Enrollment
216
Maine · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Dixfield, ME
Dirigo High School
Federal NCES profile for Dirigo High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 38/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 231483300382
👥 S:T ratio 46
📚 AP courses 20
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 17
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Dirigo High School earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 89% of Maine schools.
- 38
- Resource Index · Typical
- 13.5:1
- large classes for Maine
- 34.2%
- free-lunch eligible
- 216
- students enrolled
Dirigo High School has class sizes larger than 89% of Maine schools. Computed live against every Maine school reporting to NCES.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
16.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.5:1
vs 11.1:1 Maine avg
+22% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
34.2%
vs 34.0% Maine avg
+1% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Dirigo High School compares with Maine and U.S. medians
What stands out at Dirigo High School
Dirigo High School is a mid-sized high school in Dixfield, Maine, enrolling 216 students.
Class loads run heavy: 13.5:1 is larger than about 89% of Maine schools and 22% above the 11.1:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 34.2% lands close to the Maine typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 216 students, its enrollment sits close to the Maine median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 569 scored Maine schools.
Against 139 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #85.
Its student body is predominantly White (94% of enrollment) (diversity index 12/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 4 Advanced Placement courses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 33.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 16.0% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Rsu 56 also operates Dirigo Elementary School (324 students) and T W Kelly Dirigo Middle School (180 students) alongside Dirigo 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 Dirigo High School compares
Dirigo High School on the metrics families compare, against Maine and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Maine | Maine avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 13.5:1 | ▲ 22% | 11.1:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 34.2% | ▲ 1% | 34.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 216 | top 55% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13.5:1
Leaner classes than 62% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
216
Bigger than 21% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
34.2%
free-lunch eligible
- 1% above the Maine average of 34.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
13.5:1
students per teacher
- 22% above state mean
Top 89% in Maine - lower ratio than 11% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
33.3%
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
$18,771
per pupil, district-wide
- below Maine avg of $20,083
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
10
in-school suspensions + 12 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.2 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 93.5%
Hispanic or Latino 2.8%
Two or More 2.8%
African American 0.5%
Asian 0.5%
Largest group: White at 93.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 12.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 12.4, Dirigo High School is less mixed than the Maine school average of 20.6.
Programs
AP courses offered 4
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Rsu 56, which includes Dirigo High School.
$18,771
Per student
-7%
vs Maine
Avg $20,083
+13%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 37.5%
State 46.5%
Federal 16.0%
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 Dirigo High School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dirigo Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| T W Kelly Dirigo Middle School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Dirigo High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 324
- Students per teacher
- 10.8:1
- Resource Index
- 48/100
- Enrollment
- 180
- Students per teacher
- 13.8:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
Similar high schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Maine, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~216 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~13.5:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Dirigo High School's federal record.
- Compare Dirigo High School against another school. Compare schools
- Rsu 56'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 Dirigo High School
How many students attend Dirigo High School?
Dirigo High School has 216 students enrolled. It is a high school in Dixfield, ME.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Dirigo High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Dirigo High School is 13.5:1, which is 22% higher than the Maine average of 11.1:1 and 14% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Dirigo High School?
34.2% of students at Dirigo High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Maine average of 34.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Dirigo High School?
The largest demographic group at Dirigo High School is White at 93.5% of enrollment, in Dixfield, ME.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Dirigo High School?
Dirigo High School has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Dirigo High School a good school?
Dirigo High School earns 38/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 89% of Maine 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 Rsu 56?
Besides Dirigo High School, Rsu 56 also operates Dirigo Elementary School (324 students) and T W Kelly Dirigo Middle School (180 students). See the Rsu 56 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.