Enrollment
1,118
Florida · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 120159001793
Lakeland Highlands Middle School — Lakeland, FL
Federal NCES profile for Lakeland Highlands Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 32/100.
👥 Class size 21
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 25
📋 Attendance 13
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
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
19.8:1
vs 18.3:1 Florida avg
+8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
40.6%
vs 52.0% Florida avg
-22% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Lakeland Highlands Middle School compares with Florida 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
Lakeland Highlands Middle School reports 1,118 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 64.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 19.8:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 8% above the Florida state mean of 18.3:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 25% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 40.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 22% below the Florida average and 22% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 373 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 34.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Polk spends $12,580 per pupil district-wide, below the Florida average of $12,756 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 35.2% from local sources (property taxes), 43.8% from the state, and 21.0% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (F), 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 Lakeland Highlands Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Florida state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Florida | Florida avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 19.8:1 | ▲ 8% | 18.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 40.6% | ▼ 22% | 52.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,118 | top 85% | — | — |
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
40.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 22% below the Florida average of 52.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
19.8:1
students per teacher
— 8% above state mean
Top 76% in Florida — lower ratio than 24% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
34.8%
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
$12,580
per pupil, district-wide
— below Florida avg of $12,756
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 373 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
5
in-school suspensions + 269 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 24.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 2 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,118 Top 85% in Florida — larger than 15% of 4,029 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 64.0
Students per teacher 19.8:1 +8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 40.6% -22% vs state
NCES ID 120159001793
Student demographics
White 48.6%
Hispanic or Latino 29.6%
African American 15.2%
Asian 3.5%
Two or More 2.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: White at 48.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.0
Students per counselor 373:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 34.8%
In-school suspensions 5
Out-of-school suspensions 269
Expulsions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Polk, which includes Lakeland Highlands Middle School.
$12,580
Per student
-1%
vs Florida
Avg $12,756
-35%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 35.2%
State 43.8%
Federal 21.0%
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
- 3,105
- Students per teacher
- 20.5:1
- Enrollment
- 2,731
- Students per teacher
- 27.4:1
- Enrollment
- 2,648
- Students per teacher
- 21.3:1
- Enrollment
- 2,632
- Students per teacher
- 23.4:1
- Enrollment
- 2,469
- Students per teacher
- 22.5:1
Similar middle schools in Lakeland
6 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
Lake Gibson Middle School
Standard public school
1,149 students 19.3:1 students per teacher
Sleepy Hill Middle School
Standard public school
886 students 19.8:1 students per teacher
Crystal Lake Middle School
Standard public school
753 students 18.6:1 students per teacher
Southwest Middle School
Standard public school
746 students 17.4:1 students per teacher
Kathleen Middle School
Standard public school
742 students 18.7:1 students per teacher
Lawton Chiles Middle Academy
Standard public school
704 students 19.1:1 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 Lakeland Highlands Middle School
How many students attend Lakeland Highlands Middle School?
Lakeland Highlands Middle School has 1,118 students enrolled. It is a middle school in LAKELAND, FL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Lakeland Highlands Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Lakeland Highlands Middle School is 19.8:1, which is 8% higher than the Florida average of 18.3:1 and 25% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Lakeland Highlands Middle School?
40.6% of students at Lakeland Highlands Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Florida average of 52.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Lakeland Highlands Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Lakeland Highlands Middle School is White at 48.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in LAKELAND, FL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Lakeland Highlands Middle School?
Lakeland Highlands Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (F) 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.