Enrollment
1,171
Florida · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 120126004385
Liberty Middle School — Ocala, FL
Federal NCES profile for Liberty Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 35/100.
👥 Class size 18
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 41
📋 Attendance 11
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)
67.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.4:1
vs 18.3:1 Florida avg
+11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
54.4%
vs 52.0% Florida avg
+5% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Liberty 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
Liberty Middle School reports 1,171 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 67.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 20.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 11% 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 28% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 54.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 5% above the Florida average and 5% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 293 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 35.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Marion spends $11,790 per pupil district-wide, below the Florida average of $12,756 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 35.3% from local sources (property taxes), 43.3% from the state, and 21.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (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 Liberty 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 | 20.4:1 | ▲ 11% | 18.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 54.4% | ▲ 5% | 52.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,171 | top 86% | — | — |
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
54.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 5% above the Florida average of 52.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
20.4:1
students per teacher
— 11% above state mean
Top 79% in Florida — lower ratio than 21% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
35.6%
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
$11,790
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
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 293 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
121
in-school suspensions + 256 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 10.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 32.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 7 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,171 Top 86% in Florida — larger than 14% of 4,029 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 67.0
Students per teacher 20.4:1 +11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 54.4% +5% vs state
NCES ID 120126004385
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 39.3%
White 27.6%
African American 20.8%
Two or More 6.9%
Asian 4.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 39.3% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 4.0
Students per counselor 293:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 35.6%
In-school suspensions 121
Out-of-school suspensions 256
Expulsions 7
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Marion, which includes Liberty Middle School.
$11,790
Per student
-8%
vs Florida
Avg $12,756
-40%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 35.3%
State 43.3%
Federal 21.4%
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
- 3,022
- Students per teacher
- 24:1
- Enrollment
- 2,387
- Students per teacher
- 24.5:1
- Enrollment
- 1,904
- Students per teacher
- 25.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,684
- Students per teacher
- 23.4:1
- Enrollment
- 1,600
- Students per teacher
- 22.2:1
Similar middle schools in Ocala
4 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
Fort King Middle School
Standard public school
918 students 19.9:1 students per teacher
Howard Middle School
Standard public school
917 students 20.9:1 students per teacher
Osceola Middle School
Standard public school
866 students 22.2:1 students per teacher
Ocali Charter Middle School
Standard public school
194 students 15.5:1 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 Liberty Middle School
How many students attend Liberty Middle School?
Liberty Middle School has 1,171 students enrolled. It is a middle school in OCALA, FL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Liberty Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Liberty Middle School is 20.4:1, which is 11% higher than the Florida average of 18.3:1 and 28% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Liberty Middle School?
54.4% of students at Liberty Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Florida average of 52.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Liberty Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Liberty Middle School is Hispanic or Latino at 39.3%. The school serves a diverse student body in OCALA, FL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Liberty Middle School?
Liberty Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (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.