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Cranston, Rhode Island - 23 schools
An equity score of 36/100 ranks Cranston #41 of 53 districts in Rhode Island (state average 51). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $17,810 per pupil, Cranston ranks #45 of 60 Rhode Island districts by per-pupil spending (Rhode Island districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
10,225
Total Enrollment
23
Schools
$17,810
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, Combined
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Cranston operates 23 public schools serving 10,225 students, placing it in the mid-size range in Rhode Island. The school portfolio breaks down into 11 elementary, 5 combined, 4 middle, 3 high schools, giving families a clear picture of grade-band coverage before they move, rent, or enrol. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Providence County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $17,810 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 60 Rhode Island districts by per-pupil spending. See how Rhode Island compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 48.9% local, 40.3% state, and 10.8% federal, a balanced mix across local, state, and federal sources, spreading budget risk across funding cycles rather than concentrating it in one. The district's equity score is 36/100, ranked #41 of 53 in Rhode Island against a state average of 51, notably less even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 3 of 23 schools offering Advanced Placement (21 AP courses district-wide), a 294.2:1 student-counselor ratio, somewhat above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 22.9% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 41.4% White, 38.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Park View Middle School, with a diversity index of 70.2/100.
Its largest campus is Cranston High School West, enrolling 1,653 students (16% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Cranston Early Learning Center, at 49 students, a 34x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Cranston High School West accounts for 16.2% of all Cranston student enrollment
That concentration means Cranston-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: high. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Cranston school enrollment varies 34× across entities
Cranston school enrollment ranges from 49 students (lowest) to 1,653 students (highest), a spread of 1,604 students. That ratio is among the widest observed and reflects extreme enrollment heterogeneity, the district operates both small specialty programs and large comprehensive campuses inside a single budgeting unit. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Cranston student-counselor ratio is 294:1 — near the typical range (US average ~408) — within the typical range for U.S. public districts
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Variation between sub-units within Cranston is typically wider than the Cranston-aggregate figure suggests.
Cranston chronic absenteeism rate is 22.9% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Variation between sub-units within Cranston is typically wider than the Cranston-aggregate figure suggests.