Enrollment
278
Virginia · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Pennington Gap, VA
Pennington Middle
Federal NCES profile for Pennington Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 46/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 510219000900
👥 S:T ratio 60
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 44
📋 Attendance 11
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Pennington Middle earns 46/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 95% of Virginia schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Virginia schools.
- 46
- Resource Index · Typical
- 9.9:1
- small classes for Virginia
- 100.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 278
- students enrolled
Pennington Middle has class sizes smaller than 95% of Virginia schools. Computed live against every Virginia school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Lee County Public Schools · Virginia
NCES ID 510219000900 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
28.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
9.9:1
vs 13.9:1 Virginia avg
-29% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
100.0%
vs 57.6% Virginia avg
+74% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Pennington Middle compares with Virginia and U.S. medians
What stands out at Pennington Middle
Pennington Middle is a high-poverty, small elementary school in Pennington Gap, Virginia, enrolling 278 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 9.9:1, Pennington Middle is leaner than roughly 95% of Virginia schools and 29% under the state's 13.9:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Economic need is high: 100.0% of students qualify for free meals, 74% above the Virginia average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
Enrollment of 278 puts it in the smaller third of Virginia schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,868 scored Virginia schools.
Against 143 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #98.
Its student body is predominantly White (97% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 6/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 278 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 35.6% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 27.8% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Lee County Public Schools also operates Lee High (803 students) and Flatwoods Elementary (336 students) alongside Pennington Middle.
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 Pennington Middle compares
Pennington Middle on the metrics families compare, against Virginia and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Virginia | Virginia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 9.9:1 | ▼ 29% | 13.9:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 100.0% | ▲ 74% | 57.6% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 278 | top 87% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
9.9:1
Leaner classes than 89% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
278
Bigger than 29% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
100.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 74% above the Virginia average of 57.6%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
9.9:1
students per teacher
- 29% below state mean
Top 5% in Virginia - lower ratio than 95% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
35.6%
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
$14,995
per pupil, district-wide
- above Virginia avg of $14,649
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 278 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
12
in-school suspensions + 14 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 9.4 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 96.8%
African American 1.4%
Two or More 1.1%
Hispanic or Latino 0.7%
Largest group: White at 96.8% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 6.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 6.3, Pennington Middle is less mixed than the Virginia school average of 53.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Lee County Public Schools, which includes Pennington Middle.
$14,995
Per student
+2%
vs Virginia
Avg $14,649
-10%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 12.6%
State 59.6%
Federal 27.8%
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 Pennington Middle Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lee High | Larger | Similar economic need | No ratio data |
| Flatwoods Elementary | Similar size | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Elk Knob Elementary | Similar size | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Thomas Walker High | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Rose Hill Elementary | Similar size | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Pennington Middle's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 803
- Students per teacher
- -
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 336
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 291
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 291
- Students per teacher
- 12.7:1
- Resource Index
- 54/100
- Enrollment
- 256
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Virginia, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~278 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~9.9:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Pennington Middle's federal record.
- Compare Pennington Middle against another school. Compare schools
- Lee County Public Schools'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 Pennington Middle
How many students attend Pennington Middle?
Pennington Middle has 278 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Pennington Gap, VA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Pennington Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Pennington Middle is 9.9:1, which is 29% lower than the Virginia average of 13.9:1 and 37% 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 Pennington Middle?
100.0% of students at Pennington Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Virginia average of 57.6%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Pennington Middle?
The largest demographic group at Pennington Middle is White at 96.8% of enrollment, in Pennington Gap, VA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Pennington Middle?
Pennington Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (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).
Is Pennington Middle a good school?
Pennington Middle earns 46/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 95% of Virginia schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Virginia 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 Lee County Public Schools?
Besides Pennington Middle, Lee County Public Schools also operates Lee High (803 students), Flatwoods Elementary (336 students), and Elk Knob Elementary (291 students). See the Lee County Public Schools 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.