Middle school (grades 6-8) · Bluefield, VA

Graham Middle

Federal NCES profile for Graham 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 510381001654
0/100100/10043/100
👥 S:T ratio
50
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
32
📋 Attendance
18
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Graham Middle earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 70% of Virginia schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Virginia schools.

#3 of 5
public schools in Bluefield · Resource Index
43
Resource Index · Typical
12.6:1
small classes for Virginia
82.5%
free-lunch eligible

Graham Middle has class sizes smaller than 70% of Virginia schools. Computed live against every Virginia school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Graham Middle ranks #3 of 5 public schools in Bluefield, VA.

Enrollment

339

Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

27.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

12.6:1

vs 13.9:1 Virginia avg

-9% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

82.5%

vs 57.6% Virginia avg

+43% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Graham Middle compares with Virginia and U.S. medians

At or below 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 Graham Middle

Graham Middle is a high-poverty, mid-sized middle school in Bluefield, Virginia, enrolling 339 students.

Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.6:1 puts it in the smaller third of Virginia schools by student-teacher ratio.

Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 82.5% of students eligible for free meals.

Enrollment of 339 puts it in the smaller third of Virginia schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,868 scored Virginia schools.

Among 300 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Virginia schools statewide, it ranks #246, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is predominantly White (86% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 26/100).

Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 339 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 32.7% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

The surrounding Tazewell County Public Schools spends $11,631 per pupil, 21% below the Virginia average, a leaner-resourced district than most.

Tazewell County Public Schools also operates Richlands Elementary (576 students) and Richlands High (557 students) alongside Graham 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 Graham Middle compares

Graham Middle on the metrics families compare, against Virginia and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Virginia Virginia avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 12.6:1 ▼ 9% 13.9:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 82.5% ▲ 43% 57.6% 51.7%
Enrollment 339 top 81% - -

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

12.6:1
Leaner classes than 70% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
339
Bigger than 38% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
82.5%
free-lunch eligible - 43% above the Virginia average of 57.6%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.6:1
students per teacher - 9% below state mean
Top 30% in Virginia - lower ratio than 70% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
32.7%
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
$11,631
per pupil, district-wide - below Virginia avg of $14,649
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 339 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
11
in-school suspensions + 30 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 12.1 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 85.5%
Two or More 7.7%
African American 5.0%
Hispanic or Latino 1.2%
Asian 0.6%

Largest group: White at 85.5% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 26.0/100

Simpson diversity index - at 26.0, Graham Middle is less mixed than the Virginia school average of 53.7.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Tazewell County Public Schools, which includes Graham Middle.

$11,631
Per student
-21%
vs Virginia
Avg $14,649
-30%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 21.6%
State 65.5%
Federal 12.9%

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 Graham Middle Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Richlands Elementary Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Richlands High Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Tazewell High Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Graham High Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Richlands Middle Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio

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

Other Schools in This District

Tazewell County Public Schools · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar middle schools statewide

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

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Graham 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 Graham Middle

How many students attend Graham Middle?

Graham Middle has 339 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Bluefield, VA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Graham Middle?

The student-teacher ratio at Graham Middle is 12.6:1, which is 9% lower than the Virginia average of 13.9:1 and 20% 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 Graham Middle?

82.5% of students at Graham Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Virginia average of 57.6%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Graham Middle?

The largest demographic group at Graham Middle is White at 85.5% of enrollment, in Bluefield, VA.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Graham Middle?

Graham 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 Graham Middle rank among public schools in Bluefield?

By Resource Investment Index, Graham Middle ranks #3 of 5 public schools in Bluefield, VA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Bluefield on the city page.

Is Graham Middle a good school?

Graham Middle earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 70% of Virginia schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Virginia 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 Tazewell County Public Schools?

Besides Graham Middle, Tazewell County Public Schools also operates Richlands Elementary (576 students), Richlands High (557 students), and Tazewell High (509 students). See the Tazewell County 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.