Enrollment
234
Colorado · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Ault, CO
Highland Middle School
Federal NCES profile for Highland Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 43/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 080231001466
👥 S:T ratio 48
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 53
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Highland Middle School earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 76% of Colorado schools.
- 43
- Resource Index · Typical
- 13:1
- small classes for Colorado
- 28.1%
- free-lunch eligible
- 234
- students enrolled
Highland Middle School has class sizes smaller than 76% of Colorado schools. Computed live against every Colorado school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Weld County School District No. Re-9 · Colorado
NCES ID 080231001466 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
18.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13:1
vs 16.6:1 Colorado avg
-22% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
28.1%
vs 38.5% Colorado avg
-27% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Highland Middle School compares with Colorado and U.S. medians
What stands out at Highland Middle School
Highland Middle School is a mid-sized middle school in Ault, Colorado, enrolling 234 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 13:1 puts it in the smaller third of Colorado schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 28.1% lands close to the Colorado typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 234 puts it in the smaller third of Colorado schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,922 scored Colorado schools.
Against 230 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #140.
Its student body is led by White (62%) and Hispanic or Latino (36%) (diversity index 50/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 234 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 42.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The surrounding Weld County School District No. Re-9 spends $10,570 per pupil, 35% below the Colorado average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
Weld County School District No. Re-9 also operates Highland Elementary School (443 students) and Highland High School (299 students) alongside Highland 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 Highland Middle School compares
Highland Middle School on the metrics families compare, against Colorado and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Colorado | Colorado avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13:1 | ▼ 22% | 16.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 28.1% | ▼ 27% | 38.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 234 | top 73% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13:1
Leaner classes than 67% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
234
Bigger than 23% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
28.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 27% below the Colorado average of 38.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
13:1
students per teacher
- 22% below state mean
Top 24% in Colorado - lower ratio than 76% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
42.3%
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
$10,570
per pupil, district-wide
- below Colorado avg of $16,273
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 234 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.3 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 61.5%
Hispanic or Latino 35.5%
Two or More 2.1%
African American 0.9%
Largest group: White at 61.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 49.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 49.5, Highland Middle School is more mixed than the Colorado school average of 47.1.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Weld County School District No. Re-9, which includes Highland Middle School.
$10,570
Per student
-35%
vs Colorado
Avg $16,273
-36%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 62.4%
State 28.4%
Federal 9.2%
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 Highland Middle School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Highland Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Highland High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Highland Middle School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 443
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Resource Index
- 21/100
- Enrollment
- 299
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
Similar middle schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Colorado, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~234 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Highland Middle School's federal record.
- Compare Highland Middle School against another school. Compare schools
- Weld County School District No. Re-9'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 Highland Middle School
How many students attend Highland Middle School?
Highland Middle School has 234 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Ault, CO.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Highland Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Highland Middle School is 13:1, which is 22% lower than the Colorado average of 16.6:1 and 17% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Highland Middle School?
28.1% of students at Highland Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Colorado average of 38.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Highland Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Highland Middle School is White at 61.5% of enrollment, in Ault, CO.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Highland Middle School?
Highland Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (typical 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).
Is Highland Middle School a good school?
Highland Middle School earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 76% of Colorado schools. 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 Weld County School District No. Re-9?
Besides Highland Middle School, Weld County School District No. Re-9 also operates Highland Elementary School (443 students) and Highland High School (299 students). See the Weld County School District No. Re-9 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.