Enrollment
434
Florida · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 120051000813
Ernest Ward Middle School — Walnut Hill, FL
Federal NCES profile for Ernest Ward Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 24/100.
👥 Class size 12
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 13
📋 Attendance 0
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
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)
22.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
22.1:1
vs 18.3:1 Florida avg
+21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
45.5%
vs 52.0% Florida avg
-13% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Ernest Ward Middle School compares with Florida 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
Ernest Ward Middle School reports 434 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 22.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 22.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 21% above the Florida state mean of 18.3:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 39% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 45.5% 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 Florida average and 12% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 434 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 50.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Escambia spends $12,726 per pupil district-wide, below the Florida average of $12,756 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 38.7% from local sources (property taxes), 40.7% from the state, and 20.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 24/100 (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 Ernest Ward Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Florida state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Florida | Florida avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 22.1:1 | ▲ 21% | 18.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 45.5% | ▼ 13% | 52.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 434 | top 32% | — | — |
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
45.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 13% below the Florida average of 52.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
22.1:1
students per teacher
— 21% above state mean
Top 87% in Florida — lower ratio than 13% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
50.5%
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
$12,726
per pupil, district-wide
— below Florida avg of $12,756
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 434 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
131
in-school suspensions + 86 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 30.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 50.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 6 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 434 Top 32% in Florida — larger than 68% of 4,029 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 22.0
Students per teacher 22.1:1 +21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 45.5% -13% vs state
NCES ID 120051000813
Student demographics
White 70.7%
African American 13.8%
Two or More 6.0%
Hispanic or Latino 5.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 3.0%
Asian 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.5%
Largest group: White at 70.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 434:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 50.5%
In-school suspensions 131
Out-of-school suspensions 86
Expulsions 6
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Escambia, which includes Ernest Ward Middle School.
$12,726
Per student
0%
vs Florida
Avg $12,756
-35%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 38.7%
State 40.7%
Federal 20.6%
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
- 2,169
- Students per teacher
- 22.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,676
- Students per teacher
- 22.8:1
- Enrollment
- 1,634
- Students per teacher
- 21.5:1
- Enrollment
- 1,604
- Students per teacher
- 23.4:1
- Enrollment
- 1,322
- Students per teacher
- 19.6:1
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 Ernest Ward Middle School
How many students attend Ernest Ward Middle School?
Ernest Ward Middle School has 434 students enrolled. It is a middle school in WALNUT HILL, FL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ernest Ward Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Ernest Ward Middle School is 22.1:1, which is 21% higher than the Florida average of 18.3:1 and 39% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Ernest Ward Middle School?
45.5% of students at Ernest Ward Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Florida average of 52.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Ernest Ward Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Ernest Ward Middle School is White at 70.7%. The school serves a diverse student body in WALNUT HILL, FL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Ernest Ward Middle School?
Ernest Ward Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 24/100 (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.