Enrollment
484
Vermont · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 500039500123
Essex Elementary School — Essex Junction, VT
Federal NCES profile for Essex Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 43/100.
👥 Class size 39
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 52
📋 Attendance 52
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
34.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.3:1
vs 13:1 Vermont avg
+18% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
8.8%
vs 27.6% Vermont avg
-68% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Essex Elementary School compares with Vermont and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Essex Elementary School reports 484 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 34.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 15.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 18% above the Vermont state mean of 13:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 4% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 8.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 68% below the Vermont average and 83% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 242 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 19.2% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Essex Westford Educational Community Unified Union Sd #51 spends $28,529 per pupil district-wide, above the Vermont average of $26,366 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 6.4% from local sources (property taxes), 85.8% from the state, and 7.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (D), calculated from 4 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Essex Elementary School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Vermont state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Vermont | Vermont avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 15.3:1 | ▲ 18% | 13:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 8.8% | ▼ 68% | 27.6% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 484 | top 86% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
8.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 68% below the Vermont average of 27.6%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
15.3:1
students per teacher
— 18% above state mean
Top 87% in Vermont — lower ratio than 13% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
19.2%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$28,529
per pupil, district-wide
— above Vermont avg of $26,366
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 242 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 484 Top 86% in Vermont — larger than 14% of 289 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 34.0
Students per teacher 15.3:1 +18% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 8.8% -68% vs state
NCES ID 500039500123
Student demographics
White 79.5%
Two or More 9.3%
Hispanic or Latino 4.5%
Asian 4.1%
African American 2.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 79.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 242:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 19.2%
In-school suspensions 1
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Essex Westford Educational Community Unified Union Sd #51, which includes Essex Elementary School.
$28,529
Per student
+8%
vs Vermont
Avg $26,366
+46%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 6.4%
State 85.8%
Federal 7.9%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,224
- Students per teacher
- 10.9:1
- Enrollment
- 366
- Students per teacher
- 11.6:1
- Enrollment
- 353
- Students per teacher
- 11.2:1
- Enrollment
- 305
- Students per teacher
- 18.7:1
- Enrollment
- 297
- Students per teacher
- 9.7:1
Similar other schools in Essex Junction
2 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Essex Elementary School
How many students attend Essex Elementary School?
Essex Elementary School has 484 students enrolled. It is a other school in Essex Junction, VT.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Essex Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Essex Elementary School is 15.3:1, which is 18% higher than the Vermont average of 13:1 and 4% lower than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Essex Elementary School?
8.8% of students at Essex Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Vermont average of 27.6%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Essex Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Essex Elementary School is White at 79.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in Essex Junction, VT.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Essex Elementary School?
Essex Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (D) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.