Enrollment
283
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Mountain Iron, MN
Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary
Federal NCES profile for Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 40/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 270000101613
👥 S:T ratio 24
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 43
📋 Attendance 22
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 79% of Minnesota schools.
- #2 of 3
- public schools in Mountain Iron · Resource Index
- 40
- Resource Index · Typical
- 18.9:1
- large classes for Minnesota
- 38.1%
- free-lunch eligible
Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary has class sizes larger than 79% of Minnesota schools. Computed live against every Minnesota school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary ranks #2 of 3 public schools in Mountain Iron, MN.
School address
District: Mountain Iron-Buhl School District · Minnesota
NCES ID 270000101613 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
15.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.9:1
vs 15.8:1 Minnesota avg
+20% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
38.1%
vs 42.8% Minnesota avg
-11% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary compares with Minnesota and U.S. medians
What stands out at Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary
Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Mountain Iron, Minnesota, enrolling 283 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 18.9:1 puts it in the larger third of Minnesota schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 38.1% lands close to the Minnesota typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 283 students, its enrollment sits close to the Minnesota median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,334 scored Minnesota schools.
Against 332 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #142.
Its student body is predominantly White (84% of enrollment) (diversity index 29/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 283 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 31.1% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district, Mountain Iron-Buhl School District, also runs Merritt Elementary (354 students).
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 Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary compares
Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary on the metrics families compare, against Minnesota and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Minnesota | Minnesota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.9:1 | ▲ 20% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 38.1% | ▼ 11% | 42.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 283 | top 48% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
18.9:1
Leaner classes than 20% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
283
Bigger than 30% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
38.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 11% below the Minnesota average of 42.8%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
18.9:1
students per teacher
- 20% above state mean
Top 79% in Minnesota - lower ratio than 21% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
31.1%
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
$15,159
per pupil, district-wide
- below Minnesota avg of $15,270
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 283 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 10 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.5 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 83.7%
Two or More 8.1%
Hispanic or Latino 3.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 2.8%
African American 1.4%
Largest group: White at 83.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 29.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 29.0, Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary is less mixed than the Minnesota school average of 42.8.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mountain Iron-Buhl School District, which includes Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary.
$15,159
Per student
-1%
vs Minnesota
Avg $15,270
-9%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 18.7%
State 68.8%
Federal 12.5%
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 Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Merritt Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 354
- Students per teacher
- 16.1:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Minnesota, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~283 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~18.9:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary's federal record.
- Compare Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary against another school. Compare schools
- Mountain Iron-Buhl School District'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 Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary
How many students attend Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary?
Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary has 283 students enrolled. It is a public school in Mountain Iron, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary?
The student-teacher ratio at Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary is 18.9:1, which is 20% higher than the Minnesota average of 15.8:1 and 20% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary?
38.1% of students at Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Minnesota average of 42.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary?
The largest demographic group at Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary is White at 83.7% of enrollment, in Mountain Iron, MN.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary?
Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary has a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (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 Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary rank among public schools in Mountain Iron?
By Resource Investment Index, Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary ranks #2 of 3 public schools in Mountain Iron, MN. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Mountain Iron on the city page.
Is Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary a good school?
Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 79% of Minnesota 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 Mountain Iron-Buhl School District?
Besides Mountain Iron-Buhl Secondary, Mountain Iron-Buhl School District also operates Merritt Elementary (354 students). See the Mountain Iron-Buhl School District 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.