Enrollment
728
Minnesota · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Minneapolis, MN
Sanford Middle
Federal NCES profile for Sanford Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 30/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 272124001028
👥 S:T ratio 0
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 51
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Sanford Middle earns 30/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 94% of Minnesota schools.
- #7 of 14
- middle schools in Minneapolis · Resource Index
- 30
- Resource Index · Lower
- 28:1
- large classes for Minnesota
- 33.5%
- free-lunch eligible
Sanford Middle has class sizes larger than 94% of Minnesota schools. Computed live against every Minnesota school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Sanford Middle ranks #7 of 14 middle schools in Minneapolis, MN.
School address
District: Minneapolis Public School District · Minnesota
NCES ID 272124001028 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
26.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
28:1
vs 15.8:1 Minnesota avg
+77% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
33.5%
vs 42.8% Minnesota avg
-22% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sanford Middle compares with Minnesota and U.S. medians
What stands out at Sanford Middle
Sanford Middle is a large middle school in Minneapolis, Minnesota, enrolling 728 students.
Class loads run heavy: 28:1 is larger than about 94% of Minnesota schools and 77% above the 15.8:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 33.5% lands close to the Minnesota typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 728 puts it in the larger third of Minnesota schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 2,334 scored Minnesota schools.
Against 345 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #244.
Its student body is led by White (60%) and African American (11%) (diversity index 60/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 243 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 47.5% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The surrounding Minneapolis Public School District spends $21,154 per pupil, 39% above the Minnesota average, a better-resourced district than most.
Its district draws 18.5% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Minneapolis Public School District also operates Washburn High (1,521 students) and South High (1,257 students) alongside Sanford 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 Sanford Middle compares
Sanford Middle on the metrics families compare, against Minnesota and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Minnesota | Minnesota avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 28:1 | ▲ 77% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 33.5% | ▼ 22% | 42.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 728 | top 12% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
28:1
Leaner classes than 3% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
728
Bigger than 82% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
33.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 22% below the Minnesota average of 42.8%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
28:1
students per teacher
- 77% above state mean
Top 94% in Minnesota - lower ratio than 6% of state schools
Well above 20:1, one of the more stretched staffing loads nationally relative to enrollment.
Engagement
47.5%
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
$21,154
per pupil, district-wide
- above Minnesota avg of $15,270
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 243 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 75 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.7 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 60.0%
African American 11.4%
Hispanic or Latino 9.8%
Two or More 9.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 8.2%
Asian 1.4%
Largest group: White at 60.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 60.2/100
Simpson diversity index - at 60.2, Sanford Middle is more mixed than the Minnesota school average of 42.8.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Minneapolis Public School District, which includes Sanford Middle.
$21,154
Per student
+39%
vs Minnesota
Avg $15,270
+27%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 31.2%
State 50.3%
Federal 18.5%
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.
How Sanford Middle Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washburn High | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| South High | Larger | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Southwest High | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Roosevelt High | Larger | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Andersen Middle | Larger | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Sanford Middle's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,521
- Students per teacher
- 26.2:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 1,257
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Resource Index
- 53/100
- Enrollment
- 1,195
- Students per teacher
- 22.5:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 1,148
- Students per teacher
- 22.1:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 1,052
- Students per teacher
- 25:1
- Resource Index
- 25/100
Similar middle schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Minnesota, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~728 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Sanford Middle's federal record.
- Compare Sanford Middle against another school. Compare schools
- Minneapolis Public School District'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 Sanford Middle
How many students attend Sanford Middle?
Sanford Middle has 728 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Minneapolis, MN.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sanford Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Sanford Middle is 28:1, which is 77% higher than the Minnesota average of 15.8:1 and 78% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Sanford Middle?
33.5% of students at Sanford Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Minnesota average of 42.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sanford Middle?
The largest demographic group at Sanford Middle is White at 60.0% of enrollment, in Minneapolis, MN. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 60.2/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sanford Middle?
Sanford Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 30/100 (lower 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).
How does Sanford Middle rank among middle schools in Minneapolis?
By Resource Investment Index, Sanford Middle ranks #7 of 14 middle schools in Minneapolis, MN. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all middle schools in Minneapolis on the city page.
Is Sanford Middle a good school?
Sanford Middle earns 30/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 94% of Minnesota 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 Minneapolis Public School District?
Besides Sanford Middle, Minneapolis Public School District also operates Washburn High (1,521 students), South High (1,257 students), and Southwest High (1,195 students). See the Minneapolis Public School District 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.