Enrollment
381
Alabama · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Sardis City, AL
Sardis Middle School
Federal NCES profile for Sardis Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 35/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 010138002351
👥 S:T ratio 20
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 24
📋 Attendance 28
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Sardis Middle School earns 35/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 84% of Alabama schools.
- 35
- Resource Index · Typical
- 20.1:1
- large classes for Alabama
- 58.3%
- free-lunch eligible
- 381
- students enrolled
Sardis Middle School has class sizes larger than 84% of Alabama schools. Computed live against every Alabama school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Etowah County · Alabama
NCES ID 010138002351 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
19.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.1:1
vs 17.7:1 Alabama avg
+14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
58.3%
vs 58.8% Alabama avg
-1% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sardis Middle School compares with Alabama and U.S. medians
What stands out at Sardis Middle School
Sardis Middle School is a higher-need, mid-sized middle school in Sardis City, Alabama, enrolling 381 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 20.1:1 puts it in the larger third of Alabama schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 58.3% lands close to the Alabama typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 381 puts it in the smaller third of Alabama schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,365 scored Alabama schools.
Against 396 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #275.
Its student body is predominantly White (84% of enrollment) (diversity index 29/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 381 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 28.6% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 18.3% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Discipline events run high: 139 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 381 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 1 expulsion at this campus for 2021-22.
Etowah County also operates Southside High School (825 students) and John S Jones Elementary School (745 students) alongside Sardis Middle School.
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 Sardis Middle School compares
Sardis Middle School on the metrics families compare, against Alabama and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Alabama | Alabama avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.1:1 | ▲ 14% | 17.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 58.3% | ▼ 1% | 58.8% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 381 | top 68% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
20.1:1
Leaner classes than 16% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
381
Bigger than 44% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
58.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 1% below the Alabama average of 58.8%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
20.1:1
students per teacher
- 14% above state mean
Top 84% in Alabama - lower ratio than 16% of state schools
Above 20:1, running heavier than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is comparatively stretched.
Engagement
28.6%
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
$10,738
per pupil, district-wide
- below Alabama avg of $12,491
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 381 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
85
in-school suspensions + 54 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 22.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 36.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
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 83.5%
Hispanic or Latino 11.0%
Two or More 2.9%
African American 1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Asian 0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 83.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 29.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 29.0, Sardis Middle School is less mixed than the Alabama school average of 42.5.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Etowah County, which includes Sardis Middle School.
$10,738
Per student
-14%
vs Alabama
Avg $12,491
-35%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 16.7%
State 64.9%
Federal 18.3%
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.
How Sardis Middle School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southside High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| John S Jones Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Rainbow Middle School | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Hokes Bluff Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Southside Elementary School | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Sardis Middle School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 825
- Students per teacher
- 19.6:1
- Resource Index
- 20/100
- Enrollment
- 745
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 634
- Students per teacher
- 19.8:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 610
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
- Enrollment
- 585
- Students per teacher
- 17.7:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
Similar middle schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Alabama, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~381 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~20.1:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Sardis Middle School's federal record.
- Compare Sardis Middle School against another school. Compare schools
- Etowah County'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 Sardis Middle School
How many students attend Sardis Middle School?
Sardis Middle School has 381 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Sardis City, AL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sardis Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Sardis Middle School is 20.1:1, which is 14% higher than the Alabama average of 17.7:1 and 28% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Sardis Middle School?
58.3% of students at Sardis Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Alabama average of 58.8%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sardis Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Sardis Middle School is White at 83.5% of enrollment, in Sardis City, AL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sardis Middle School?
Sardis Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (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 Sardis Middle School a good school?
Sardis Middle School earns 35/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 84% of Alabama 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 Etowah County?
Besides Sardis Middle School, Etowah County also operates Southside High School (825 students), John S Jones Elementary School (745 students), and Rainbow Middle School (634 students). See the Etowah County 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.