Enrollment
611
Pennsylvania · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 420540001742
Swatara Ms — Steelton, PA
Federal NCES profile for Swatara Ms, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 46/100.
👥 Class size 50
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 39
📋 Attendance 24
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: Central Dauphin Sd · Pennsylvania
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)
43.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.5:1
vs 13.5:1 Pennsylvania avg
-7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
98.5%
vs 58.1% Pennsylvania avg
+70% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Swatara Ms compares with Pennsylvania 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
Swatara Ms reports 611 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 43.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 12.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 7% below the Pennsylvania state mean of 13.5:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 21% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 98.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 70% above the Pennsylvania average and 90% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 306 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 30.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Central Dauphin Sd spends $18,384 per pupil district-wide, below the Pennsylvania average of $22,745 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 68.5% from local sources (property taxes), 22.6% from the state, and 8.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (D), 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 Swatara Ms compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Pennsylvania state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.5:1 | ▼ 7% | 13.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 98.5% | ▲ 70% | 58.1% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 611 | top 71% | — | — |
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
98.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 70% above the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.5:1
students per teacher
— 7% below state mean
Top 33% in Pennsylvania — lower ratio than 67% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
30.4%
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
$18,384
per pupil, district-wide
— below Pennsylvania avg of $22,745
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 306 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
149
in-school suspensions + 158 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 24.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 50.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 10 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 611 Top 71% in Pennsylvania — larger than 29% of 2,930 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 43.0
Students per teacher 12.5:1 -7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 98.5% +70% vs state
NCES ID 420540001742
Student demographics
African American 31.9%
Hispanic or Latino 23.1%
White 19.0%
Asian 15.1%
Two or More 10.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: African American at 31.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 306:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 30.4%
In-school suspensions 149
Out-of-school suspensions 158
Expulsions 10
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Central Dauphin Sd, which includes Swatara Ms.
$18,384
Per student
-19%
vs Pennsylvania
Avg $22,745
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 68.5%
State 22.6%
Federal 8.9%
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
- 1,966
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,573
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Enrollment
- 841
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Enrollment
- 834
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Enrollment
- 722
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
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 Swatara Ms
How many students attend Swatara Ms?
Swatara Ms has 611 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Steelton, PA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Swatara Ms?
The student-teacher ratio at Swatara Ms is 12.5:1, which is 7% lower than the Pennsylvania average of 13.5:1 and 21% 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 Swatara Ms?
98.5% of students at Swatara Ms are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Pennsylvania average of 58.1%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Swatara Ms?
The largest demographic group at Swatara Ms is African American at 31.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in Steelton, PA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Swatara Ms?
Swatara Ms has a Resource Investment Index of 46/100 (D) 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.