Middle school (grades 6-8) · Albuquerque, NM

Garfield Middle

Federal NCES profile for Garfield Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 43/100.

2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 350006000056
0/100100/10043/100
👥 S:T ratio
57
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
44
📋 Attendance
0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Garfield Middle earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 77% of New Mexico schools.

#18 of 28
middle schools in Albuquerque · Resource Index
43
Resource Index · Typical
10.8:1
small classes for New Mexico
100.0%
free-lunch eligible

Garfield Middle has class sizes smaller than 77% of New Mexico schools. Computed live against every New Mexico school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Garfield Middle ranks #18 of 28 middle schools in Albuquerque, NM.

Enrollment

282

New Mexico · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

26.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

10.8:1

vs 14:1 New Mexico avg

-23% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

100.0%

vs 80.8% New Mexico avg

+24% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Garfield Middle compares with New Mexico and U.S. medians

Smaller classes than state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Garfield Middle

Garfield Middle is a high-poverty, mid-sized middle school in Albuquerque, New Mexico, enrolling 282 students.

Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 10.8:1 puts it in the smaller third of New Mexico schools by student-teacher ratio.

Its free-meal eligibility rate of 100.0% lands close to the New Mexico typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.

With 282 students, its enrollment sits close to the New Mexico median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 867 scored New Mexico schools.

Against 251 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #79.

Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (85% of enrollment) (diversity index 27/100).

Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 282 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 78.0% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

The surrounding Albuquerque Public Schools spends $12,964 per pupil, 22% below the New Mexico average, a leaner-resourced district than most.

Discipline events run high: 78 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 282 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.

Albuquerque Public Schools also operates Volcano Vista High (2,089 students) and Atrisco Heritage Academy Hs (1,930 students) alongside Garfield Middle.

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 Garfield Middle compares

Garfield Middle on the metrics families compare, against New Mexico and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs New Mexico New Mexico avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 10.8:1 ▼ 23% 14:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 100.0% ▲ 24% 80.8% 51.7%
Enrollment 282 top 49% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

10.8:1
Leaner classes than 84% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
282
Bigger than 30% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
100.0%
free-lunch eligible - 24% above the New Mexico average of 80.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
10.8:1
students per teacher - 23% below state mean
Top 23% in New Mexico - lower ratio than 77% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
78.0%
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
$12,964
per pupil, district-wide - below New Mexico avg of $16,652
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 282 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
9
in-school suspensions + 69 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 27.7 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

Hispanic or Latino 85.1%
White 9.9%
Two or More 2.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.8%
African American 1.1%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 85.1% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 26.5/100

Simpson diversity index - at 26.5, Garfield Middle is less mixed than the New Mexico school average of 39.8.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Albuquerque Public Schools, which includes Garfield Middle.

$12,964
Per student
-22%
vs New Mexico
Avg $16,652
-22%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 17.5%
State 68.0%
Federal 14.5%

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 Garfield Middle Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Volcano Vista High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Atrisco Heritage Academy Hs Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
La Cueva High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Sandia High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Eldorado High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Garfield Middle's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Albuquerque Public Schools · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar middle schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of New Mexico, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Garfield Middle's federal record.

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 Garfield Middle

How many students attend Garfield Middle?

Garfield Middle has 282 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Albuquerque, NM.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Garfield Middle?

The student-teacher ratio at Garfield Middle is 10.8:1, which is 23% lower than the New Mexico average of 14:1 and 31% 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 Garfield Middle?

100.0% of students at Garfield Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the New Mexico average of 80.8%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Garfield Middle?

The largest demographic group at Garfield Middle is Hispanic or Latino at 85.1% of enrollment, in Albuquerque, NM.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Garfield Middle?

Garfield Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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 Garfield Middle rank among middle schools in Albuquerque?

By Resource Investment Index, Garfield Middle ranks #18 of 28 middle schools in Albuquerque, NM. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all middle schools in Albuquerque on the city page.

Is Garfield Middle a good school?

Garfield Middle earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 77% of New Mexico 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 Albuquerque Public Schools?

Besides Garfield Middle, Albuquerque Public Schools also operates Volcano Vista High (2,089 students), Atrisco Heritage Academy Hs (1,930 students), and La Cueva High (1,826 students). See the Albuquerque Public Schools district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.