Middle school (grades 6-8) · Hookstown, PA

South Side Ms

Federal NCES profile for South Side Ms, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 52/100.

2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 422223006937
0/100100/10052/100
👥 S:T ratio
61
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
61
📋 Attendance
17
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

South Side Ms earns 52/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 93% of Pennsylvania schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Pennsylvania schools.

#1 of 3
public schools in Hookstown · Resource Index
52
Resource Index · Higher
9.8:1
small classes for Pennsylvania
22.7%
free-lunch eligible

South Side Ms has class sizes smaller than 93% of Pennsylvania schools. Computed live against every Pennsylvania school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, South Side Ms ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Hookstown, PA.

Enrollment

196

Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

20.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

9.8:1

vs 13.6:1 Pennsylvania avg

-28% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

22.7%

vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg

-61% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How South Side Ms compares with Pennsylvania and U.S. medians

Smaller classes than state median
0:135:19.8:1

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at South Side Ms

South Side Ms is a small middle school in Hookstown, Pennsylvania, enrolling 196 students.

Classes run notably small here: at 9.8:1, South Side Ms is leaner than roughly 93% of Pennsylvania schools and 28% under the state's 13.6:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.

Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 22.7% free-meal eligibility runs 61% below the Pennsylvania average.

This is a small campus: fewer students than 91% of Pennsylvania schools, with 196 enrolled.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 2,889 scored Pennsylvania schools.

Against 68 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #44.

Its student body is predominantly White (95% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 9/100).

Counselor coverage is strong, about 196 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 33.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

The surrounding South Side Area Sd spends $23,436 per pupil, 30% above the Pennsylvania average, a better-resourced district than most.

South Side Area Sd also operates South Side El Sch (390 students) and South Side Hs (272 students) alongside South Side Ms.

Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25

How South Side Ms compares

South Side Ms on the metrics families compare, against Pennsylvania and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Pennsylvania Pennsylvania avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 9.8:1 ▼ 28% 13.6:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 22.7% ▼ 61% 58.1% 51.7%
Enrollment 196 top 91% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

9.8:1
Leaner classes than 90% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
196
Bigger than 19% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
22.7%
free-lunch eligible - 61% below the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
9.8:1
students per teacher - 28% below state mean
Top 7% in Pennsylvania - lower ratio than 93% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
33.2%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$23,436
per pupil, district-wide - above Pennsylvania avg of $17,970
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 196 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
9
in-school suspensions + 14 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 11.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.

Overview

  • Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
  • Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
  • F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.

Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.

Student demographics

White 95.4%
Two or More 3.1%
Hispanic or Latino 1.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%

Largest group: White at 95.4% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 8.9/100

Simpson diversity index - at 8.9, South Side Ms is less mixed than the Pennsylvania school average of 37.3.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for South Side Area Sd, which includes South Side Ms.

$23,436
Per student
+30%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $17,970
+41%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 36.2%
State 56.6%
Federal 7.2%

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.

How South Side Ms Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
South Side El Sch Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
South Side Hs Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to South Side Ms's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

South Side Area Sd · 2 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar middle schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Pennsylvania, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on South Side Ms's federal record.

Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.

Frequently asked questions about South Side Ms

How many students attend South Side Ms?

South Side Ms has 196 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Hookstown, PA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at South Side Ms?

The student-teacher ratio at South Side Ms is 9.8:1, which is 28% lower than the Pennsylvania average of 13.6:1 and 38% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at South Side Ms?

22.7% of students at South Side Ms are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of South Side Ms?

The largest demographic group at South Side Ms is White at 95.4% of enrollment, in Hookstown, PA.

What is the Resource Investment Index for South Side Ms?

South Side Ms has a Resource Investment Index of 52/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).

How does South Side Ms rank among public schools in Hookstown?

By Resource Investment Index, South Side Ms ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Hookstown, PA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Hookstown on the city page.

Is South Side Ms a good school?

South Side Ms earns 52/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 93% of Pennsylvania schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Pennsylvania schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.

What other schools are in South Side Area Sd?

Besides South Side Ms, South Side Area Sd also operates South Side El Sch (390 students) and South Side Hs (272 students). See the South Side Area Sd district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.