Enrollment
12
Kansas · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 201047000396
Palco Jr. High — Palco, KS
Federal NCES profile for Palco Jr. High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 68/100.
👥 Class size 72
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 93
📋 Attendance 79
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 →
The verdict
Palco Jr. High earns a B- Resource Investment Index (68/100), with class sizes smaller than 98% of Kansas schools.
- B-
- Resource Index · 68/100
- 7:1
- small classes for Kansas
- 42.9%
- free-lunch eligible
- 12
- students enrolled
School address
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)
2.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
7:1
vs 14.4:1 Kansas avg
-51% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
42.9%
vs 42.7% Kansas avg
+0% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Palco Jr. High compares with Kansas 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
Palco Jr. High reports 12 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 2.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 51% below the Kansas state mean of 14.4:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.7:1, it is 55% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 42.9% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 0% above the Kansas average and 17% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 36 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 8.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Palco spends $21,629 per pupil district-wide, above the Kansas average of $15,487 and above the national average of $16,593. Revenue comes 32.9% from local sources (property taxes), 60.6% from the state, and 6.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 68/100 (B-), 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 Palco Jr. High compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Kansas state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Kansas | Kansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 7:1 | ▼ 51% | 14.4:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 42.9% | ▲ 0% | 42.7% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 12 | top 1% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
Class size vs. every US school
Students per teacher (lower means more individual attention)
7 Among the smallest classes smaller classes than 97% of 92,598 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25
School size vs. every US school
Total enrollment — where this school sits by size (neither large nor small is 'better')
12 larger than 2% of 95,891 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 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
42.9%
free-lunch eligible
— 0% above the Kansas average of 42.7%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
7:1
students per teacher
— 51% below state mean
Top 2% in Kansas — lower ratio than 98% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
8.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$21,629
per pupil, district-wide
— above Kansas avg of $15,487
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors0.3 FTE
Per 36 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 16.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 16.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 12 Top 1% in Kansas — larger than 99% of 1,354 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 2.0
Students per teacher 7:1 -51% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 42.9% +0% vs state
NCES ID 201047000396
Student demographics
White 100.0%
Largest group: White at 100.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 0.3
Students per counselor 36:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 8.3%
In-school suspensions 2
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Palco, which includes Palco Jr. High.
$21,629
Per student
+40%
vs Kansas
Avg $15,487
+30%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 32.9%
State 60.6%
Federal 6.5%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 46
- Students per teacher
- 7.6:1
- Enrollment
- 19
- Students per teacher
- 10:1
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 Palco Jr. High
How many students attend Palco Jr. High?
Palco Jr. High has 12 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Palco, KS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Palco Jr. High?
The student-teacher ratio at Palco Jr. High is 7:1, which is 51% lower than the Kansas average of 14.4:1 and 55% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Palco Jr. High?
42.9% of students at Palco Jr. High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kansas average of 42.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Palco Jr. High?
The largest demographic group at Palco Jr. High is White at 100.0%. The school serves a student body in Palco, KS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Palco Jr. High?
Palco Jr. High has a Resource Investment Index of 68/100 (B-) 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.
Is Palco Jr. High a good school?
Palco Jr. High earns a B- Resource Investment Index (68/100), with class sizes smaller than 98% of Kansas schools. The Resource Investment Index reflects staffing, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance reported to NCES, not test scores or academic outcomes, so treat it as a resource snapshot rather than an overall rating.