Enrollment
610
Oregon · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 410591000463
South Middle School — Grants Pass, OR
Federal NCES profile for South Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 24/100.
👥 Class size 18
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 39
📋 Attendance 8
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: Grants Pass Sd 7 · Oregon
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)
31.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.4:1
vs 18.2:1 Oregon avg
+12% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
69.0%
vs 57.6% Oregon avg
+20% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How South Middle School compares with Oregon 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 Middle School reports 610 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 31.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 20.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 12% above the Oregon state mean of 18.2:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 28% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 69.0% 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 Oregon average and 33% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 305 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 37.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Grants Pass Sd 7 spends $16,550 per pupil district-wide, below the Oregon average of $22,293 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 24.6% from local sources (property taxes), 62.4% from the state, and 13.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 24/100 (F), 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 Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Oregon state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Oregon | Oregon avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.4:1 | ▲ 12% | 18.2:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 69.0% | ▲ 20% | 57.6% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 610 | top 85% | — | — |
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
69.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 20% above the Oregon average of 57.6%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
20.4:1
students per teacher
— 12% above state mean
Top 80% in Oregon — lower ratio than 20% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
37.0%
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
$16,550
per pupil, district-wide
— below Oregon avg of $22,293
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 305 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
46
in-school suspensions + 49 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 7.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 15.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 4 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 610 Top 85% in Oregon — larger than 15% of 1,277 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 31.0
Students per teacher 20.4:1 +12% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 69.0% +20% vs state
NCES ID 410591000463
Student demographics
White 72.0%
Hispanic or Latino 18.4%
Two or More 8.5%
Asian 0.7%
African American 0.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 72.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 305:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 37.0%
In-school suspensions 46
Out-of-school suspensions 49
Expulsions 4
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Grants Pass Sd 7, which includes South Middle School.
$16,550
Per student
-26%
vs Oregon
Avg $22,293
-15%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 24.6%
State 62.4%
Federal 13.1%
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
- 1,658
- Students per teacher
- 22.4:1
- Enrollment
- 673
- Students per teacher
- 20.3:1
- Enrollment
- 443
- Students per teacher
- 20:1
- Enrollment
- 397
- Students per teacher
- 16.8:1
- Enrollment
- 386
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
Similar middle schools in Grants Pass
3 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 South Middle School
How many students attend South Middle School?
South Middle School has 610 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Grants Pass, OR.
What is the student-teacher ratio at South Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at South Middle School is 20.4:1, which is 12% higher than the Oregon average of 18.2:1 and 28% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at South Middle School?
69.0% of students at South Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Oregon average of 57.6%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of South Middle School?
The largest demographic group at South Middle School is White at 72.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in Grants Pass, OR.
What is the Resource Investment Index for South Middle School?
South Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 24/100 (F) 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.