Enrollment
751
Connecticut · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Madison, CT
Daniel Hand High School
Federal NCES profile for Daniel Hand High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 70/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 090228000411
👥 S:T ratio 65
📚 AP courses 90
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 75
📋 Attendance 91
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Daniel Hand High School earns 70/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 92% of Connecticut schools.
- #1 of 5
- public schools in Madison · Resource Index
- 70
- Resource Index · Higher
- 8.7:1
- small classes for Connecticut
- 3.4%
- free-lunch eligible
Daniel Hand High School has class sizes smaller than 92% of Connecticut schools. Computed live against every Connecticut school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Daniel Hand High School ranks #1 of 5 public schools in Madison, CT.
School address
District: Madison School District · Connecticut
NCES ID 090228000411 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
86.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
8.7:1
vs 12.1:1 Connecticut avg
-28% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
3.4%
vs 36.4% Connecticut avg
-91% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Daniel Hand High School compares with Connecticut and U.S. medians
What stands out at Daniel Hand High School
Daniel Hand High School is a lower-poverty, large high school in Madison, Connecticut, enrolling 751 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 8.7:1, Daniel Hand High School is leaner than roughly 92% of Connecticut schools and 28% under the state's 12.1:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 3.4% free-meal eligibility runs 91% below the Connecticut average.
Enrollment of 751 puts it in the larger third of Connecticut schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 90% of the 1,003 Connecticut schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Against 111 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #22.
Its student body is predominantly White (83% of enrollment) (diversity index 31/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 18 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage is strong, about 125 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Attendance holds up well here: only 3.7% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 2 expulsions at this campus for 2021-22.
Madison School District also operates Walter C. Polson Middle School (541 students) and J. Milton Jeffrey Elementary School (407 students) alongside Daniel Hand High School.
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 Daniel Hand High School compares
Daniel Hand High School on the metrics families compare, against Connecticut and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Connecticut | Connecticut avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 8.7:1 | ▼ 28% | 12.1:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 3.4% | ▼ 91% | 36.4% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 751 | top 13% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
8.7:1
Leaner classes than 93% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
751
Bigger than 83% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
3.4%
free-lunch eligible
- 91% below the Connecticut average of 36.4%
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
8.7:1
students per teacher
- 28% below state mean
Top 8% in Connecticut - lower ratio than 92% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
3.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 5%, comfortably under the pre-pandemic national baseline for chronic absenteeism.
Funding equity
$26,239
per pupil, district-wide
- above Connecticut avg of $23,870
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors6.0 FTE
Per 125 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
23
in-school suspensions + 6 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.9 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 2 expulsions.
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 82.6%
Hispanic or Latino 7.1%
Two or More 5.4%
Asian 3.6%
African American 0.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Largest group: White at 82.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 30.8/100
Simpson diversity index - at 30.8, Daniel Hand High School is less mixed than the Connecticut school average of 50.5.
Programs
AP courses offered 18
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Madison School District, which includes Daniel Hand High School.
$26,239
Per student
+10%
vs Connecticut
Avg $23,870
+58%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 83.1%
State 14.7%
Federal 2.2%
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 Daniel Hand High School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walter C. Polson Middle School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| J. Milton Jeffrey Elementary School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Dr. Robert H. Brown Intermediate School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Kathleen H. Ryerson Elementary School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Daniel Hand High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 541
- Students per teacher
- 9.8:1
- Resource Index
- 61/100
- Enrollment
- 407
- Students per teacher
- 13.1:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 361
- Students per teacher
- 10.9:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 314
- Students per teacher
- 10.8:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Connecticut, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~751 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~8.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Daniel Hand High School's federal record.
- Compare Daniel Hand High School against another school. Compare schools
- Madison 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 Daniel Hand High School
How many students attend Daniel Hand High School?
Daniel Hand High School has 751 students enrolled. It is a high school in Madison, CT.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Daniel Hand High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Daniel Hand High School is 8.7:1, which is 28% lower than the Connecticut average of 12.1:1 and 45% 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 Daniel Hand High School?
3.4% of students at Daniel Hand High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Connecticut average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Daniel Hand High School?
The largest demographic group at Daniel Hand High School is White at 82.6% of enrollment, in Madison, CT.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Daniel Hand High School?
Daniel Hand High School has a Resource Investment Index of 70/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Daniel Hand High School rank among public schools in Madison?
By Resource Investment Index, Daniel Hand High School ranks #1 of 5 public schools in Madison, CT. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Madison on the city page.
Is Daniel Hand High School a good school?
Daniel Hand High School earns 70/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 92% of Connecticut 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 Madison School District?
Besides Daniel Hand High School, Madison School District also operates Walter C. Polson Middle School (541 students), J. Milton Jeffrey Elementary School (407 students), and Dr. Robert H. Brown Intermediate School (361 students). See the Madison 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.