Enrollment
449
Massachusetts · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Townsend, MA
Hawthorne Brook
Federal NCES profile for Hawthorne Brook, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 41/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 250879002280
👥 S:T ratio 56
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 55
📋 Attendance 22
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Hawthorne Brook earns 41/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Massachusetts median.
- #3 of 4
- public schools in Townsend · Resource Index
- 41
- Resource Index · Typical
- 11:1
- students per teacher
- 449
- students enrolled
Hawthorne Brook has class sizes near the Massachusetts median. Computed live against every Massachusetts school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Hawthorne Brook ranks #3 of 4 public schools in Townsend, MA.
School address
District: North Middlesex · Massachusetts
NCES ID 250879002280 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
41.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11:1
vs 12.3:1 Massachusetts avg
-11% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Hawthorne Brook compares with Massachusetts and U.S. medians
What stands out at Hawthorne Brook
Hawthorne Brook is a mid-sized elementary school in Townsend, Massachusetts, enrolling 449 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11:1 puts it in the smaller third of Massachusetts schools by student-teacher ratio.
With 449 students, its enrollment sits close to the Massachusetts median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,831 scored Massachusetts schools.
Its student body is predominantly White (83% of enrollment) (diversity index 30/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 225 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 31.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Among Townsend's elementary schools, it stands alongside Spaulding Memorial (413 students): Hawthorne Brook is larger than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (11:1 vs 12.5:1).
North Middlesex also operates North Middlesex Regional (711 students) and Varnum Brook (606 students) alongside Hawthorne Brook.
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 Hawthorne Brook compares
Hawthorne Brook on the metrics families compare, against Massachusetts and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Massachusetts | Massachusetts avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11:1 | ▼ 11% | 12.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 449 | top 45% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11:1
Leaner classes than 83% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
449
Bigger than 55% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
11:1
students per teacher
- 11% below state mean
Top 34% in Massachusetts - lower ratio than 66% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
31.2%
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
$19,769
per pupil, district-wide
- below Massachusetts avg of $22,458
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 225 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 11 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.9 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 83.3%
Hispanic or Latino 8.9%
African American 3.3%
Two or More 2.9%
Asian 1.6%
Largest group: White at 83.3% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 29.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 29.6, Hawthorne Brook is less mixed than the Massachusetts school average of 47.3.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for North Middlesex, which includes Hawthorne Brook.
$19,769
Per student
-12%
vs Massachusetts
Avg $22,458
+19%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 53.3%
State 40.0%
Federal 6.8%
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 Hawthorne Brook Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Middlesex Regional | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Varnum Brook | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Nissitissit Middle School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Spaulding Memorial | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Ashby Elementary | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Hawthorne Brook's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 711
- Students per teacher
- 12.5:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 606
- Students per teacher
- 12.6:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 494
- Students per teacher
- 9.7:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
- Enrollment
- 413
- Students per teacher
- 12.5:1
- Resource Index
- 35/100
- Enrollment
- 152
- Students per teacher
- 13.8:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
Similar elementary schools in Townsend
1 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Massachusetts, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~449 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Hawthorne Brook's federal record.
- Compare Hawthorne Brook against another school. Compare schools
- North Middlesex'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 Hawthorne Brook
How many students attend Hawthorne Brook?
Hawthorne Brook has 449 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Townsend, MA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Hawthorne Brook?
The student-teacher ratio at Hawthorne Brook is 11:1, which is 11% lower than the Massachusetts average of 12.3:1 and 30% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Hawthorne Brook?
The largest demographic group at Hawthorne Brook is White at 83.3% of enrollment, in Townsend, MA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Hawthorne Brook?
Hawthorne Brook has a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (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 Hawthorne Brook rank among public schools in Townsend?
By Resource Investment Index, Hawthorne Brook ranks #3 of 4 public schools in Townsend, MA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Townsend on the city page.
Is Hawthorne Brook a good school?
Hawthorne Brook earns 41/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Massachusetts 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 North Middlesex?
Besides Hawthorne Brook, North Middlesex also operates North Middlesex Regional (711 students), Varnum Brook (606 students), and Nissitissit Middle School (494 students). See the North Middlesex 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.