many students attend Dover Area Ms?
Dover Area Ms has 735 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Dover, PA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Dover Area Ms?
The student-teacher ratio at Dover Area Ms is 12.3:1, which is 10% lower than the Pennsylvania average of 13.6:1 and 22% 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 Dover Area Ms?
46.7% of students at Dover Area Ms are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Dover Area Ms?
The largest demographic group at Dover Area Ms is White at 75.0% of enrollment, in Dover, PA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Dover Area Ms?
Dover Area Ms has a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Dover Area Ms rank among public schools in Dover?
By Resource Investment Index, Dover Area Ms ranks #4 of 6 public schools in Dover, 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 Dover on the city page.
Is Dover Area Ms a good school?
Dover Area Ms earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Pennsylvania 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 Dover Area Sd?
Besides Dover Area Ms, Dover Area Sd also operates Dover Area Hs (979 students), North Salem El Sch (384 students), and Leib El Sch (372 students). See the Dover Area 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.