Enrollment
89
Vermont · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Chelsea, VT
First Branch Middle School
Federal NCES profile for First Branch Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 40/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 500042900550
👥 S:T ratio 64
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 64
📋 Attendance 2
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
First Branch Middle School earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 88% of Vermont schools.
- 40
- Resource Index · Typical
- 8.9:1
- small classes for Vermont
- 29.8%
- free-lunch eligible
- 89
- students enrolled
First Branch Middle School has class sizes smaller than 88% of Vermont schools. Computed live against every Vermont school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: First Branch Unified School District #82 · Vermont
NCES ID 500042900550 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
10.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
8.9:1
vs 11.9:1 Vermont avg
-25% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
29.8%
vs 27.6% Vermont avg
+8% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How First Branch Middle School compares with Vermont and U.S. medians
What stands out at First Branch Middle School
First Branch Middle School is a mid-sized elementary school in Chelsea, Vermont, enrolling 89 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 8.9:1, First Branch Middle School is leaner than roughly 88% of Vermont schools and 25% under the state's 11.9:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 29.8% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 89 puts it in the smaller third of Vermont schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 288 scored Vermont schools.
Against 49 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #29.
Its student body is predominantly White (99% of enrollment) (diversity index 2/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 178 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 39.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district, First Branch Unified School District #82, also runs First Branch Elementary School (141 students).
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 First Branch Middle School compares
First Branch Middle School on the metrics families compare, against Vermont and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Vermont | Vermont avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 8.9:1 | ▼ 25% | 11.9:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 29.8% | ▲ 8% | 27.6% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 89 | top 82% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
8.9:1
Leaner classes than 93% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
89
Bigger than 9% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
29.8%
free-lunch eligible
- 8% above the Vermont average of 27.6%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
8.9:1
students per teacher
- 25% below state mean
Top 12% in Vermont - lower ratio than 88% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
39.3%
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
$16,742
per pupil, district-wide
- below Vermont avg of $19,105
Close to the U.S. public-school average per-pupil spend.
Support staff
Counselors0.5 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
6
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 6.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.7 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 98.9%
Hispanic or Latino 1.1%
Largest group: White at 98.9% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 2.2/100
Simpson diversity index - at 2.2, First Branch Middle School is less mixed than the Vermont school average of 19.5.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for First Branch Unified School District #82, which includes First Branch Middle School.
$16,742
Per student
-12%
vs Vermont
Avg $19,105
+1%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 0.3%
State 99.6%
Federal 0.0%
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 First Branch Middle School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Branch Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to First Branch Middle School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 141
- Students per teacher
- 10.8:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Vermont, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~89 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on First Branch Middle School's federal record.
- Compare First Branch Middle School against another school. Compare schools
- First Branch Unified School District #82'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 First Branch Middle School
How many students attend First Branch Middle School?
First Branch Middle School has 89 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Chelsea, VT.
What is the student-teacher ratio at First Branch Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at First Branch Middle School is 8.9:1, which is 25% lower than the Vermont average of 11.9:1 and 43% 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 First Branch Middle School?
29.8% of students at First Branch Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Vermont average of 27.6%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of First Branch Middle School?
The largest demographic group at First Branch Middle School is White at 98.9% of enrollment, in Chelsea, VT.
What is the Resource Investment Index for First Branch Middle School?
First Branch Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (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 First Branch Middle School a good school?
First Branch Middle School earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 88% of Vermont 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 First Branch Unified School District #82?
Besides First Branch Middle School, First Branch Unified School District #82 also operates First Branch Elementary School (141 students). See the First Branch Unified School District #82 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.