Middle school (grades 6-8) · Cape Coral, FL

Trafalgar Middle School

Federal NCES profile for Trafalgar Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 32/100.

2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 120108002683
0/100100/10032/100
👥 S:T ratio
29
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
4
📋 Attendance
27
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Trafalgar Middle School earns 32/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Florida median.

#1 of 7
middle schools in Cape Coral · Resource Index
32
Resource Index · Typical
17.8:1
students per teacher
36.4%
free-lunch eligible

Trafalgar Middle School has class sizes near the Florida median. Computed live against every Florida school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Trafalgar Middle School ranks #1 of 7 middle schools in Cape Coral, FL.

School address

Enrollment

962

Florida · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

54.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

17.8:1

vs 17.8:1 Florida avg

+0% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

36.4%

vs 52.0% Florida avg

-30% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Trafalgar Middle School compares with Florida and U.S. medians

At or below state median

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

What stands out at Trafalgar Middle School

Trafalgar Middle School is a mid-sized middle school in Cape Coral, Florida, enrolling 962 students.

Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 17.8:1 puts it in the larger third of Florida schools by student-teacher ratio.

Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 36.4% of students eligible for free meals.

Enrollment of 962 puts it in the larger third of Florida schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 3,996 scored Florida schools.

Among 668 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Florida schools statewide, it ranks #505, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is led by White (45%) and Hispanic or Latino (44%) (diversity index 60/100).

Counselor access is stretched at roughly 481 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 29.1% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Its district draws 17.0% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

The federal civil-rights collection also records 3 expulsions at this campus for 2021-22.

Lee also operates Gateway Charter Elementary School (3,192 students) and Lehigh Senior High School (2,550 students) alongside Trafalgar Middle School.

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 Trafalgar Middle School compares

Trafalgar Middle School on the metrics families compare, against Florida and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Florida Florida avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 17.8:1 ▼ 0% 17.8:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 36.4% ▼ 30% 52.0% 51.7%
Enrollment 962 top 21% - -

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

17.8:1
Leaner classes than 26% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
962
Bigger than 90% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
36.4%
free-lunch eligible - 30% below the Florida average of 52.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17.8:1
students per teacher - 0% above state mean
Top 62% in Florida - lower ratio than 38% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
29.1%
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
$10,788
per pupil, district-wide - below Florida avg of $11,167
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 481 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
81
in-school suspensions + 79 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 8.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 16.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 3 expulsions.

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 44.8%
Hispanic or Latino 44.3%
African American 4.7%
Two or More 4.6%
Asian 1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%

Largest group: White at 44.8% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 59.8/100

Simpson diversity index - at 59.8, Trafalgar Middle School is more mixed than the Florida school average of 52.3.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Lee, which includes Trafalgar Middle School.

$10,788
Per student
-3%
vs Florida
Avg $11,167
-35%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 58.0%
State 25.0%
Federal 17.0%

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 Trafalgar Middle School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Gateway Charter Elementary School Larger Higher economic need Higher S:T ratio
Lehigh Senior High School Larger Higher economic need Higher S:T ratio
Gateway High School Larger Higher economic need Higher S:T ratio
Ida S. Baker High School Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
East Lee County High School Larger Higher economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Trafalgar Middle School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Lee · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar middle schools statewide

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

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Trafalgar Middle School'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 Trafalgar Middle School

How many students attend Trafalgar Middle School?

Trafalgar Middle School has 962 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Cape Coral, FL.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Trafalgar Middle School?

The student-teacher ratio at Trafalgar Middle School is 17.8:1, which is 0% higher than the Florida average of 17.8:1 and 13% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Trafalgar Middle School?

36.4% of students at Trafalgar Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Florida average of 52.0%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Trafalgar Middle School?

The largest demographic group at Trafalgar Middle School is White at 44.8% of enrollment, in Cape Coral, FL. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 59.8/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Trafalgar Middle School?

Trafalgar Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (typical 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 Trafalgar Middle School rank among middle schools in Cape Coral?

By Resource Investment Index, Trafalgar Middle School ranks #1 of 7 middle schools in Cape Coral, FL. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all middle schools in Cape Coral on the city page.

Is Trafalgar Middle School a good school?

Trafalgar Middle School earns 32/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Florida median. 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 Lee?

Besides Trafalgar Middle School, Lee also operates Gateway Charter Elementary School (3,192 students), Lehigh Senior High School (2,550 students), and Gateway High School (2,343 students). See the Lee 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.