Enrollment
944
Georgia · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 130129000244
Hightower Trail Middle School — Marietta, GA
Federal NCES profile for Hightower Trail Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 50/100.
👥 Class size 39
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 24
📋 Attendance 69
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: Cobb County · Georgia
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)
64.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.3:1
vs 14.5:1 Georgia avg
+6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
4.9%
vs 60.7% Georgia avg
-92% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Hightower Trail Middle School compares with Georgia 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
Hightower Trail Middle School reports 944 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 64.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 6% above the Georgia state mean of 14.5:1, 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: 4.9% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 92% below the Georgia average and 91% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 378 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 12.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Cobb County spends $14,611 per pupil district-wide, below the Georgia average of $15,679 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 52.6% from local sources (property taxes), 35.4% from the state, and 11.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (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 Hightower Trail Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Georgia state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Georgia | Georgia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.3:1 | ▲ 6% | 14.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 4.9% | ▼ 92% | 60.7% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 944 | top 78% | — | — |
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
4.9%
free-lunch eligible
— 92% below the Georgia average of 60.7%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15.3:1
students per teacher
— 6% above state mean
Top 69% in Georgia — lower ratio than 31% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
12.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$14,611
per pupil, district-wide
— below Georgia avg of $15,679
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.5 FTE
Per 378 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
79
in-school suspensions + 22 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 8.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 944 Top 78% in Georgia — larger than 22% of 2,315 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 64.0
Students per teacher 15.3:1 +6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 4.9% -92% vs state
NCES ID 130129000244
Student demographics
White 70.2%
Hispanic or Latino 10.5%
Asian 10.2%
African American 4.7%
Two or More 4.4%
Largest group: White at 70.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.5
Students per counselor 378:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 12.6%
In-school suspensions 79
Out-of-school suspensions 22
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cobb County, which includes Hightower Trail Middle School.
$14,611
Per student
-7%
vs Georgia
Avg $15,679
-25%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 52.6%
State 35.4%
Federal 11.9%
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
- 3,085
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Enrollment
- 2,790
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
- Enrollment
- 2,705
- Students per teacher
- 19.3:1
- Enrollment
- 2,574
- Students per teacher
- 17.3:1
- Enrollment
- 2,463
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
Similar middle schools in Marietta
6 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
East Cobb Middle School
Standard public school
1,352 students 16.7:1 students per teacher
Marietta Middle School
Standard public school
1,352 students 13.6:1 students per teacher
Dickerson Middle School
Standard public school
1,225 students 17.5:1 students per teacher
Dodgen Middle School
Standard public school
1,178 students 17.5:1 students per teacher
Mabry Middle School
Standard public school
938 students 16.1:1 students per teacher
Daniell Middle School
Standard public school
884 students 15.1:1 students per teacher
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 Hightower Trail Middle School
How many students attend Hightower Trail Middle School?
Hightower Trail Middle School has 944 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Marietta, GA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Hightower Trail Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Hightower Trail Middle School is 15.3:1, which is 6% higher than the Georgia average of 14.5:1 and 4% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Hightower Trail Middle School?
4.9% of students at Hightower Trail Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Georgia average of 60.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Hightower Trail Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Hightower Trail Middle School is White at 70.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in Marietta, GA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Hightower Trail Middle School?
Hightower Trail Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (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.