Enrollment
288
Maine · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Bangor, ME
Downeast School
Federal NCES profile for Downeast School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 42/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 230282000049
👥 S:T ratio 59
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 48
📋 Attendance 30
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Downeast School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Maine median.
- #2 of 5
- schools in Bangor · Resource Index
- 42
- Resource Index · Typical
- 10.3:1
- students per teacher
- 83.3%
- free-lunch eligible
Downeast School has class sizes near the Maine median. Computed live against every Maine school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Downeast School ranks #2 of 5 schools in Bangor, ME.
School address
District: Bangor Public Schools · Maine
NCES ID 230282000049 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
28.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.3:1
vs 11.1:1 Maine avg
-7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
83.3%
vs 34.0% Maine avg
+145% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Downeast School compares with Maine and U.S. medians
What stands out at Downeast School
Downeast School is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Bangor, Maine, enrolling 288 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 10.3:1 puts it in the smaller third of Maine schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need is high: 83.3% of students qualify for free meals, 145% above the Maine average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
With 288 students, its enrollment sits close to the Maine median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 569 scored Maine schools.
Its student body is led by White (80%) and Hispanic or Latino (10%) (diversity index 35/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 262 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 28.1% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Among Bangor's public schools, it stands alongside Fruit Street School (310 students): Downeast School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (10.3:1 vs 14.8:1).
Bangor Public Schools also operates Bangor High School (1,068 students) and William S. Cohen School (372 students) alongside Downeast 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 Downeast School compares
Downeast 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 | 10.3:1 | ▼ 7% | 11.1:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 83.3% | ▲ 145% | 34.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 288 | top 42% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
10.3:1
Leaner classes than 87% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
288
Bigger than 31% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
83.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 145% above the Maine average of 34.0%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
10.3:1
students per teacher
- 7% below state mean
Top 36% in Maine - lower ratio than 64% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
28.1%
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
$16,534
per pupil, district-wide
- below Maine avg of $20,083
Close to the U.S. public-school average per-pupil spend.
Support staff
Counselors1.1 FTE
Per 262 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
13
in-school suspensions + 13 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 4.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 9.0 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 79.5%
Hispanic or Latino 9.7%
African American 6.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 2.4%
Asian 1.4%
Largest group: White at 79.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 35.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 35.3, Downeast School is more mixed than the Maine school average of 20.6.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Bangor Public Schools, which includes Downeast School.
$16,534
Per student
-18%
vs Maine
Avg $20,083
0%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 45.4%
State 44.5%
Federal 10.1%
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 Downeast School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bangor High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| William S. Cohen School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| James F. Doughty School | Similar size | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Fruit Street School | Similar size | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Mary Snow School | Similar size | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Downeast School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,068
- Students per teacher
- 13:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 372
- Students per teacher
- 12.4:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 346
- Students per teacher
- 11.5:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 310
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 266
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
Similar other schools in Bangor
4 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Fruit Street School
Standard public school
310 students 14.8:1 students per teacher
Vine Street School
Standard public school
190 students 10.6:1 students per teacher
Abraham Lincoln School
Standard public school
184 students 12.3:1 students per teacher
Fourteenth Street School
Standard public school
153 students 15.3:1 students per teacher
Similar other 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 (~288 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~10.3:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Downeast School's federal record.
- Compare Downeast School against another school. Compare schools
- Bangor 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 Downeast School
How many students attend Downeast School?
Downeast School has 288 students enrolled. It is a public school in Bangor, ME.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Downeast School?
The student-teacher ratio at Downeast School is 10.3:1, which is 7% lower than the Maine average of 11.1:1 and 34% 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 Downeast School?
83.3% of students at Downeast School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Maine average of 34.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Downeast School?
The largest demographic group at Downeast School is White at 79.5% of enrollment, in Bangor, ME.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Downeast School?
Downeast School has a Resource Investment Index of 42/100 (typical 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 Downeast School rank among schools in Bangor?
By Resource Investment Index, Downeast School ranks #2 of 5 schools in Bangor, ME. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Bangor on the city page.
Is Downeast School a good school?
Downeast School earns 42/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Maine median. 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 Bangor Public Schools?
Besides Downeast School, Bangor Public Schools also operates Bangor High School (1,068 students), William S. Cohen School (372 students), and James F. Doughty School (346 students). See the Bangor 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.