Enrollment
298
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 190675000279
Howar Middle School — Centerville, IA
Federal NCES profile for Howar Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 33/100.
👥 Class size 30
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 0
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: Centerville Comm School District · Iowa
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)
17.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.6:1
vs 15:1 Iowa avg
+17% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
46.2%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
+27% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Howar Middle School compares with Iowa 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
Howar Middle School reports 298 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 17.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.6:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 17% above the Iowa state mean of 15:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 11% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 46.2% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 27% above the Iowa average and 11% below the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 54.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Centerville Comm School District spends $17,939 per pupil district-wide, above the Iowa average of $17,211 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 27.5% from local sources (property taxes), 55.1% from the state, and 17.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 33/100 (F), calculated from 3 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 Howar Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Iowa state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.6:1 | ▲ 17% | 15:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 46.2% | ▲ 27% | 36.4% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 298 | top 47% | — | — |
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
46.2%
free-lunch eligible
— 27% above the Iowa average of 36.4%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
17.6:1
students per teacher
— 17% above state mean
Top 88% in Iowa — lower ratio than 12% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
54.0%
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
$17,939
per pupil, district-wide
— above Iowa avg of $17,211
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 33 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 11.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 298 Top 47% in Iowa — larger than 53% of 1,326 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 17.0
Students per teacher 17.6:1 +17% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 46.2% +27% vs state
NCES ID 190675000279
Student demographics
White 88.6%
Hispanic or Latino 7.0%
Two or More 2.7%
African American 1.0%
Asian 0.7%
Largest group: White at 88.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 54.0%
In-school suspensions 1
Out-of-school suspensions 33
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Centerville Comm School District, which includes Howar Middle School.
$17,939
Per student
+4%
vs Iowa
Avg $17,211
-8%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 27.5%
State 55.1%
Federal 17.4%
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
- 498
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Enrollment
- 368
- Students per teacher
- 15.5:1
- Enrollment
- 60
- Students per teacher
- 20.3:1
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 Howar Middle School
How many students attend Howar Middle School?
Howar Middle School has 298 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Centerville, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Howar Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Howar Middle School is 17.6:1, which is 17% higher than the Iowa average of 15:1 and 11% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Howar Middle School?
46.2% of students at Howar Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Howar Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Howar Middle School is White at 88.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in Centerville, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Howar Middle School?
Howar Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 33/100 (F) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.