Enrollment
896
Michigan · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Battle Creek, MI
Harper Creek Middle School
Federal NCES profile for Harper Creek Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 26/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 261773005436
👥 S:T ratio 28
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 44
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Harper Creek Middle School earns 26/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Michigan median.
- #7 of 13
- elementary schools in Battle Creek · Resource Index
- 26
- Resource Index · Lower
- 17.9:1
- students per teacher
- 43.5%
- free-lunch eligible
Harper Creek Middle School has class sizes near the Michigan median. Computed live against every Michigan school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Harper Creek Middle School ranks #7 of 13 elementary schools in Battle Creek, MI.
School address
District: Harper Creek Community Schools · Michigan
NCES ID 261773005436 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
50.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.9:1
vs 17.5:1 Michigan avg
+2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
43.5%
vs 54.3% Michigan avg
-20% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Harper Creek Middle School compares with Michigan and U.S. medians
What stands out at Harper Creek Middle School
Harper Creek Middle School is a large elementary school in Battle Creek, Michigan, enrolling 896 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 17.9:1 puts it in the larger third of Michigan schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 43.5% of students eligible for free meals.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in Michigan, bigger than 94% of state schools at 896 students.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 3,375 scored Michigan schools.
Against 261 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #91.
Its student body is predominantly White (81% of enrollment) (diversity index 34/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 896 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 22.4% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Harper Creek Community Schools also operates Harper Creek High School (823 students) and Wattles Park Elementary School (375 students) alongside Harper Creek Middle School.
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 Harper Creek Middle School compares
Harper Creek Middle School on the metrics families compare, against Michigan and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Michigan | Michigan avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.9:1 | ▲ 2% | 17.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 43.5% | ▼ 20% | 54.3% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 896 | top 6% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17.9:1
Leaner classes than 25% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
896
Bigger than 89% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
43.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 20% below the Michigan average of 54.3%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
17.9:1
students per teacher
- 2% above state mean
Top 62% in Michigan - lower ratio than 38% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
22.4%
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
$13,137
per pupil, district-wide
- below Michigan avg of $13,507
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 896 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
84
in-school suspensions + 94 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 9.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 19.9 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 80.7%
Two or More 8.1%
Hispanic or Latino 7.0%
African American 2.8%
Asian 0.8%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: White at 80.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 33.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 33.6, Harper Creek Middle School is less mixed than the Michigan school average of 36.2.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Harper Creek Community Schools, which includes Harper Creek Middle School.
$13,137
Per student
-3%
vs Michigan
Avg $13,507
-21%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 30.5%
State 58.3%
Federal 11.2%
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 Harper Creek Middle School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harper Creek High School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Wattles Park Elementary School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Sonoma Elementary | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Beadle Lake Elementary School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Harper Creek Middle School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 823
- Students per teacher
- 18.7:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 375
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
- Enrollment
- 351
- Students per teacher
- 14.6:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 333
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Michigan, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~896 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Harper Creek Middle School's federal record.
- Compare Harper Creek Middle School against another school. Compare schools
- Harper Creek Community Schools's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
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 Harper Creek Middle School
How many students attend Harper Creek Middle School?
Harper Creek Middle School has 896 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Battle Creek, MI.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Harper Creek Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Harper Creek Middle School is 17.9:1, which is 2% higher than the Michigan average of 17.5:1 and 14% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Harper Creek Middle School?
43.5% of students at Harper Creek Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Michigan average of 54.3%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Harper Creek Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Harper Creek Middle School is White at 80.7% of enrollment, in Battle Creek, MI.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Harper Creek Middle School?
Harper Creek Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 26/100 (lower 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 Harper Creek Middle School rank among elementary schools in Battle Creek?
By Resource Investment Index, Harper Creek Middle School ranks #7 of 13 elementary schools in Battle Creek, MI. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Battle Creek on the city page.
Is Harper Creek Middle School a good school?
Harper Creek Middle School earns 26/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Michigan median. 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 Harper Creek Community Schools?
Besides Harper Creek Middle School, Harper Creek Community Schools also operates Harper Creek High School (823 students), Wattles Park Elementary School (375 students), and Sonoma Elementary (351 students). See the Harper Creek Community Schools district page for the complete list.
Related tools
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.