Enrollment
588
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 370090002721
Shelby Middle — Shelby, NC
Federal NCES profile for Shelby Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 44/100.
👥 Class size 38
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 22
📋 Attendance 48
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: Cleveland County Schools · North Carolina
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)
41.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.4:1
vs 16.4:1 North Carolina avg
-6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
79.5%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
+20% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Shelby Middle compares with North Carolina 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
Shelby Middle reports 588 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 41.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 6% below the North Carolina state mean of 16.4:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 3% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 79.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 20% above the North Carolina average and 53% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 392 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 20.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Cleveland County Schools spends $12,545 per pupil district-wide, below the North Carolina average of $13,042 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 21.4% from local sources (property taxes), 59.1% from the state, and 19.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (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 Shelby Middle compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against North Carolina state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.4:1 | ▼ 6% | 16.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 79.5% | ▲ 20% | 66.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 588 | top 63% | — | — |
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
79.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 20% above the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.4:1
students per teacher
— 6% below state mean
Top 55% in North Carolina — lower ratio than 45% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
20.9%
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
$12,545
per pupil, district-wide
— below North Carolina avg of $13,042
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.5 FTE
Per 392 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
169
in-school suspensions + 132 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 28.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 51.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
Overview
Enrollment 588 Top 63% in North Carolina — larger than 37% of 2,703 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 41.0
Students per teacher 15.4:1 -6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 79.5% +20% vs state
NCES ID 370090002721
Student demographics
African American 49.8%
White 30.3%
Hispanic or Latino 12.6%
Two or More 6.5%
Asian 0.9%
Largest group: African American at 49.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.5
Students per counselor 392:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 20.9%
In-school suspensions 169
Out-of-school suspensions 132
Expulsions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cleveland County Schools, which includes Shelby Middle.
$12,545
Per student
-4%
vs North Carolina
Avg $13,042
-36%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 21.4%
State 59.1%
Federal 19.5%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,305
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,098
- Students per teacher
- 17.1:1
- Enrollment
- 928
- Students per teacher
- 15.3:1
- Enrollment
- 810
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Enrollment
- 792
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
Similar middle schools in Shelby
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 Shelby Middle
How many students attend Shelby Middle?
Shelby Middle has 588 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Shelby, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Shelby Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Shelby Middle is 15.4:1, which is 6% lower than the North Carolina average of 16.4:1 and 3% lower 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 Shelby Middle?
79.5% of students at Shelby Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Shelby Middle?
The largest demographic group at Shelby Middle is African American at 49.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Shelby, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Shelby Middle?
Shelby Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (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.