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Ellicott City, Maryland - 76 schools
An equity score of 44/100 ranks Howard County Public Schools #15 of 24 districts in Maryland (state average 52). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $17,971 per pupil, Howard County Public Schools ranks #12 of 24 Maryland districts by per-pupil spending (Maryland districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
57,676
Total Enrollment
76
Schools
$17,971
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, Middle
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Howard County Public Schools operates 76 public schools serving 57,676 students, placing it among the larger districts in Maryland. The school portfolio breaks down into 33 combined, 20 middle, 12 high, 11 elementary schools, giving families a clear picture of grade-band coverage across a sizeable portfolio 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 Howard County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $17,971 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the upper half of 24 Maryland districts by per-pupil spending. See how Maryland compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 62.7% local, 29.5% state, and 7.7% federal, a local-revenue-heavy mix that leaves the district more exposed to property-tax swings and local ballot measures than state-funded peers. The district's equity score is 44/100, ranked #15 of 24 in Maryland against a state average of 52, notably less even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 13 of 76 schools offering Advanced Placement (362 AP courses district-wide), a 398.8:1 student-counselor ratio, well above the ASCA benchmark though still under the roughly 408:1 national average, and 22.7% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 29.7% White, 25.9% African American, 22.0% Asian across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Thunder Hill Elementary, with a diversity index of 77.1/100.
Its largest campus is Marriotts Ridge High, enrolling 1,741 students (3% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Homewood School, at 109 students, a 16x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Howard County Public Schools school enrollment varies 16× across entities
Howard County Public Schools school enrollment ranges from 109 students (lowest) to 1,741 students (highest), a spread of 1,632 students. That spread reflects typical mixed-portfolio variation between specialty programs and large neighbourhood schools. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Howard County Public Schools student-counselor ratio is 399:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)
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 Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Howard County Public Schools chronic absenteeism rate is 22.7% — 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 Howard County Public Schools is typically wider than the Howard County Public Schools-aggregate figure suggests.
How many schools are in Howard County Public Schools?
Howard County Public Schools has 76 schools, including 12 high, 33 combined, 20 middle, 11 elementary. Total enrollment is 57,676 students.
How much does Howard County Public Schools spend per student?
Howard County Public Schools spends $17,971 per student. The district has an equity score of 44/100, ranking #15 in Maryland.
What is the demographic composition of Howard County Public Schools?
Howard County Public Schools students are 29.7% White, 25.9% African American, 22.0% Asian, 14.8% Hispanic or Latino, averaged across 76 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Howard County Public Schools?
Howard County Public Schools has an equity score of 44/100, ranking #15 out of 24 districts in Maryland.