Enrollment
277
New Jersey · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Palisades Park, NJ
Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center
Federal NCES profile for Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 49/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 341236000789
👥 S:T ratio 69
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 48
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center earns 49/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 94% of New Jersey schools.
- #1 of 3
- public schools in Palisades Park · Resource Index
- 49
- Resource Index · Higher
- 7.7:1
- small classes for New Jersey
- 41.7%
- free-lunch eligible
Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center has class sizes smaller than 94% of New Jersey schools. Computed live against every New Jersey school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Palisades Park, NJ.
School address
District: Palisades Park School District · New Jersey
NCES ID 341236000789 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
36.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
7.7:1
vs 11.8:1 New Jersey avg
-35% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
41.7%
vs 29.6% New Jersey avg
+41% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center compares with New Jersey and U.S. medians
What stands out at Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center
Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Palisades Park, New Jersey, enrolling 277 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 7.7:1, Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center is leaner than roughly 94% of New Jersey schools and 35% under the state's 11.8:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 41.7% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 277 puts it in the smaller third of New Jersey schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 2,501 scored New Jersey schools.
Against 215 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #130.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (70%) and Asian (20%) (diversity index 46/100).
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 20.9% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Palisades Park School District also operates Lindbergh Elementary School (762 students) and Palisades Park Jr-Sr High School (747 students) alongside Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center compares
Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center on the metrics families compare, against New Jersey and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs New Jersey | New Jersey avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 7.7:1 | ▼ 35% | 11.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 41.7% | ▲ 41% | 29.6% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 277 | top 79% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
7.7:1
Leaner classes than 96% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
277
Bigger than 29% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
41.7%
free-lunch eligible
- 41% above the New Jersey average of 29.6%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
7.7:1
students per teacher
- 35% below state mean
Top 6% in New Jersey - lower ratio than 94% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
20.9%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$20,625
per pupil, district-wide
- below New Jersey avg of $24,984
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
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
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 70.4%
Asian 20.2%
White 7.9%
African American 0.7%
Two or More 0.7%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 70.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 45.7/100
Simpson diversity index - at 45.7, Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center is less mixed than the New Jersey school average of 51.2.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Palisades Park School District, which includes Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center.
$20,625
Per student
-17%
vs New Jersey
Avg $24,984
+24%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 66.4%
State 26.1%
Federal 7.5%
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.
How Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lindbergh Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Palisades Park Jr-Sr High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 762
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 747
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of New Jersey, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~277 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center's federal record.
- Compare Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center against another school. Compare schools
- Palisades Park School District's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center
How many students attend Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center?
Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center has 277 students enrolled. It is a public school in Palisades Park, NJ.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center?
The student-teacher ratio at Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center is 7.7:1, which is 35% lower than the New Jersey average of 11.8:1 and 51% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center?
41.7% of students at Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center are eligible for free lunch, compared to the New Jersey average of 29.6%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center?
The largest demographic group at Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center is Hispanic or Latino at 70.4% of enrollment, in Palisades Park, NJ.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center?
Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center has a Resource Investment Index of 49/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center rank among public schools in Palisades Park?
By Resource Investment Index, Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Palisades Park, NJ. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Palisades Park on the city page.
Is Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center a good school?
Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center earns 49/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 94% of New Jersey schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Palisades Park School District?
Besides Charles R Smith Early Chilhood Center, Palisades Park School District also operates Lindbergh Elementary School (762 students) and Palisades Park Jr-Sr High School (747 students). See the Palisades Park School District district page for the complete list.
Related tools
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. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.