Enrollment
432
Kentucky · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 210381002428
South Marshall Middle — Benton, KY
Federal NCES profile for South Marshall Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 54/100.
👥 Class size 36
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 57
📋 Attendance 54
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: Marshall County · Kentucky
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)
29.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.9:1
vs 15.6:1 Kentucky avg
+2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
52.4%
vs 59.2% Kentucky avg
-11% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How South Marshall Middle compares with Kentucky 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
South Marshall Middle reports 432 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 29.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 2% above the Kentucky state mean of 15.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 0% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 52.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 11% below the Kentucky average and 1% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 216 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 18.3% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Marshall County spends $13,761 per pupil district-wide, below the Kentucky average of $15,105 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 34.6% from local sources (property taxes), 49.4% from the state, and 16.1% 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 South Marshall Middle compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Kentucky state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Kentucky | Kentucky avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.9:1 | ▲ 2% | 15.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 52.4% | ▼ 11% | 59.2% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 432 | top 49% | — | — |
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
52.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 11% below the Kentucky average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
15.9:1
students per teacher
— 2% above state mean
Top 63% in Kentucky — lower ratio than 37% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
18.3%
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
$13,761
per pupil, district-wide
— below Kentucky avg of $15,105
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 216 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
74
in-school suspensions + 11 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 17.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 19.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 3 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 432 Top 49% in Kentucky — larger than 51% of 1,395 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 29.0
Students per teacher 15.9:1 +2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 52.4% -11% vs state
NCES ID 210381002428
Student demographics
White 91.4%
Hispanic or Latino 6.5%
Two or More 1.4%
Asian 0.5%
African American 0.2%
Largest group: White at 91.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 216:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 18.3%
In-school suspensions 74
Out-of-school suspensions 11
Expulsions 3
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Marshall County, which includes South Marshall Middle.
$13,761
Per student
-9%
vs Kentucky
Avg $15,105
-29%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 34.6%
State 49.4%
Federal 16.1%
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
- 1,201
- Students per teacher
- 18.7:1
- Enrollment
- 528
- Students per teacher
- 16.5:1
- Enrollment
- 487
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Enrollment
- 480
- Students per teacher
- 15.7:1
- Enrollment
- 294
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
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 South Marshall Middle
How many students attend South Marshall Middle?
South Marshall Middle has 432 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Benton, KY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at South Marshall Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at South Marshall Middle is 15.9:1, which is 2% higher than the Kentucky average of 15.6:1 and 0% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at South Marshall Middle?
52.4% of students at South Marshall Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Kentucky average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of South Marshall Middle?
The largest demographic group at South Marshall Middle is White at 91.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Benton, KY.
What is the Resource Investment Index for South Marshall Middle?
South Marshall Middle 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.