Enrollment
393
Arkansas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 050975000714
Mena Middle School — Mena, AR
Federal NCES profile for Mena Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 33/100.
👥 Class size 50
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 13
📋 Attendance 0
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: Mena School District · Arkansas
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)
30.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.5:1
vs 13.6:1 Arkansas avg
-8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
48.8%
vs 59.2% Arkansas avg
-18% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Mena Middle School compares with Arkansas 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
Mena Middle School reports 393 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 30.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 8% below the Arkansas state mean of 13.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 21% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 48.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 18% below the Arkansas average and 6% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 437 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 53.2% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Mena School District spends $13,150 per pupil district-wide, below the Arkansas average of $14,269 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 28.4% from local sources (property taxes), 43.5% from the state, and 28.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 33/100 (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 Mena Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Arkansas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Arkansas | Arkansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.5:1 | ▼ 8% | 13.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 48.8% | ▼ 18% | 59.2% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 393 | top 49% | — | — |
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
48.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 18% below the Arkansas average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.5:1
students per teacher
— 8% below state mean
Top 35% in Arkansas — lower ratio than 65% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
53.2%
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
$13,150
per pupil, district-wide
— below Arkansas avg of $14,269
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.9 FTE
Per 437 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
104
in-school suspensions + 17 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 26.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 30.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
Overview
Enrollment 393 Top 49% in Arkansas — larger than 51% of 1,069 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 30.0
Students per teacher 12.5:1 -8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 48.8% -18% vs state
NCES ID 050975000714
Student demographics
White 86.3%
Hispanic or Latino 6.4%
Two or More 3.8%
Asian 1.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.5%
African American 0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 86.3% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.9
Students per counselor 437:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 53.2%
In-school suspensions 104
Out-of-school suspensions 17
Expulsions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mena School District, which includes Mena Middle School.
$13,150
Per student
-8%
vs Arkansas
Avg $14,269
-33%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 28.4%
State 43.5%
Federal 28.1%
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
- 503
- Students per teacher
- 8.2:1
- Enrollment
- 438
- Students per teacher
- 18.9:1
- Enrollment
- 357
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
- Enrollment
- 12
- Students per teacher
- 0.4:1
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 Mena Middle School
How many students attend Mena Middle School?
Mena Middle School has 393 students enrolled. It is a middle school in MENA, AR.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Mena Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Mena Middle School is 12.5:1, which is 8% lower than the Arkansas average of 13.6:1 and 21% 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 Mena Middle School?
48.8% of students at Mena Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arkansas average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Mena Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Mena Middle School is White at 86.3%. The school serves a diverse student body in MENA, AR.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Mena Middle School?
Mena Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 33/100 (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.