Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal
records, no number is typed in by an editor. District totals are aggregated directly from the schools reporting under this district in the source records. See our
editorial standards & corrections policy, the
methodology behind these numbers, or
report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.
Newark, Maryland - 13 schools
An equity score of 65/100 ranks Worcester County Public Schools #9 of 24 districts in Maryland (state average 52). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $21,280 per pupil, Worcester County Public Schools ranks #6 of 24 Maryland districts by per-pupil spending (Maryland districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
6,841
Total Enrollment
13
Schools
$21,280
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Worcester County Public Schools operates 13 public schools serving 6,841 students, placing it among the smaller districts in Maryland. The school portfolio breaks down into 6 combined, 3 high, 3 elementary, 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 Worcester County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $21,280 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 67.9% local, 23.5% state, and 8.6% 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 65/100, ranked #9 of 24 in Maryland against a state average of 52, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 3 of 13 schools offering Advanced Placement (26 AP courses district-wide), a 340.9:1 student-counselor ratio, well above the ASCA benchmark though still under the roughly 408:1 national average, and 34.0% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 58.7% White, 22.6% African American, 8.6% Hispanic or Latino across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Pocomoke Elementary, with a diversity index of 65.9/100.
Its largest campus is Stephen Decatur High, enrolling 1,462 students (21% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Cedar Chapel Special School, at 51 students, a 29x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Stephen Decatur High accounts for 20.9% of all Worcester County Public Schools student enrollment
That concentration means Worcester County Public Schools-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.
Worcester County Public Schools school enrollment varies 29× across entities
Worcester County Public Schools school enrollment ranges from 51 students (lowest) to 1,462 students (highest), a spread of 1,411 students. That spread is wider than typical and predicts noticeable gaps in service quality between the highest and lowest areas. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Worcester County Public Schools has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 53.2% of the population qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch
free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is the federal threshold for Title I funding allocations, established under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). Areas above 75% eligibility receive concentration grants on top of the basic Title I formula. Regions with eligibility this high typically draw a substantially larger federal funding share relative to their local tax base, which can either offset or reinforce existing gaps depending on allocation policy.
Worcester County Public Schools student-counselor ratio is 341:1 — 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 Worcester County Public Schools is typically wider than the Worcester County Public Schools-aggregate figure suggests.
Worcester County Public Schools chronic absenteeism rate is 34.0% — 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.
Comparisons are relative to Worcester County Public Schools's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data and the F-33 Finance Survey.
Nearby Districts in Maryland
Top districts in the same state, compare side-by-side for enrollment, spending, and demographics.
How many schools are in Worcester County Public Schools?
Worcester County Public Schools has 13 schools, including 3 high, 1 middle, 6 combined, 3 elementary. Total enrollment is 6,841 students.
How much does Worcester County Public Schools spend per student?
Worcester County Public Schools spends $21,280 per student. The district has an equity score of 65/100, ranking #9 in Maryland.
What is the demographic composition of Worcester County Public Schools?
Worcester County Public Schools students are 58.7% White, 22.6% African American, 8.6% Hispanic or Latino, 1.6% Asian, averaged across 13 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Worcester County Public Schools?
Worcester County Public Schools has an equity score of 65/100, ranking #9 out of 24 districts in Maryland.