Enrollment
448
Maine · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 230393000109
Cape Elizabeth Middle School — Cape Elizabeth, ME
Federal NCES profile for Cape Elizabeth Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 55/100.
👥 Class size 60
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 55
📋 Attendance 34
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: Cape Elizabeth Public Schools · Maine
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
43.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.1:1
vs 11.3:1 Maine avg
-11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
4.8%
vs 34.0% Maine avg
-86% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Cape Elizabeth Middle School compares with Maine and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Cape Elizabeth Middle School reports 448 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 43.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 10.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 11% below the Maine state mean of 11.3:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 36% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 4.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 86% below the Maine average and 91% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 224 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 26.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Cape Elizabeth Public Schools spends $22,010 per pupil district-wide, below the Maine average of $23,827 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 82.6% from local sources (property taxes), 15.6% from the state, and 1.8% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 55/100 (C), calculated from 4 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Cape Elizabeth Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Maine state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Maine | Maine avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.1:1 | ▼ 11% | 11.3:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 4.8% | ▼ 86% | 34.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 448 | top 80% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
4.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 86% below the Maine average of 34.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
10.1:1
students per teacher
— 11% below state mean
Top 31% in Maine — lower ratio than 69% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
26.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$22,010
per pupil, district-wide
— below Maine avg of $23,827
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 224 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 448 Top 80% in Maine — larger than 20% of 570 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 43.0
Students per teacher 10.1:1 -11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 4.8% -86% vs state
NCES ID 230393000109
Student demographics
White 85.3%
Hispanic or Latino 5.6%
Two or More 4.9%
Asian 2.5%
African American 1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 85.3% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 224:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 26.6%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cape Elizabeth Public Schools, which includes Cape Elizabeth Middle School.
$22,010
Per student
-8%
vs Maine
Avg $23,827
+13%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 82.6%
State 15.6%
Federal 1.8%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 579
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
- Enrollment
- 471
- Students per teacher
- 12.3:1
Similar elementary schools in Cape Elizabeth
1 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Cape Elizabeth Middle School
How many students attend Cape Elizabeth Middle School?
Cape Elizabeth Middle School has 448 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Cape Elizabeth, ME.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Cape Elizabeth Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Cape Elizabeth Middle School is 10.1:1, which is 11% lower than the Maine average of 11.3:1 and 36% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Cape Elizabeth Middle School?
4.8% of students at Cape Elizabeth Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Maine average of 34.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Cape Elizabeth Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Cape Elizabeth Middle School is White at 85.3%. The school serves a diverse student body in Cape Elizabeth, ME.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Cape Elizabeth Middle School?
Cape Elizabeth Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 55/100 (C) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.