Enrollment
289
Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Dauphin, PA
Middle Paxton El Sch
Federal NCES profile for Middle Paxton El Sch, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 49/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 420540001791
👥 S:T ratio 32
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 45
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Middle Paxton El Sch earns 49/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 91% of Pennsylvania schools.
- 49
- Resource Index · Higher
- 17:1
- large classes for Pennsylvania
- 28.5%
- free-lunch eligible
- 289
- students enrolled
Middle Paxton El Sch has class sizes larger than 91% of Pennsylvania schools. Computed live against every Pennsylvania school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Central Dauphin Sd · Pennsylvania
NCES ID 420540001791 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
17.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17:1
vs 13.6:1 Pennsylvania avg
+25% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
28.5%
vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg
-51% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Middle Paxton El Sch compares with Pennsylvania and U.S. medians
What stands out at Middle Paxton El Sch
Middle Paxton El Sch is a mid-sized elementary school in Dauphin, Pennsylvania, enrolling 289 students.
Class loads run heavy: 17:1 is larger than about 91% of Pennsylvania schools and 25% above the 13.6:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 28.5% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 289 puts it in the smaller third of Pennsylvania schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,889 scored Pennsylvania schools.
Against 289 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #194.
Its student body is predominantly White (84% of enrollment) (diversity index 28/100).
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 22.1% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Central Dauphin Sd also operates Central Dauphin Shs (1,966 students) and Central Dauphin East Shs (1,573 students) alongside Middle Paxton El Sch.
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 Middle Paxton El Sch compares
Middle Paxton El Sch on the metrics families compare, against Pennsylvania and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17:1 | ▲ 25% | 13.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 28.5% | ▼ 51% | 58.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 289 | top 79% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17:1
Leaner classes than 30% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
289
Bigger than 31% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
28.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 51% below the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17:1
students per teacher
- 25% above state mean
Top 91% in Pennsylvania - lower ratio than 9% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
22.1%
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
$15,143
per pupil, district-wide
- below Pennsylvania avg of $17,970
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.7 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 84.4%
African American 4.8%
Two or More 4.5%
Hispanic or Latino 4.2%
Asian 2.1%
Largest group: White at 84.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 28.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 28.1, Middle Paxton El Sch is less mixed than the Pennsylvania school average of 37.3.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Central Dauphin Sd, which includes Middle Paxton El Sch.
$15,143
Per student
-16%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $17,970
-9%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 68.5%
State 22.6%
Federal 8.9%
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 Middle Paxton El Sch Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central Dauphin Shs | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Central Dauphin East Shs | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Linglestown Ms | Larger | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Central Dauphin Ms | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| North Side El Sch | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Middle Paxton El Sch's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,966
- Students per teacher
- 16.1:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 1,573
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Resource Index
- 27/100
- Enrollment
- 841
- Students per teacher
- 15.3:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
- Enrollment
- 834
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
- Enrollment
- 722
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Pennsylvania, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~289 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Middle Paxton El Sch's federal record.
- Compare Middle Paxton El Sch against another school. Compare schools
- Central Dauphin Sd'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 Middle Paxton El Sch
How many students attend Middle Paxton El Sch?
Middle Paxton El Sch has 289 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Dauphin, PA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Middle Paxton El Sch?
The student-teacher ratio at Middle Paxton El Sch is 17:1, which is 25% higher than the Pennsylvania average of 13.6:1 and 8% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Middle Paxton El Sch?
28.5% of students at Middle Paxton El Sch are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Middle Paxton El Sch?
The largest demographic group at Middle Paxton El Sch is White at 84.4% of enrollment, in Dauphin, PA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Middle Paxton El Sch?
Middle Paxton El Sch has a Resource Investment Index of 49/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Middle Paxton El Sch a good school?
Middle Paxton El Sch earns 49/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 91% of Pennsylvania 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 Central Dauphin Sd?
Besides Middle Paxton El Sch, Central Dauphin Sd also operates Central Dauphin Shs (1,966 students), Central Dauphin East Shs (1,573 students), and Linglestown Ms (841 students). See the Central Dauphin Sd 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.