Enrollment
215
Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Shickshinny, PA
Northwest Area Primary Sch
Federal NCES profile for Northwest Area Primary Sch, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 43/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 421779002956
👥 S:T ratio 28
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 57
📋 Attendance 55
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Northwest Area Primary Sch earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 94% of Pennsylvania schools.
- #3 of 3
- public schools in Shickshinny · Resource Index
- 43
- Resource Index · Typical
- 17.9:1
- large classes for Pennsylvania
- 50.2%
- free-lunch eligible
Northwest Area Primary Sch has class sizes larger than 94% of Pennsylvania schools. Computed live against every Pennsylvania school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Northwest Area Primary Sch ranks #3 of 3 public schools in Shickshinny, PA.
School address
District: Northwest Area Sd · Pennsylvania
NCES ID 421779002956 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
12.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.9:1
vs 13.6:1 Pennsylvania avg
+32% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
50.2%
vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg
-14% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Northwest Area Primary Sch compares with Pennsylvania and U.S. medians
What stands out at Northwest Area Primary Sch
Northwest Area Primary Sch is a higher-need, small combined-grade school in Shickshinny, Pennsylvania, enrolling 215 students.
Class loads run heavy: 17.9:1 is larger than about 94% of Pennsylvania schools and 32% above the 13.6:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 50.2% lands close to the Pennsylvania typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 215 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.
Among 175 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Pennsylvania schools statewide, it ranks #140, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly White (93% of enrollment) (diversity index 13/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 215 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 18.1% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Among Shickshinny's public schools, it stands alongside Northwest Area Hs (406 students): Northwest Area Primary Sch is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (17.9:1 vs 11.3:1).
Northwest Area Sd also operates Northwest Area Hs (406 students) and Northwest Area Intermediate Sch (260 students) alongside Northwest Area Primary 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 Northwest Area Primary Sch compares
Northwest Area Primary 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 | 17.9:1 | ▲ 32% | 13.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 50.2% | ▼ 14% | 58.1% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 215 | top 89% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17.9:1
Leaner classes than 25% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
215
Bigger than 21% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
50.2%
free-lunch eligible
- 14% below the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
17.9:1
students per teacher
- 32% above state mean
Top 94% in Pennsylvania - lower ratio than 6% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
18.1%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$19,941
per pupil, district-wide
- above Pennsylvania avg of $17,970
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 215 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
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: 0.9 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 93.0%
Two or More 6.0%
Hispanic or Latino 0.5%
Asian 0.5%
Largest group: White at 93.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 13.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 13.1, Northwest Area Primary Sch is less mixed than the Pennsylvania school average of 37.3.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Northwest Area Sd, which includes Northwest Area Primary Sch.
$19,941
Per student
+11%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $17,970
+20%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 35.7%
State 55.1%
Federal 9.1%
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.
How Northwest Area Primary Sch Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northwest Area Hs | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Northwest Area Intermediate Sch | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Northwest Area Primary Sch's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 406
- Students per teacher
- 11.3:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
- Enrollment
- 260
- Students per teacher
- 10:1
- Resource Index
- 57/100
Similar other schools in Shickshinny
1 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Similar other 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 (~215 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~17.9:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Northwest Area Primary Sch's federal record.
- Compare Northwest Area Primary Sch against another school. Compare schools
- Northwest Area 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 Northwest Area Primary Sch
How many students attend Northwest Area Primary Sch?
Northwest Area Primary Sch has 215 students enrolled. It is a public school in Shickshinny, PA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Northwest Area Primary Sch?
The student-teacher ratio at Northwest Area Primary Sch is 17.9:1, which is 32% higher than the Pennsylvania average of 13.6:1 and 14% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Northwest Area Primary Sch?
50.2% of students at Northwest Area Primary Sch are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Northwest Area Primary Sch?
The largest demographic group at Northwest Area Primary Sch is White at 93.0% of enrollment, in Shickshinny, PA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Northwest Area Primary Sch?
Northwest Area Primary Sch has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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 Northwest Area Primary Sch rank among public schools in Shickshinny?
By Resource Investment Index, Northwest Area Primary Sch ranks #3 of 3 public schools in Shickshinny, PA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Shickshinny on the city page.
Is Northwest Area Primary Sch a good school?
Northwest Area Primary Sch earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 94% 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 Northwest Area Sd?
Besides Northwest Area Primary Sch, Northwest Area Sd also operates Northwest Area Hs (406 students) and Northwest Area Intermediate Sch (260 students). See the Northwest Area 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.