Enrollment
568
Washington · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 531014003068
Ridgeline Middle School — Yelm, WA
Federal NCES profile for Ridgeline Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 46/100.
👥 Class size 30
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 43
📋 Attendance 40
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: Yelm School District · Washington
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)
33.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.4:1
vs 17.8:1 Washington avg
-2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
36.6%
vs 45.0% Washington avg
-19% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Ridgeline Middle School compares with Washington 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
Ridgeline Middle School reports 568 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 33.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 2% below the Washington state mean of 17.8:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 9% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 36.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 19% below the Washington average and 29% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 284 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 23.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Yelm School District spends $24,229 per pupil district-wide, above the Washington average of $23,175 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 18.8% from local sources (property taxes), 67.7% from the state, and 13.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (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 Ridgeline Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Washington state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Washington | Washington avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.4:1 | ▼ 2% | 17.8:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 36.6% | ▼ 19% | 45.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 568 | top 77% | — | — |
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
36.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 19% below the Washington average of 45.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17.4:1
students per teacher
— 2% below state mean
Top 61% in Washington — lower ratio than 39% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
23.9%
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
$24,229
per pupil, district-wide
— above Washington avg of $23,175
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 284 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
35
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 2 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 568 Top 77% in Washington — larger than 23% of 2,465 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 33.0
Students per teacher 17.4:1 -2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 36.6% -19% vs state
NCES ID 531014003068
Student demographics
White 63.1%
Hispanic or Latino 18.5%
Two or More 14.1%
African American 1.2%
Asian 1.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 1.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.7%
Largest group: White at 63.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 284:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 23.9%
In-school suspensions 35
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Expulsions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Yelm School District, which includes Ridgeline Middle School.
$24,229
Per student
+5%
vs Washington
Avg $23,175
+24%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 18.8%
State 67.7%
Federal 13.6%
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
- 1,693
- Students per teacher
- 20.7:1
- Enrollment
- 671
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Enrollment
- 652
- Students per teacher
- 19.3:1
- Enrollment
- 462
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Enrollment
- 427
- Students per teacher
- 17.6:1
Similar middle schools in Yelm
1 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
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 Ridgeline Middle School
How many students attend Ridgeline Middle School?
Ridgeline Middle School has 568 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Yelm, WA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ridgeline Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Ridgeline Middle School is 17.4:1, which is 2% lower than the Washington average of 17.8:1 and 9% higher 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 Ridgeline Middle School?
36.6% of students at Ridgeline Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Washington average of 45.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Ridgeline Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Ridgeline Middle School is White at 63.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in Yelm, WA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Ridgeline Middle School?
Ridgeline Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (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.