Enrollment
622
Mississippi · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 280267000517
Harper Mc Caughan Elem School — Long Beach, MS
Federal NCES profile for Harper Mc Caughan Elem School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 41/100.
👥 Class size 39
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 38
📋 Attendance 18
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: Long Beach School Dist · Mississippi
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)
45.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.3:1
vs 13.4:1 Mississippi avg
+14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
61.4%
vs 80.5% Mississippi avg
-24% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Harper Mc Caughan Elem School compares with Mississippi 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
Harper Mc Caughan Elem School reports 622 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 45.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 14% above the Mississippi state mean of 13.4:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 4% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 61.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 24% below the Mississippi average and 19% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 311 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 32.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Long Beach School Dist spends $13,833 per pupil district-wide, above the Mississippi average of $13,402 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 25.2% from local sources (property taxes), 48.7% from the state, and 26.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D), 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 Harper Mc Caughan Elem School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Mississippi state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Mississippi | Mississippi avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.3:1 | ▲ 14% | 13.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 61.4% | ▼ 24% | 80.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 622 | top 76% | — | — |
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
61.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 24% below the Mississippi average of 80.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.3:1
students per teacher
— 14% above state mean
Top 82% in Mississippi — lower ratio than 18% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
32.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$13,833
per pupil, district-wide
— above Mississippi avg of $13,402
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 311 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
55
in-school suspensions + 35 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 8.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 14.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 622 Top 76% in Mississippi — larger than 24% of 877 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 45.0
Students per teacher 15.3:1 +14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 61.4% -24% vs state
NCES ID 280267000517
Student demographics
White 65.9%
African American 13.7%
Two or More 13.3%
Asian 4.5%
Hispanic or Latino 2.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 65.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 311:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 32.6%
In-school suspensions 55
Out-of-school suspensions 35
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Long Beach School Dist, which includes Harper Mc Caughan Elem School.
$13,833
Per student
+3%
vs Mississippi
Avg $13,402
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 25.2%
State 48.7%
Federal 26.1%
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
- 895
- Students per teacher
- 15:1
- Enrollment
- 475
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
- Enrollment
- 453
- Students per teacher
- 12.7:1
- Enrollment
- 429
- Students per teacher
- 12.5:1
Similar elementary schools in Long Beach
1 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) 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 Harper Mc Caughan Elem School
How many students attend Harper Mc Caughan Elem School?
Harper Mc Caughan Elem School has 622 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Long Beach, MS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Harper Mc Caughan Elem School?
The student-teacher ratio at Harper Mc Caughan Elem School is 15.3:1, which is 14% higher than the Mississippi average of 13.4:1 and 4% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Harper Mc Caughan Elem School?
61.4% of students at Harper Mc Caughan Elem School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Mississippi average of 80.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Harper Mc Caughan Elem School?
The largest demographic group at Harper Mc Caughan Elem School is White at 65.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in Long Beach, MS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Harper Mc Caughan Elem School?
Harper Mc Caughan Elem School has a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (D) 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.