Enrollment
362
Maryland · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Potomac, MD
Cold Spring Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Cold Spring Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 55/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 240048000809
👥 S:T ratio 34
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 28
📋 Attendance 89
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Cold Spring Elementary earns 55/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 76% of Maryland schools.
- #3 of 8
- public schools in Potomac · Resource Index
- 55
- Resource Index · Higher
- 16.5:1
- large classes for Maryland
- 4.3%
- free-lunch eligible
Cold Spring Elementary has class sizes larger than 76% of Maryland schools. Computed live against every Maryland school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Cold Spring Elementary ranks #3 of 8 public schools in Potomac, MD.
School address
District: Montgomery County Public Schools · Maryland
NCES ID 240048000809 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
22.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.5:1
vs 14.5:1 Maryland avg
+14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
4.3%
vs 49.0% Maryland avg
-91% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Cold Spring Elementary compares with Maryland and U.S. medians
What stands out at Cold Spring Elementary
Cold Spring Elementary is a lower-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Potomac, Maryland, enrolling 362 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 16.5:1 puts it in the larger third of Maryland schools by student-teacher ratio.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 4.3% free-meal eligibility runs 91% below the Maryland average.
Enrollment of 362 puts it in the smaller third of Maryland schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 92% of the 1,382 Maryland schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Against 61 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #12.
Its student body is led by White (43%) and Asian (36%) (diversity index 67/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 362 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Attendance holds up well here: only 4.4% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
Among Potomac's elementary schools, it stands alongside Potomac Elementary (475 students): Cold Spring Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (16.5:1 vs 17.6:1).
Montgomery County Public Schools also operates Montgomery Blair High (3,266 students) and Walter Johnson High (3,016 students) alongside Cold Spring Elementary.
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 Cold Spring Elementary compares
Cold Spring Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Maryland and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Maryland | Maryland avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.5:1 | ▲ 14% | 14.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 4.3% | ▼ 91% | 49.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 362 | top 78% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
16.5:1
Leaner classes than 34% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
362
Bigger than 42% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
4.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 91% below the Maryland average of 49.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
16.5:1
students per teacher
- 14% above state mean
Top 76% in Maryland - lower ratio than 24% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
4.4%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 5%, comfortably under the pre-pandemic national baseline for chronic absenteeism.
Funding equity
$18,101
per pupil, district-wide
- below Maryland avg of $20,446
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 362 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
- 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
White 43.1%
Asian 36.2%
Hispanic or Latino 8.6%
African American 6.9%
Two or More 5.2%
Largest group: White at 43.1% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 66.8/100
Simpson diversity index - at 66.8, Cold Spring Elementary is more mixed than the Maryland school average of 52.3.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Montgomery County Public Schools, which includes Cold Spring Elementary.
$18,101
Per student
-11%
vs Maryland
Avg $20,446
+9%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 66.0%
State 23.7%
Federal 10.3%
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 Cold Spring Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery Blair High | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Walter Johnson High | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Wheaton High | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Gaithersburg High | Larger | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Seneca Valley High | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Cold Spring Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 3,266
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 3,016
- Students per teacher
- 19.1:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 2,794
- Students per teacher
- 17.8:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 2,441
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Resource Index
- 56/100
- Enrollment
- 2,409
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
Similar elementary schools in Potomac
1 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Maryland, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~362 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Cold Spring Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Cold Spring Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Montgomery County Public Schools'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 Cold Spring Elementary
How many students attend Cold Spring Elementary?
Cold Spring Elementary has 362 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Potomac, MD.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Cold Spring Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Cold Spring Elementary is 16.5:1, which is 14% higher than the Maryland average of 14.5:1 and 5% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Cold Spring Elementary?
4.3% of students at Cold Spring Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Maryland average of 49.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Cold Spring Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Cold Spring Elementary is White at 43.1% of enrollment, in Potomac, MD. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 66.8/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Cold Spring Elementary?
Cold Spring Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 55/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Cold Spring Elementary rank among public schools in Potomac?
By Resource Investment Index, Cold Spring Elementary ranks #3 of 8 public schools in Potomac, MD. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Potomac on the city page.
Is Cold Spring Elementary a good school?
Cold Spring Elementary earns 55/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 76% of Maryland 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 Montgomery County Public Schools?
Besides Cold Spring Elementary, Montgomery County Public Schools also operates Montgomery Blair High (3,266 students), Walter Johnson High (3,016 students), and Wheaton High (2,794 students). See the Montgomery County Public Schools 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.