An equity score of 21/100 ranks Rsu 18 #123 of 131 districts in Maine (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $14,496 per pupil, Rsu 18 ranks #179 of 203 Maine districts by per-pupil spending (Maine districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
2,782
Total Enrollment
8
Schools
$14,496
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, Elementary
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Rsu 18 operates 8 public schools serving 2,782 students, placing it among the smaller districts in Maine. The school portfolio breaks down into 4 combined, 2 elementary, 1 high, 1 middle schools, a compact enough portfolio that families can compare every campus directly 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 Kennebec County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $14,496 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 203 Maine districts by per-pupil spending. See how Maine compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 50.9% local, 37.4% state, and 11.7% 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 21/100, ranked #123 of 131 in Maine against a state average of 50, notably less even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 8 schools offering Advanced Placement (12 AP courses district-wide), a 238.9:1 student-counselor ratio, that meets the ASCA-recommended benchmark, and 33.3% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 92.7% White, 2.9% Hispanic or Latino, 1.1% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Williams Elementary School, with a diversity index of 16.9/100.
Its largest campus is Messalonskee High School, enrolling 695 students (27% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is China Middle School, at 170 students, a 4x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Messalonskee High School accounts for 25.0% of all Rsu 18 student enrollment
That concentration means Rsu 18-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the largest entity. Grade band: high. The share measures enrollment concentration only; it does not establish how the district allocates programs, capital, or staff. Enrollment-weighted aggregates give this entity more weight than any smaller peer, while an unweighted entity average treats every record equally.
Rsu 18 school enrollment varies 4.1× across entities
Rsu 18 school enrollment ranges from 170 students (lowest) to 695 students (highest), a spread of 525 students. That relatively narrow ratio reflects an unusually homogeneous campus portfolio, most districts have a wider mix of school sizes. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Rsu 18 student-counselor ratio is 239:1 — low (typically associated with meeting or exceeding the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) recommended 250:1 benchmark, which correlates with stronger college and career counseling capacity)
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 Lower values often correlate with smaller scale and population characteristics rather than higher resource budgets per se.
Rsu 18 chronic absenteeism rate is 33.3% — high (typically associated with higher-than-average disruption; recent CRDC data showed elevated rates persisting after pandemic-era schooling changes)
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 Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.