Enrollment
824
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 370472001905
West Cary Middle — Cary, NC
Federal NCES profile for West Cary Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 54/100.
👥 Class size 32
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 45
📋 Attendance 68
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: Wake County Schools · North Carolina
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)
51.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.9:1
vs 16.4:1 North Carolina avg
+3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
22.3%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
-66% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How West Cary Middle compares with North Carolina 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
West Cary Middle reports 824 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 51.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 3% above the North Carolina state mean of 16.4:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 6% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 22.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 66% below the North Carolina average and 57% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 275 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 13.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Wake County Schools spends $14,074 per pupil district-wide, above the North Carolina average of $13,042 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 28.9% from local sources (property taxes), 54.5% from the state, and 16.6% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 54/100 (C-), 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 West Cary Middle compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against North Carolina state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.9:1 | ▲ 3% | 16.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 22.3% | ▼ 66% | 66.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 824 | top 84% | — | — |
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
22.3%
free-lunch eligible
— 66% below the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
16.9:1
students per teacher
— 3% above state mean
Top 74% in North Carolina — lower ratio than 26% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
13.0%
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
$14,074
per pupil, district-wide
— above North Carolina avg of $13,042
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 275 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
141
in-school suspensions + 17 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 17.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 19.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 824 Top 84% in North Carolina — larger than 16% of 2,703 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 51.0
Students per teacher 16.9:1 +3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 22.3% -66% vs state
NCES ID 370472001905
Student demographics
Asian 32.2%
White 31.3%
Hispanic or Latino 17.2%
African American 15.8%
Two or More 3.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: Asian at 32.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.0
Students per counselor 275:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 13.0%
In-school suspensions 141
Out-of-school suspensions 17
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Wake County Schools, which includes West Cary Middle.
$14,074
Per student
+8%
vs North Carolina
Avg $13,042
-28%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 28.9%
State 54.5%
Federal 16.6%
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
- 2,748
- Students per teacher
- 21:1
- Enrollment
- 2,643
- Students per teacher
- 17.5:1
- Enrollment
- 2,609
- Students per teacher
- 20.6:1
- Enrollment
- 2,498
- Students per teacher
- 19.1:1
- Enrollment
- 2,449
- Students per teacher
- 19.7:1
Similar middle schools in Cary
6 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
Mills Park Middle
Standard public school
1,632 students 19.2:1 students per teacher
Alston Ridge Middle
Standard public school
1,494 students 18.7:1 students per teacher
Davis Drive Middle
Standard public school
992 students 16.8:1 students per teacher
Reedy Creek Middle
Standard public school
805 students 14.2:1 students per teacher
East Cary Middle
Standard public school
597 students 13.3:1 students per teacher
Connections Academy
Alternative education program
8 students 1.8:1 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 West Cary Middle
How many students attend West Cary Middle?
West Cary Middle has 824 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Cary, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at West Cary Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at West Cary Middle is 16.9:1, which is 3% higher than the North Carolina average of 16.4:1 and 6% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at West Cary Middle?
22.3% of students at West Cary Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of West Cary Middle?
The largest demographic group at West Cary Middle is Asian at 32.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in Cary, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for West Cary Middle?
West Cary Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 54/100 (C-) 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.