Enrollment
312
Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 192598001475
Sheldon Middle School — Sheldon, IA
Federal NCES profile for Sheldon Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 54/100.
👥 Class size 42
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 38
📋 Attendance 65
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: Sheldon Comm School District · Iowa
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)
22.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.5:1
vs 15:1 Iowa avg
-3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
37.8%
vs 36.4% Iowa avg
+4% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sheldon Middle School compares with Iowa 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
Sheldon Middle School reports 312 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 22.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 3% below the Iowa state mean of 15:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 9% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 37.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 4% above the Iowa average and 27% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 312 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 14.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Sheldon Comm School District spends $13,751 per pupil district-wide, below the Iowa average of $17,211 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 37.8% from local sources (property taxes), 49.7% from the state, and 12.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 54/100 (C-), 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 Sheldon Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Iowa state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Iowa | Iowa avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.5:1 | ▼ 3% | 15:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 37.8% | ▲ 4% | 36.4% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 312 | top 51% | — | — |
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
37.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 4% above the Iowa average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
14.5:1
students per teacher
— 3% below state mean
Top 56% in Iowa — lower ratio than 44% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
14.1%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$13,751
per pupil, district-wide
— below Iowa avg of $17,211
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 312 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
32
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 10.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 312 Top 51% in Iowa — larger than 49% of 1,326 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 22.0
Students per teacher 14.5:1 -3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 37.8% +4% vs state
NCES ID 192598001475
Student demographics
White 69.2%
Hispanic or Latino 24.7%
African American 2.6%
Two or More 1.6%
Asian 1.0%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 1.0%
Largest group: White at 69.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 312:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 14.1%
In-school suspensions 32
Out-of-school suspensions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Sheldon Comm School District, which includes Sheldon Middle School.
$13,751
Per student
-20%
vs Iowa
Avg $17,211
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 37.8%
State 49.7%
Federal 12.4%
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
- 468
- Students per teacher
- 12.9:1
- Enrollment
- 356
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Enrollment
- 43
- 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 Sheldon Middle School
How many students attend Sheldon Middle School?
Sheldon Middle School has 312 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Sheldon, IA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sheldon Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Sheldon Middle School is 14.5:1, which is 3% lower than the Iowa average of 15:1 and 9% 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 Sheldon Middle School?
37.8% of students at Sheldon Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sheldon Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Sheldon Middle School is White at 69.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in Sheldon, IA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sheldon Middle School?
Sheldon Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 54/100 (C-) 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.