Harpers Choice Middle
Public middle school, grades 6 to 8 · Columbia, Maryland
Harpers Choice Middle in Columbia, Maryland enrolled 471 students in 2024-25 with 40.7 full-time teachers, 11.6 students per teacher against the Maryland middle-school median of 14.4. It was eligible for Title I in 2021-22 but ran no program; every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision (2024-25). On the state tests, 38% of its students tested were proficient in reading in 2021-22 and 15% proficient in math in 2022-23 (Maryland: 45.1% and 27.1%).
NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 · Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22 · Title I status CCD 2021-22 · method
Enrollment fell 5% from 2022-23 to 2024-25; full-time teachers fell 9%
497 students in 2022-23, 469 students in 2023-24, 471 students in 2024-25. Full-time teachers went from 44.5 to 40.7.
The numbers as a table
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Per teacher |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | 497 | 44.5 | 11.2 |
| 2023-24 | 469 | 41.3 | 11.4 |
| 2024-25 | 471 | 40.7 | 11.6 |
11.6 students per teacher, a lower ratio than 92 of every 100 Maryland middle schools
Among the 222 Maryland middle schools that reported teachers for 2024-25 the median is 14.4; the national median for middle schools is 14.6. A ratio counts every teacher, so it is not the size of a class.
Source: NCES Common Core of Data membership and staff files, 2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25; the comparison counts schools with a 2024-25 teacher count and a ratio from 3 to 99 (lower values are reporting errors).
One counselor per 252 students in 2021-22
In the 2021-22 civil rights collection Harpers Choice Middle enrolled 504 students and had 2.0 counselors (full-time equivalent); it reported 70 out-of-school suspensions that year.
- Advanced Placement coursesNone
- Gifted and talented programYes
- Counselors (FTE)2.0, one per 252 of the 504 students enrolled in 2021-22
- Out-of-school suspensions70
- Chronically absent34.8% (2022-23)
Who attends
43.3% of students were Black, 23.1% Hispanic, 18.5% White in 2024-25.
- Black43.3%
- Hispanic23.1%
- White18.5%
- Asian8.1%
- Two or more races6.6%
- American Indian0.2%
- Pacific Islander0.2%
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22; chronic absenteeism from EDFacts 2022-23; every count and the counselor ratio are for that school year. Who attends: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25, membership by race and ethnicity.
State test results, 2021-22 and 2022-23
The students tested at Harpers Choice Middle scored proficient or above: 38% in reading in 2021-22 and 15% in math in 2022-23, against 45.1% in reading in 2021-22 and 27.1% in math in 2022-23 across Maryland. Each state writes its own test and sets its own proficiency bar, so compare these within Maryland, not across states. ED Data Express holds no district results after 2021-22, so the district column gives its 2021-22 figure.
| Subject and year | This school | Its district | Maryland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading and language arts, 2021-22 | 38% | 58% | 45.1% |
| Math, 2022-23 | 15% | 42% (2021-22) | 27.1% |
Source: U.S. Department of Education, EDFacts state assessment results 2021-22 and 2022-23, all students, from ED Data Express (2021-22 through the Data Rescue Project archive); for 2022-23 ED published math by school and reading only by state: ED shows school and district results as ranges (for example 20-24%) to protect small groups.
Middle schools in Columbia
4 public middle schools in Columbia report 2024-25 enrollment; Harpers Choice Middle is number 3 by size.
| School | Students | Per teacher | Free lunch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilde Lake Middle | 643 | 13.2 | 34.4% |
| Lake Elkhorn Middle | 569 | 12.2 | 45.7% |
| Harpers Choice Middle | 471 | 11.6 | 43.7% |
| Oakland Mills Middle | 415 | 11.9 | 42.2% |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25.
What to look at next about Harpers Choice Middle
- Wilde Lake MiddleThe nearest public middle school, 0.8 miles away: 643 students, 13.2 per teacher (2024-25).0.8 mi
- Burleigh Manor Middle SchoolThe next nearest public middle school, 2.4 miles away: 777 students, 15.8 per teacher (2024-25).2.4 mi
- Compare Harpers Choice Middle with Wilde Lake MiddleStudents, teachers, meals, test results and who attends, side by side.
- How much Howard County Public School System spends per student$19,256 per student on current operations in fiscal year 2022-23 (U.S. $16,260), with its revenue sources and teacher pay.$19,256
- The largest public schools in MarylandHarpers Choice Middle is the number 196 by size of 224 Maryland middle schools open in 2024-25.#196 of 224
- Maryland schools by students per teacher11.6 students per teacher here against the Maryland median of 14.4 for middle schools.11.6:1
- Find the school district for an addressA home's district, not its city, decides which public schools it can enroll in.
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (locations, enrollment, teachers); NCES F-33 finance survey, fiscal year 2022-23. Distances are straight lines between the schools' NCES coordinates, not travel routes.
Questions about Harpers Choice Middle
How many students attend Harpers Choice Middle?
471 in the 2024-25 school year, according to the NCES Common Core of Data; 497 in 2022-23. It is a middle school in Columbia, MD.What is the student-teacher ratio at Harpers Choice Middle?
11.6 students per full-time teacher (2024-25); the Maryland median for middle schools is 14.4. A ratio counts every teacher, so it is not the size of a class.Is Harpers Choice Middle a Title I school?
Harpers Choice Middle was eligible for Title I in 2021-22 but ran no Title I program (2021-22 is the last year NCES published school Title I status).How do students at Harpers Choice Middle do on state tests?
The students tested at Harpers Choice Middle scored proficient or above: 38% in reading in 2021-22 and 15% in math in 2022-23, against 45.1% in reading in 2021-22 and 27.1% in math in 2022-23 across Maryland. Maryland's own test sets what proficient means, so results compare within the state, not across states. Source: U.S. Department of Education, EDFacts state assessment results, 2021-22 and 2022-23; ED publishes school results as ranges to protect small groups.What district is Harpers Choice Middle in?
Howard County Public School System, NCES district ID 2400420. The first seven digits of the school's NCES ID 240042000737 are the district's.
Reading these figures: how to choose a school district, what Title I means and what an absenteeism rate means. They are for information and are not a substitute for the school's or district's own records.
Sources
Every federal file behind this record
- NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25: directory, membership, staff and lunch files. nces.ed.gov
- NCES Common Core of Data, 2021-22 school characteristics: Title I status. nces.ed.gov
- Civil Rights Data Collection, 2021-22: AP courses, gifted programs, counselors, discipline. civilrightsdata.ed.gov
- EDFacts, 2022-23: chronic absenteeism. ed.gov
- EDFacts state assessment results, 2021-22 and 2022-23: reading and math proficiency for the school, its district and its state (ED Data Express). eddataexpress.ed.gov
- NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, fiscal year 2022-23: district spending and revenue. nces.ed.gov
- U.S. Census Bureau geocoder and TIGER school districts: the district boundary used by the district finder. census.gov
Source: NCES Common Core of Data Directory, membership, staff and lunch files · 2024-25
Source: Civil Rights Data Collection School-level files (AP, gifted, counselors, discipline) · 2021-22
District spending on the district page is from the NCES F-33 finance survey, fiscal year 2022-23.