Enrollment
124
Mississippi · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 280279000989
Shirley D. Simmons Middle School — Canton, MS
Federal NCES profile for Shirley D. Simmons Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 65/100.
👥 Class size 69
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 75
📋 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: Madison Co School Dist · Mississippi
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)
19.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
7.7:1
vs 13.4:1 Mississippi avg
-43% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
96.6%
vs 80.5% Mississippi avg
+20% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Shirley D. Simmons Middle School compares with Mississippi 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
Shirley D. Simmons Middle School reports 124 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 19.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 7.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 43% below the Mississippi state mean of 13.4:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 52% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 96.6% 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 Mississippi average and 86% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 124 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 21.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Madison Co School Dist spends $11,926 per pupil district-wide, below the Mississippi average of $13,402 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 48.5% from local sources (property taxes), 40.6% from the state, and 10.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 65/100 (B-), 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 Shirley D. Simmons Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Mississippi state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Mississippi | Mississippi avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 7.7:1 | ▼ 43% | 13.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 96.6% | ▲ 20% | 80.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 124 | top 3% | — | — |
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
96.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 20% above the Mississippi average of 80.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
7.7:1
students per teacher
— 43% below state mean
Top 2% in Mississippi — lower ratio than 98% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
21.0%
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
$11,926
per pupil, district-wide
— below Mississippi avg of $13,402
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 124 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 73 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 58.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 7 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 124 Top 3% in Mississippi — larger than 97% of 877 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 19.0
Students per teacher 7.7:1 -43% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 96.6% +20% vs state
NCES ID 280279000989
Student demographics
African American 97.6%
Two or More 1.6%
Hispanic or Latino 0.8%
Largest group: African American at 97.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 124:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 21.0%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 73
Expulsions 7
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Madison Co School Dist, which includes Shirley D. Simmons Middle School.
$11,926
Per student
-11%
vs Mississippi
Avg $13,402
-39%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 48.5%
State 40.6%
Federal 10.9%
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
- 1,411
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Enrollment
- 1,260
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Enrollment
- 1,180
- Students per teacher
- 12:1
- Enrollment
- 1,008
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Enrollment
- 995
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
Similar middle schools in Canton
2 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 Shirley D. Simmons Middle School
How many students attend Shirley D. Simmons Middle School?
Shirley D. Simmons Middle School has 124 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Canton, MS.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Shirley D. Simmons Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Shirley D. Simmons Middle School is 7.7:1, which is 43% lower than the Mississippi average of 13.4:1 and 52% 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 Shirley D. Simmons Middle School?
96.6% of students at Shirley D. Simmons Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Mississippi average of 80.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Shirley D. Simmons Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Shirley D. Simmons Middle School is African American at 97.6%. The school serves a student body in Canton, MS.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Shirley D. Simmons Middle School?
Shirley D. Simmons Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 65/100 (B-) 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.