Enrollment
742
Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 420759006678
Hershey Ms — Hershey, PA
Federal NCES profile for Hershey Ms, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 53/100.
👥 Class size 55
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 51
📋 Attendance 37
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: Derry Township Sd · Pennsylvania
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)
65.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.2:1
vs 13.5:1 Pennsylvania avg
-17% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
25.0%
vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg
-57% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Hershey Ms compares with Pennsylvania 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
Hershey Ms reports 742 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 65.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 11.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 17% below the Pennsylvania state mean of 13.5:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 30% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 25.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 57% below the Pennsylvania average and 52% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 247 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 25.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Derry Township Sd spends $20,338 per pupil district-wide, below the Pennsylvania average of $22,745 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 73.9% from local sources (property taxes), 18.8% from the state, and 7.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 53/100 (C-), 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 Hershey Ms compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Pennsylvania state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.2:1 | ▼ 17% | 13.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 25.0% | ▼ 57% | 58.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 742 | top 81% | — | — |
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
25.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 57% below the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
11.2:1
students per teacher
— 17% below state mean
Top 16% in Pennsylvania — lower ratio than 84% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
25.1%
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
$20,338
per pupil, district-wide
— below Pennsylvania avg of $22,745
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 247 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
30
in-school suspensions + 17 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 742 Top 81% in Pennsylvania — larger than 19% of 2,930 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 65.0
Students per teacher 11.2:1 -17% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 25.0% -57% vs state
NCES ID 420759006678
Student demographics
White 61.7%
Asian 17.0%
Hispanic or Latino 10.6%
African American 6.3%
Two or More 4.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: White at 61.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.0
Students per counselor 247:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 25.1%
In-school suspensions 30
Out-of-school suspensions 17
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Derry Township Sd, which includes Hershey Ms.
$20,338
Per student
-11%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $22,745
+4%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 73.9%
State 18.8%
Federal 7.3%
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
- 1,050
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Enrollment
- 479
- Students per teacher
- 12.5:1
- Enrollment
- 427
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Enrollment
- 420
- Students per teacher
- 11.6:1
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 Hershey Ms
How many students attend Hershey Ms?
Hershey Ms has 742 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Hershey, PA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Hershey Ms?
The student-teacher ratio at Hershey Ms is 11.2:1, which is 17% lower than the Pennsylvania average of 13.5:1 and 30% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Hershey Ms?
25.0% of students at Hershey Ms are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Hershey Ms?
The largest demographic group at Hershey Ms is White at 61.7%. The school serves a diverse student body in Hershey, PA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Hershey Ms?
Hershey Ms has a Resource Investment Index of 53/100 (C-) 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.