Enrollment
655
Maryland · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 240021000543
Northwest Middle — Taneytown, MD
Federal NCES profile for Northwest Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 43/100.
👥 Class size 45
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 56
📋 Attendance 2
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: Carroll County Public Schools · Maryland
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)
46.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.8:1
vs 14.4:1 Maryland avg
-4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
38.9%
vs 49.0% Maryland avg
-21% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Northwest Middle compares with Maryland 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
Northwest Middle reports 655 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 46.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 13.8:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 4% below the Maryland state mean of 14.4:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 13% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 38.9% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 21% below the Maryland average and 25% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 218 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 39.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Carroll County Public Schools spends $18,751 per pupil district-wide, below the Maryland average of $22,498 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 54.2% from local sources (property taxes), 37.6% from the state, and 8.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (D), 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 Northwest Middle compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Maryland state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Maryland | Maryland avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.8:1 | ▼ 4% | 14.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 38.9% | ▼ 21% | 49.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 655 | top 66% | — | — |
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
38.9%
free-lunch eligible
— 21% below the Maryland average of 49.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
13.8:1
students per teacher
— 4% below state mean
Top 37% in Maryland — lower ratio than 63% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
39.1%
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
$18,751
per pupil, district-wide
— below Maryland avg of $22,498
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 218 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 63 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 9.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 655 Top 66% in Maryland — larger than 34% of 1,383 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 46.0
Students per teacher 13.8:1 -4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 38.9% -21% vs state
NCES ID 240021000543
Student demographics
White 75.6%
African American 10.8%
Hispanic or Latino 6.9%
Two or More 4.3%
Asian 2.0%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 75.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.0
Students per counselor 218:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 39.1%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 63
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Carroll County Public Schools, which includes Northwest Middle.
$18,751
Per student
-17%
vs Maryland
Avg $22,498
-4%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 54.2%
State 37.6%
Federal 8.2%
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
- 1,477
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,339
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,156
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,101
- Students per teacher
- 17.5:1
- Enrollment
- 1,007
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
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 Northwest Middle
How many students attend Northwest Middle?
Northwest Middle has 655 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Taneytown, MD.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Northwest Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Northwest Middle is 13.8:1, which is 4% lower than the Maryland average of 14.4:1 and 13% 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 Northwest Middle?
38.9% of students at Northwest Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Maryland average of 49.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Northwest Middle?
The largest demographic group at Northwest Middle is White at 75.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in Taneytown, MD.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Northwest Middle?
Northwest Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (D) 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.