Enrollment
241
Maine · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Mechanic Falls, ME
Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls
Federal NCES profile for Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 45/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 231477500218
👥 S:T ratio 58
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 52
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls earns 45/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Maine median.
- 45
- Resource Index · Typical
- 10.5:1
- students per teacher
- 35.9%
- free-lunch eligible
- 241
- students enrolled
Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls has class sizes near the Maine median. Computed live against every Maine school reporting to NCES.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
23.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.5:1
vs 11.1:1 Maine avg
-5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
35.9%
vs 34.0% Maine avg
+6% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls compares with Maine and U.S. medians
What stands out at Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls
Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Mechanic Falls, Maine, enrolling 241 students.
At 10.5:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Maine median, within a few percentage points of the 11.1:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 35.9% lands close to the Maine typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 241 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 145 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #73.
Its student body is predominantly White (93% of enrollment) (diversity index 14/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 241 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 40.7% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The surrounding Rsu 16 spends $15,544 per pupil, 23% below the Maine average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
Rsu 16 also operates Poland Regional H S (506 students) and Poland Community School (423 students) alongside Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls.
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 Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls compares
Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls on the metrics families compare, against Maine and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Maine | Maine avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.5:1 | ▼ 5% | 11.1:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 35.9% | ▲ 6% | 34.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 241 | top 50% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
10.5:1
Leaner classes than 86% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
241
Bigger than 24% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
35.9%
free-lunch eligible
- 6% 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
10.5:1
students per teacher
- 5% below state mean
Top 42% in Maine - lower ratio than 58% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
40.7%
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
$15,544
per pupil, district-wide
- below Maine avg of $20,083
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 241 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
9
in-school suspensions + 8 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.1 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 92.5%
Two or More 3.7%
Hispanic or Latino 2.9%
African American 0.4%
Asian 0.4%
Largest group: White at 92.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 14.2/100
Simpson diversity index - at 14.2, Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls is less mixed than the Maine school average of 20.6.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Rsu 16, which includes Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls.
$15,544
Per student
-23%
vs Maine
Avg $20,083
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 38.7%
State 48.5%
Federal 12.8%
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 Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poland Regional H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Poland Community School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Bruce M Whittier Middle School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Minot Consolidated School | Similar size | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 506
- Students per teacher
- 10.8:1
- Resource Index
- 48/100
- Enrollment
- 423
- Students per teacher
- 12.1:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
- Enrollment
- 272
- Students per teacher
- 11.8:1
- Resource Index
- 68/100
- Enrollment
- 229
- Students per teacher
- 12.7:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
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 (~241 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls's federal record.
- Compare Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls against another school. Compare schools
- Rsu 16'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 Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls
How many students attend Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls?
Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls has 241 students enrolled. It is a public school in Mechanic Falls, ME.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls?
The student-teacher ratio at Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls is 10.5:1, which is 5% lower than the Maine average of 11.1:1 and 33% 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 Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls?
35.9% of students at Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Maine average of 34.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls?
The largest demographic group at Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls is White at 92.5% of enrollment, in Mechanic Falls, ME.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls?
Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls has a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (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).
Is Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls a good school?
Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls earns 45/100 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 Rsu 16?
Besides Elm Street School-Mechanic Falls, Rsu 16 also operates Poland Regional H S (506 students), Poland Community School (423 students), and Bruce M Whittier Middle School (272 students). See the Rsu 16 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.