Enrollment
958
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Cleburne, TX
Lowell Smith Jr Middle
Federal NCES profile for Lowell Smith Jr Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 39/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 481431000918
👥 S:T ratio 41
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 4
📋 Attendance 40
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Lowell Smith Jr Middle earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median.
- #9 of 13
- public schools in Cleburne · Resource Index
- 39
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14.7:1
- students per teacher
- 60.0%
- free-lunch eligible
Lowell Smith Jr Middle has class sizes near the Texas median. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Lowell Smith Jr Middle ranks #9 of 13 public schools in Cleburne, TX.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
65.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.7:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
+0% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
60.0%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
-3% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Lowell Smith Jr Middle compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Lowell Smith Jr Middle
Lowell Smith Jr Middle is a higher-need, large middle school in Cleburne, Texas, enrolling 958 students.
At 14.7:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Texas median, within a few percentage points of the 14.7:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 60.0% lands close to the Texas typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 958 puts it in the larger third of Texas schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Against 1,033 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #574.
Its student body is led by White (45%) and Hispanic or Latino (43%) (diversity index 61/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 479 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 23.9% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Discipline events run high: 235 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 958 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
Cleburne Isd also operates Cleburne H S (1,849 students) and Ad Wheat Middle (998 students) alongside Lowell Smith Jr Middle.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Lowell Smith Jr Middle compares
Lowell Smith Jr Middle on the metrics families compare, against Texas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.7:1 | ▼ 0% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 60.0% | ▼ 3% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 958 | top 12% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.7:1
Leaner classes than 50% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
958
Bigger than 90% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
60.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 3% below the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.7:1
students per teacher
- 0% above state mean
Top 56% in Texas - lower ratio than 44% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
23.9%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$11,011
per pupil, district-wide
- below Texas avg of $13,644
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 479 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
212
in-school suspensions + 23 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 22.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 24.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 44.6%
Hispanic or Latino 43.3%
Two or More 4.5%
African American 3.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 2.6%
Asian 0.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Largest group: White at 44.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 60.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 60.9, Lowell Smith Jr Middle is more mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cleburne Isd, which includes Lowell Smith Jr Middle.
$11,011
Per student
-19%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-34%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 50.6%
State 34.8%
Federal 14.5%
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.
How Lowell Smith Jr Middle Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cleburne H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Ad Wheat Middle | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Cooke El | Smaller | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Gerard El | Smaller | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Coleman El | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Lowell Smith Jr Middle's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,849
- Students per teacher
- 13.1:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 998
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 501
- Students per teacher
- 11.1:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
- Enrollment
- 474
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 434
- Students per teacher
- 12.1:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
Similar middle schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Texas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~958 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~14.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Lowell Smith Jr Middle's federal record.
- Compare Lowell Smith Jr Middle against another school. Compare schools
- Cleburne Isd's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Lowell Smith Jr Middle
How many students attend Lowell Smith Jr Middle?
Lowell Smith Jr Middle has 958 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Cleburne, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Lowell Smith Jr Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Lowell Smith Jr Middle is 14.7:1, which is 0% higher than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 6% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Lowell Smith Jr Middle?
60.0% of students at Lowell Smith Jr Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Lowell Smith Jr Middle?
The largest demographic group at Lowell Smith Jr Middle is White at 44.6% of enrollment, in Cleburne, TX. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 60.9/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Lowell Smith Jr Middle?
Lowell Smith Jr Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 39/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Lowell Smith Jr Middle rank among public schools in Cleburne?
By Resource Investment Index, Lowell Smith Jr Middle ranks #9 of 13 public schools in Cleburne, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Cleburne on the city page.
Is Lowell Smith Jr Middle a good school?
Lowell Smith Jr Middle earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Cleburne Isd?
Besides Lowell Smith Jr Middle, Cleburne Isd also operates Cleburne H S (1,849 students), Ad Wheat Middle (998 students), and Cooke El (501 students). See the Cleburne Isd district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.