Enrollment
489
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 271500000761
Falls Secondary — International Falls, MN
Federal NCES profile for Falls Secondary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 31/100.
👥 Class size 23
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 2
📋 Attendance 70
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: International Falls School District · 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)
26.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
19.3:1
vs 15.9:1 Minnesota avg
+21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
30.5%
vs 42.8% Minnesota avg
-29% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Falls Secondary 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
Falls Secondary reports 489 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 26.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 19.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 21% above the Minnesota state mean of 15.9:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 21% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 30.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 29% below the Minnesota average and 41% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 489 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 11.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding International Falls School District spends $17,439 per pupil district-wide, below the Minnesota average of $21,113 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 28.0% from local sources (property taxes), 54.6% from the state, and 17.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (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 Falls Secondary 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 | 19.3:1 | ▲ 21% | 15.9:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 30.5% | ▼ 29% | 42.8% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 489 | top 73% | — | — |
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
30.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 29% 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
19.3:1
students per teacher
— 21% above state mean
Top 82% in Minnesota — lower ratio than 18% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
11.9%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$17,439
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
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 489 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
67
in-school suspensions + 23 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 13.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 18.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 489 Top 73% in Minnesota — larger than 27% of 2,391 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 26.0
Students per teacher 19.3:1 +21% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 30.5% -29% vs state
NCES ID 271500000761
Student demographics
White 85.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 7.8%
Two or More 2.9%
Hispanic or Latino 2.7%
African American 0.6%
Asian 0.2%
Largest group: White at 85.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 489:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 11.9%
In-school suspensions 67
Out-of-school suspensions 23
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for International Falls School District, which includes Falls Secondary.
$17,439
Per student
-17%
vs Minnesota
Avg $21,113
-11%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 28.0%
State 54.6%
Federal 17.4%
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
- 425
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
Similar other schools in International Falls
2 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
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 Falls Secondary
How many students attend Falls Secondary?
Falls Secondary has 489 students enrolled. It is a other school in INTERNATIONAL FALLS, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Falls Secondary?
The student-teacher ratio at Falls Secondary is 19.3:1, which is 21% higher than the Minnesota average of 15.9:1 and 21% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Falls Secondary?
30.5% of students at Falls Secondary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Minnesota average of 42.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Falls Secondary?
The largest demographic group at Falls Secondary is White at 85.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in INTERNATIONAL FALLS, MN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Falls Secondary?
Falls Secondary has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (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.