Enrollment
277
Wisconsin · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 550753000863
Lincoln Middle — La Crosse, WI
Federal NCES profile for Lincoln Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 54/100.
👥 Class size 65
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 65
📋 Attendance 16
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: La Crosse School District · Wisconsin
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)
32.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
8.7:1
vs 15.1:1 Wisconsin avg
-42% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
37.2%
vs 38.5% Wisconsin avg
-3% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Lincoln Middle compares with Wisconsin 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
Lincoln Middle reports 277 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 32.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 8.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 42% below the Wisconsin state mean of 15.1:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 45% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 37.2% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 3% below the Wisconsin average and 28% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 173 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 33.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding La Crosse School District spends $18,341 per pupil district-wide, below the Wisconsin average of $18,610 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 50.4% from local sources (property taxes), 37.8% from the state, and 11.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 54/100 (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 Lincoln Middle compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Wisconsin state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Wisconsin | Wisconsin avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 8.7:1 | ▼ 42% | 15.1:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 37.2% | ▼ 3% | 38.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 277 | top 45% | — | — |
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
37.2%
free-lunch eligible
— 3% below the Wisconsin average of 38.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
8.7:1
students per teacher
— 42% below state mean
Top 3% in Wisconsin — lower ratio than 97% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
33.6%
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
$18,341
per pupil, district-wide
— below Wisconsin avg of $18,610
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.6 FTE
Per 173 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
23
in-school suspensions + 28 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 8.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 18.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 277 Top 45% in Wisconsin — larger than 55% of 2,205 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 32.0
Students per teacher 8.7:1 -42% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 37.2% -3% vs state
NCES ID 550753000863
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.6
Students per counselor 173:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 33.6%
In-school suspensions 23
Out-of-school suspensions 28
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for La Crosse School District, which includes Lincoln Middle.
$18,341
Per student
-1%
vs Wisconsin
Avg $18,610
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 50.4%
State 37.8%
Federal 11.8%
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
- 969
- Students per teacher
- 12.8:1
- Enrollment
- 729
- Students per teacher
- 10.9:1
- Enrollment
- 631
- Students per teacher
- 11.4:1
- Enrollment
- 424
- Students per teacher
- 9.2:1
- Enrollment
- 333
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
Similar middle schools in La Crosse
3 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
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 Lincoln Middle
How many students attend Lincoln Middle?
Lincoln Middle has 277 students enrolled. It is a middle school in La Crosse, WI.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Lincoln Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Lincoln Middle is 8.7:1, which is 42% lower than the Wisconsin average of 15.1:1 and 45% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Lincoln Middle?
37.2% of students at Lincoln Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Wisconsin average of 38.5%.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Lincoln Middle?
Lincoln Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 54/100 (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.