Enrollment
681
Georgia · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 130387003680
Veterans Memorial Middle School — Columbus, GA
Federal NCES profile for Veterans Memorial Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 38/100.
👥 Class size 32
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 49
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: Muscogee County · Georgia
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)
38.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.1:1
vs 14.5:1 Georgia avg
+18% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
37.8%
vs 60.7% Georgia avg
-38% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Veterans Memorial Middle School compares with Georgia 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
Veterans Memorial Middle School reports 681 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 38.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 17.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 18% above the Georgia state mean of 14.5:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 8% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 37.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 38% below the Georgia average and 27% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 681 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 20.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Muscogee County spends $14,671 per pupil district-wide, below the Georgia average of $15,679 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 38.8% from local sources (property taxes), 43.0% from the state, and 18.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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 Veterans Memorial Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Georgia state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Georgia | Georgia avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.1:1 | ▲ 18% | 14.5:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 37.8% | ▼ 38% | 60.7% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 681 | top 57% | — | — |
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
37.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 38% below the Georgia average of 60.7%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
17.1:1
students per teacher
— 18% above state mean
Top 87% in Georgia — lower ratio than 13% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
20.6%
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
$14,671
per pupil, district-wide
— below Georgia avg of $15,679
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 681 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
116
in-school suspensions + 104 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 17.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 32.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 2 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 681 Top 57% in Georgia — larger than 43% of 2,315 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 38.0
Students per teacher 17.1:1 +18% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 37.8% -38% vs state
NCES ID 130387003680
Student demographics
White 35.7%
African American 32.9%
Hispanic or Latino 16.6%
Two or More 7.6%
Asian 6.8%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
Largest group: White at 35.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 681:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 20.6%
In-school suspensions 116
Out-of-school suspensions 104
Expulsions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Muscogee County, which includes Veterans Memorial Middle School.
$14,671
Per student
-6%
vs Georgia
Avg $15,679
-25%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 38.8%
State 43.0%
Federal 18.2%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,405
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
- Enrollment
- 1,162
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
- Enrollment
- 1,161
- Students per teacher
- 18.5:1
- Enrollment
- 1,067
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,040
- Students per teacher
- 11.6:1
Similar middle schools in Columbus
6 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
Richards Middle School
Standard public school
799 students 17.8:1 students per teacher
Baker Middle School
Standard public school
631 students 16.3:1 students per teacher
Arnold Middle School
Standard public school
582 students 17:1 students per teacher
Rothschild Leadership Academy School
Standard public school
498 students 16.1:1 students per teacher
Blackmon Road Middle School
Standard public school
478 students 14.2:1 students per teacher
Eddy Middle School
Standard public school
448 students 16.5:1 students per teacher
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 Veterans Memorial Middle School
How many students attend Veterans Memorial Middle School?
Veterans Memorial Middle School has 681 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Columbus, GA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Veterans Memorial Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Veterans Memorial Middle School is 17.1:1, which is 18% higher than the Georgia average of 14.5:1 and 8% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Veterans Memorial Middle School?
37.8% of students at Veterans Memorial Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Georgia average of 60.7%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Veterans Memorial Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Veterans Memorial Middle School is White at 35.7%. The school serves a diverse student body in Columbus, GA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Veterans Memorial Middle School?
Veterans Memorial Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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.