21 public K-12 schools in Ellicott City from NCES Common Core of Data: enrollment, grade span, demographics, and Civil Rights Data Collection statistics for every active campus.
21 public schools ranked by quality score. NCES CCD 2024-25 data.
The highest-ranked of Ellicott City's 21 public schools is Howard High, scoring 52/100, against a city average of 50/100. Computed live across every Ellicott City campus reporting to NCES.
How the Ellicott City Public-School Landscape Breaks Down
Ellicott City, MD enrolls 16,166 students across 21 public schools reporting to the National Center for Education Statistics. The average student-teacher ratio across the city is 13.5:1, and the composite quality score, derived from student-teacher ratio, counselor access, gifted-program availability, and CRDC attendance data, averages 50/100. Schools must report at least five campuses in a city to appear in this listing, which is why very small towns may redirect to the broader county or state view.
The most-resourced campus in Ellicott City on this index is Howard High, at 52/100 on the Resource Investment Index with 1,493 enrolled students. What the index does and doesn't measure; click any school below for its full component breakdown.
Ellicott City spans 1 district, each filing its own NCES F-33 return, per-pupil spending can vary between neighbouring campuses. Sort the table below by enrollment, level, or district; click any school for its full profile.
Ellicott City school enrollment varies 14× across entities
Ellicott City school enrollment ranges from 109 students (lowest) to 1,493 students (highest), a spread of 1,384 students. That spread reflects typical urban portfolio variation between specialty programs and large neighbourhood schools. Per-school staffing, programme depth, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same city based on enrollment shape, a 200-student magnet runs a different operational model than a 2,000-student comprehensive high school.
Ellicott City operates only 1 school district — one of the single most consolidated governance structures in the country
Most Ellicott City school districts are a single unified district covering the whole city, a structural feature that simplifies inter-school comparison but concentrates policy authority, and the count here is near the floor observed nationally. Consolidation produces narrower variance because resources pool across a large population, but it can also mask intra-school district inequities — sub-school district differences within a single school district are not visible at this aggregation level. Consolidated systems typically rely more heavily on top-down funding formulas than on local revenue variability.
Ellicott City student-teacher ratio is 13.5:1 — low (typically associated with smaller schools or per-school staffing investment that often correlates with stronger per-student supports)
student-teacher ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE classroom teachers against total enrollment, push-in specialists, English-language aides, special-education co-teachers, and counselors are not included in most reporting Lower values often correlate with smaller scale and population characteristics rather than higher resource budgets per se.
Most racially and ethnically mixed schools in Ellicott City
Ranked by the Simpson student-body diversity index (0-100) from NCES race and ethnicity data, where higher means a more evenly mixed student body. It measures mix, not quality.
The highest-ranked school in Ellicott City is Howard High with a quality score of 52/100. There are 21 public schools in Ellicott City with 16,166 total students.
How many schools are in Ellicott City, MD? ▼
Ellicott City has 21 public schools with a total enrollment of 16,166 students. Average student-teacher ratio: 13.5:1.
Data from NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 and Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22. Quality scores based on student-teacher ratio,
counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance. Schools must have 5+ in the city to be listed.
Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD). Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.
Read our methodology, which explains how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
