Enrollment
500
Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 510324001385
Martin Luther King Jr. Middle — Richmond, VA
Federal NCES profile for Martin Luther King Jr. Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 51/100.
👥 Class size 62
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 67
📋 Attendance 3
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: Richmond City Public Schools · Virginia
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)
53.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
9.5:1
vs 14:1 Virginia avg
-32% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
95.8%
vs 59.9% Virginia avg
+60% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Martin Luther King Jr. Middle compares with Virginia 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
Martin Luther King Jr. Middle reports 500 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 53.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 9.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 32% below the Virginia state mean of 14:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 40% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 95.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 60% above the Virginia average and 85% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 167 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 38.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Richmond City Public Schools spends $22,807 per pupil district-wide, above the Virginia average of $16,211 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 40.0% from local sources (property taxes), 34.3% from the state, and 25.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (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 Martin Luther King Jr. Middle compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Virginia state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Virginia | Virginia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 9.5:1 | ▼ 32% | 14:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 95.8% | ▲ 60% | 59.9% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 500 | top 42% | — | — |
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
95.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 60% above the Virginia average of 59.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
9.5:1
students per teacher
— 32% below state mean
Top 3% in Virginia — lower ratio than 97% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
38.6%
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
$22,807
per pupil, district-wide
— above Virginia avg of $16,211
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 167 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
28
in-school suspensions + 275 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 60.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 500 Top 42% in Virginia — larger than 58% of 1,869 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 53.0
Students per teacher 9.5:1 -32% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 95.8% +60% vs state
NCES ID 510324001385
Student demographics
African American 91.8%
Hispanic or Latino 4.2%
White 1.6%
Asian 1.2%
Two or More 1.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: African American at 91.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.0
Students per counselor 167:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 38.6%
In-school suspensions 28
Out-of-school suspensions 275
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Richmond City Public Schools, which includes Martin Luther King Jr. Middle.
$22,807
Per student
+41%
vs Virginia
Avg $16,211
+17%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 40.0%
State 34.3%
Federal 25.7%
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
- 1,469
- Students per teacher
- 14.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,150
- Students per teacher
- 11.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,116
- Students per teacher
- 11.3:1
- Enrollment
- 821
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Enrollment
- 749
- Students per teacher
- 11.3:1
Similar middle schools in Richmond
6 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
River City Middle
Standard public school
1,150 students 11.2:1 students per teacher
Tuckahoe Middle
Standard public school
1,114 students 16.7:1 students per teacher
George H. Moody Middle
Standard public school
1,086 students 17.3:1 students per teacher
Quioccasin Middle
Standard public school
1,053 students 16:1 students per teacher
Brookland Middle
Standard public school
1,034 students 14.1:1 students per teacher
Fairfield Middle
Standard public school
936 students 15.4:1 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 Martin Luther King Jr. Middle
How many students attend Martin Luther King Jr. Middle?
Martin Luther King Jr. Middle has 500 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Richmond, VA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Martin Luther King Jr. Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Martin Luther King Jr. Middle is 9.5:1, which is 32% lower than the Virginia average of 14:1 and 40% 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 Martin Luther King Jr. Middle?
95.8% of students at Martin Luther King Jr. Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Virginia average of 59.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Martin Luther King Jr. Middle?
The largest demographic group at Martin Luther King Jr. Middle is African American at 91.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Richmond, VA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Martin Luther King Jr. Middle?
Martin Luther King Jr. Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (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.