Enrollment
348
Michigan · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 261428008350
Tri County Educational Center — Ferndale, MI
Federal NCES profile for Tri County Educational Center, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 34/100.
👥 Class size 0
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 65
📋 Attendance 66
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: Ferndale Public Schools · Michigan
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)
11.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
31.5:1
vs 18.2:1 Michigan avg
+73% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
84.4%
vs 54.3% Michigan avg
+55% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Tri County Educational Center compares with Michigan 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
Tri County Educational Center reports 348 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 11.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 31.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 73% above the Michigan 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 98% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 84.4% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 55% above the Michigan average and 63% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 174 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 13.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Ferndale Public Schools spends $21,152 per pupil district-wide, above the Michigan average of $15,842 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 33.0% from local sources (property taxes), 56.0% from the state, and 11.0% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (F), calculated from 5 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 Tri County Educational Center compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Michigan state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Michigan | Michigan avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 31.5:1 | ▲ 73% | 18.2:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 84.4% | ▲ 55% | 54.3% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 348 | 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
84.4%
free-lunch eligible
— 55% above the Michigan average of 54.3%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
31.5:1
students per teacher
— 73% above state mean
Top 97% in Michigan — lower ratio than 3% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
13.8%
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
$21,152
per pupil, district-wide
— above Michigan avg of $15,842
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 174 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 348 Top 49% in Michigan — larger than 51% of 3,399 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 11.0
Students per teacher 31.5:1 +73% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 84.4% +55% vs state
NCES ID 261428008350
Student demographics
African American 90.5%
White 5.2%
Two or More 3.2%
Hispanic or Latino 0.9%
Asian 0.3%
Largest group: African American at 90.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP program Not offered
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 174:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 13.8%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Ferndale Public Schools, which includes Tri County Educational Center.
$21,152
Per student
+34%
vs Michigan
Avg $15,842
+9%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 33.0%
State 56.0%
Federal 11.0%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 739
- Students per teacher
- 17.4:1
- Enrollment
- 528
- Students per teacher
- 18.6:1
- Enrollment
- 517
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Enrollment
- 501
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Enrollment
- 469
- Students per teacher
- 25.1:1
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 Tri County Educational Center
How many students attend Tri County Educational Center?
Tri County Educational Center has 348 students enrolled. It is a high school in Ferndale, MI.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Tri County Educational Center?
The student-teacher ratio at Tri County Educational Center is 31.5:1, which is 73% higher than the Michigan average of 18.2:1 and 98% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Tri County Educational Center?
84.4% of students at Tri County Educational Center are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Michigan average of 54.3%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Tri County Educational Center?
The largest demographic group at Tri County Educational Center is African American at 90.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in Ferndale, MI.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Tri County Educational Center?
Tri County Educational Center has a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (F) based on 5 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.