Enrollment
483
Alabama · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 010285001127
Handley Middle School — Roanoke, AL
Federal NCES profile for Handley Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 32/100.
👥 Class size 23
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 3
📋 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: Roanoke City · Alabama
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 17.8:1 Alabama avg
+8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
66.2%
vs 58.8% Alabama avg
+13% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Handley Middle School compares with Alabama 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
Handley Middle School reports 483 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 8% above the Alabama state mean of 17.8:1, 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: 66.2% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 13% above the Alabama average and 28% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 483 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 12.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Roanoke City spends $11,801 per pupil district-wide, below the Alabama average of $14,500 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 23.1% from local sources (property taxes), 57.8% from the state, and 19.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (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 Handley Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Alabama state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Alabama | Alabama avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 19.3:1 | ▲ 8% | 17.8:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 66.2% | ▲ 13% | 58.8% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 483 | top 52% | — | — |
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
66.2%
free-lunch eligible
— 13% above the Alabama average of 58.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
19.3:1
students per teacher
— 8% above state mean
Top 77% in Alabama — lower ratio than 23% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
12.0%
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
$11,801
per pupil, district-wide
— below Alabama avg of $14,500
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 483 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
95
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 19.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 20.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 483 Top 52% in Alabama — larger than 48% of 1,369 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 26.0
Students per teacher 19.3:1 +8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 66.2% +13% vs state
NCES ID 010285001127
Student demographics
White 58.0%
African American 37.7%
Two or More 1.9%
Hispanic or Latino 1.4%
Asian 1.0%
Largest group: White at 58.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 483:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 12.0%
In-school suspensions 95
Out-of-school suspensions 4
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Roanoke City, which includes Handley Middle School.
$11,801
Per student
-19%
vs Alabama
Avg $14,500
-39%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 23.1%
State 57.8%
Federal 19.1%
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
- 506
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
- Enrollment
- 366
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
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 Handley Middle School
How many students attend Handley Middle School?
Handley Middle School has 483 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Roanoke, AL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Handley Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Handley Middle School is 19.3:1, which is 8% higher than the Alabama average of 17.8:1 and 21% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Handley Middle School?
66.2% of students at Handley Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Alabama average of 58.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Handley Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Handley Middle School is White at 58.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in Roanoke, AL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Handley Middle School?
Handley Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (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.