Enrollment
745
Washington · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 530585003587
Salish Middle School — Lacey, WA
Federal NCES profile for Salish Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 38/100.
👥 Class size 18
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 26
📋 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: North Thurston Public Schools · 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)
36.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.4:1
vs 17.8:1 Washington avg
+15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
37.7%
vs 45.0% Washington avg
-16% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Salish 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
Salish Middle School reports 745 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 36.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 20.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 15% above the Washington state mean of 17.8:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 28% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 37.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 16% below the Washington average and 27% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 373 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 24.2% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding North Thurston Public Schools spends $19,649 per pupil district-wide, below the Washington average of $23,175 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 30.4% from local sources (property taxes), 61.3% from the state, and 8.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (F), 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 Salish 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 | 20.4:1 | ▲ 15% | 17.8:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 37.7% | ▼ 16% | 45.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 745 | top 87% | — | — |
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
37.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 16% 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
20.4:1
students per teacher
— 15% above state mean
Top 83% in Washington — lower ratio than 17% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
24.2%
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
$19,649
per pupil, district-wide
— below 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 373 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
61
in-school suspensions + 32 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 8.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 12.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 16 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 745 Top 87% in Washington — larger than 13% of 2,465 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 36.0
Students per teacher 20.4:1 +15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 37.7% -16% vs state
NCES ID 530585003587
Student demographics
White 40.6%
Hispanic or Latino 25.1%
Two or More 16.9%
Asian 8.3%
African American 4.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 3.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.9%
Largest group: White at 40.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 373:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 24.2%
In-school suspensions 61
Out-of-school suspensions 32
Expulsions 16
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for North Thurston Public Schools, which includes Salish Middle School.
$19,649
Per student
-15%
vs Washington
Avg $23,175
+1%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 30.4%
State 61.3%
Federal 8.3%
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
- 1,547
- Students per teacher
- 19.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,401
- Students per teacher
- 21.6:1
- Enrollment
- 1,378
- Students per teacher
- 20.3:1
- Enrollment
- 789
- Students per teacher
- 17.3:1
- Enrollment
- 776
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
Similar middle schools in Lacey
4 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
Nisqually Middle School
Standard public school
789 students 17.3:1 students per teacher
Chinook Middle School
Standard public school
746 students 19.2:1 students per teacher
Komachin Middle School
Standard public school
640 students 18.9:1 students per teacher
Aspire Middle School
Standard public school
323 students 21.5:1 students per teacher
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 Salish Middle School
How many students attend Salish Middle School?
Salish Middle School has 745 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Lacey, WA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Salish Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Salish Middle School is 20.4:1, which is 15% higher than the Washington average of 17.8:1 and 28% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Salish Middle School?
37.7% of students at Salish Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Washington average of 45.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Salish Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Salish Middle School is White at 40.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in Lacey, WA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Salish Middle School?
Salish Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (F) 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.