Enrollment
270
Illinois · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Aledo, IL
Mercer County Jr High School
Federal NCES profile for Mercer County Jr High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 42/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 170139506040
👥 S:T ratio 53
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 46
📋 Attendance 37
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Mercer County Jr High School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 75% of Illinois schools.
- #1 of 3
- public schools in Aledo · Resource Index
- 42
- Resource Index · Typical
- 11.7:1
- small classes for Illinois
- 270
- students enrolled
Mercer County Jr High School has class sizes smaller than 75% of Illinois schools. Computed live against every Illinois school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Mercer County Jr High School ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Aledo, IL.
School address
District: Mercer County School District 404 · Illinois
NCES ID 170139506040 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
23.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.7:1
vs 14:1 Illinois avg
-16% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Mercer County Jr High School compares with Illinois and U.S. medians
What stands out at Mercer County Jr High School
Mercer County Jr High School is a mid-sized middle school in Aledo, Illinois, enrolling 270 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11.7:1 puts it in the smaller third of Illinois schools by student-teacher ratio.
Enrollment of 270 puts it in the smaller third of Illinois schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 3,845 scored Illinois schools.
Its student body is predominantly White (89% of enrollment) (diversity index 21/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 270 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 25.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Mercer County School District 404 also operates Mercer County High School (411 students) and Apollo Elem School (362 students) alongside Mercer County Jr High School.
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 Mercer County Jr High School compares
Mercer County Jr High School on the metrics families compare, against Illinois and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Illinois | Illinois avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.7:1 | ▼ 16% | 14:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 270 | top 70% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.7:1
Leaner classes than 78% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
270
Bigger than 28% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
11.7:1
students per teacher
- 16% below state mean
Top 25% in Illinois - lower ratio than 75% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
25.2%
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
$13,924
per pupil, district-wide
- below Illinois avg of $17,042
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 270 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
19
in-school suspensions + 10 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 7.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.7 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 88.5%
Two or More 5.9%
African American 2.6%
Hispanic or Latino 1.9%
Asian 1.1%
Largest group: White at 88.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 21.2/100
Simpson diversity index - at 21.2, Mercer County Jr High School is less mixed than the Illinois school average of 38.9.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mercer County School District 404, which includes Mercer County Jr High School.
$13,924
Per student
-18%
vs Illinois
Avg $17,042
-16%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 53.6%
State 38.0%
Federal 8.3%
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 Mercer County Jr High School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mercer County High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Apollo Elem School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| New Boston Elem School | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Mercer County Elc | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Mercer County Jr High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 411
- Students per teacher
- 14.2:1
- Resource Index
- 29/100
- Enrollment
- 362
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 165
- Students per teacher
- 8.3:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 66
- Students per teacher
- 22:1
- Resource Index
- 12/100
Similar middle schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Illinois, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~270 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Mercer County Jr High School's federal record.
- Compare Mercer County Jr High School against another school. Compare schools
- Mercer County School District 404'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 Mercer County Jr High School
How many students attend Mercer County Jr High School?
Mercer County Jr High School has 270 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Aledo, IL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Mercer County Jr High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Mercer County Jr High School is 11.7:1, which is 16% lower than the Illinois average of 14:1 and 25% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Mercer County Jr High School?
The largest demographic group at Mercer County Jr High School is White at 88.5% of enrollment, in Aledo, IL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Mercer County Jr High School?
Mercer County Jr High School has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (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 Mercer County Jr High School rank among public schools in Aledo?
By Resource Investment Index, Mercer County Jr High School ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Aledo, IL. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Aledo on the city page.
Is Mercer County Jr High School a good school?
Mercer County Jr High School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 75% of Illinois schools. 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 Mercer County School District 404?
Besides Mercer County Jr High School, Mercer County School District 404 also operates Mercer County High School (411 students), Apollo Elem School (362 students), and New Boston Elem School (165 students). See the Mercer County School District 404 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.