Enrollment
307
Connecticut · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Centerbrook, CT
Essex Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Essex Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 67/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 090150000255
👥 S:T ratio 51
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 81
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Essex Elementary School earns 67/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Connecticut median.
- 67
- Resource Index · Higher
- 12.3:1
- students per teacher
- 18.3%
- free-lunch eligible
- 307
- students enrolled
Essex Elementary School has class sizes near the Connecticut median. Computed live against every Connecticut school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Essex School District · Connecticut
NCES ID 090150000255 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
25.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.3:1
vs 12.1:1 Connecticut avg
+2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
18.3%
vs 36.4% Connecticut avg
-50% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Essex Elementary School compares with Connecticut and U.S. medians
What stands out at Essex Elementary School
Essex Elementary School is a lower-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Centerbrook, Connecticut, enrolling 307 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 12.3:1 puts it in the larger third of Connecticut schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 18.3% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 307 puts it in the smaller third of Connecticut schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 94% of the 1,003 Connecticut schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Among 251 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Connecticut schools statewide, it ranks #10, a top-tier result once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly White (83% of enrollment) (diversity index 30/100).
Attendance holds up well here: only 7.5% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
The surrounding Essex School District spends $29,927 per pupil, 25% above the Connecticut average, a better-resourced district than most.
Essex School District operates only this one school, so Essex Elementary School has no district-mates to compare against locally.
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 Essex Elementary School compares
Essex Elementary 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 | 12.3:1 | ▲ 2% | 12.1:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 18.3% | ▼ 50% | 36.4% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 307 | top 74% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.3:1
Leaner classes than 73% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
307
Bigger than 33% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
18.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 50% below the Connecticut average of 36.4%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
12.3:1
students per teacher
- 2% above state mean
Top 64% in Connecticut - lower ratio than 36% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
7.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$29,927
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
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
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 82.7%
Hispanic or Latino 12.1%
Two or More 3.6%
African American 1.0%
Asian 0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 82.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 30.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 30.0, Essex Elementary School is less mixed than the Connecticut school average of 50.5.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Essex School District, which includes Essex Elementary School.
$29,927
Per student
+25%
vs Connecticut
Avg $23,870
+80%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 83.5%
State 14.2%
Federal 2.3%
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.
Similar other 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 (~307 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Essex Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Essex Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Essex 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 Essex Elementary School
How many students attend Essex Elementary School?
Essex Elementary School has 307 students enrolled. It is a public school in Centerbrook, CT.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Essex Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Essex Elementary School is 12.3:1, which is 2% higher than the Connecticut average of 12.1:1 and 22% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Essex Elementary School?
18.3% of students at Essex Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Connecticut average of 36.4%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Essex Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Essex Elementary School is White at 82.7% of enrollment, in Centerbrook, CT.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Essex Elementary School?
Essex Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 67/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Essex Elementary School a good school?
Essex Elementary School earns 67/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Connecticut 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 Essex School District?
None reported; Essex School District operates only Essex Elementary School as a public school district in NCES's records.
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.