Enrollment
764
New York · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 362667003635
Gowana Middle School — Clifton Park, NY
Federal NCES profile for Gowana Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 58/100.
👥 Class size 47
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 49
📋 Attendance 66
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: Shenendehowa Central School District · New York
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)
58.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.3:1
vs 11.7:1 New York avg
+14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
13.1%
vs 56.2% New York avg
-77% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Gowana Middle School compares with New York 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
Gowana Middle School reports 764 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 58.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 13.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 14% above the New York state mean of 11.7:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 16% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 13.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 77% below the New York average and 75% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 255 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 13.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Shenendehowa Central School District spends $20,122 per pupil district-wide, below the New York average of $29,727 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 59.7% from local sources (property taxes), 29.6% from the state, and 10.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (C), 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 Gowana Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against New York state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs New York | New York avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.3:1 | ▲ 14% | 11.7:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 13.1% | ▼ 77% | 56.2% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 764 | top 85% | — | — |
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
13.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 77% below the New York average of 56.2%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
13.3:1
students per teacher
— 14% above state mean
Top 76% in New York — lower ratio than 24% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
13.6%
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
$20,122
per pupil, district-wide
— below New York avg of $29,727
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 255 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
37
in-school suspensions + 22 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 764 Top 85% in New York — larger than 15% of 4,812 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 58.0
Students per teacher 13.3:1 +14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 13.1% -77% vs state
NCES ID 362667003635
Student demographics
White 78.7%
Asian 7.5%
Hispanic or Latino 7.3%
Two or More 5.0%
African American 1.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: White at 78.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.0
Students per counselor 255:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 13.6%
In-school suspensions 37
Out-of-school suspensions 22
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Shenendehowa Central School District, which includes Gowana Middle School.
$20,122
Per student
-32%
vs New York
Avg $29,727
+3%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 59.7%
State 29.6%
Federal 10.7%
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
- 2,968
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Enrollment
- 765
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Enrollment
- 761
- Students per teacher
- 12.2:1
- Enrollment
- 589
- Students per teacher
- 12:1
- Enrollment
- 560
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
Similar middle schools in Clifton Park
2 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) 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 Gowana Middle School
How many students attend Gowana Middle School?
Gowana Middle School has 764 students enrolled. It is a middle school in CLIFTON PARK, NY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Gowana Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Gowana Middle School is 13.3:1, which is 14% higher than the New York average of 11.7:1 and 16% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Gowana Middle School?
13.1% of students at Gowana Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the New York average of 56.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Gowana Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Gowana Middle School is White at 78.7%. The school serves a diverse student body in CLIFTON PARK, NY.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Gowana Middle School?
Gowana Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 58/100 (C) 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.