Enrollment
1,180
New York · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Farmingdale, NY
Howitt School
Federal NCES profile for Howitt School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 56/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 361098000878
👥 S:T ratio 63
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 41
📋 Attendance 48
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Howitt School earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 80% of New York schools. It is also one of the largest schools in New York.
- #3 of 5
- public schools in Farmingdale · Resource Index
- 56
- Resource Index · Higher
- 9.2:1
- small classes for New York
- 20.9%
- free-lunch eligible
Howitt School has class sizes smaller than 80% of New York schools. Computed live against every New York school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Howitt School ranks #3 of 5 public schools in Farmingdale, NY.
School address
District: Farmingdale Union Free School District · New York
NCES ID 361098000878 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
128.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
9.2:1
vs 11.8:1 New York avg
-22% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
20.9%
vs 56.2% New York avg
-63% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Howitt School compares with New York and U.S. medians
What stands out at Howitt School
Howitt School is a large middle school in Farmingdale, New York, enrolling 1,180 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 9.2:1 puts it in the smaller third of New York schools by student-teacher ratio.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 20.9% free-meal eligibility runs 63% below the New York average.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in New York, bigger than 95% of state schools at 1,180 students.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 91% of the 4,801 New York schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Against 238 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #39.
Its student body is led by White (52%) and Hispanic or Latino (29%) (diversity index 63/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 295 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 20.8% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
The surrounding Farmingdale Union Free School District spends $32,629 per pupil, 24% above the New York average, a better-resourced district than most.
Farmingdale Union Free School District also operates Farmingdale Senior High School (1,704 students) and Woodward Parkway Elementary School (815 students) alongside Howitt School.
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 Howitt School compares
Howitt School on the metrics families compare, against New York and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs New York | New York avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 9.2:1 | ▼ 22% | 11.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 20.9% | ▼ 63% | 56.2% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 1,180 | top 5% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
9.2:1
Leaner classes than 92% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
1,180
Bigger than 94% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
20.9%
free-lunch eligible
- 63% below the New York average of 56.2%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
9.2:1
students per teacher
- 22% below state mean
Top 20% in New York - lower ratio than 80% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
20.8%
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
$32,629
per pupil, district-wide
- above New York avg of $26,410
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 295 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
96
in-school suspensions + 84 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 8.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 15.3 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 51.9%
Hispanic or Latino 29.4%
African American 7.4%
Asian 7.4%
Two or More 3.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 51.9% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 63.2/100
Simpson diversity index - at 63.2, Howitt School is more mixed than the New York school average of 45.5.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Farmingdale Union Free School District, which includes Howitt School.
$32,629
Per student
+24%
vs New York
Avg $26,410
+97%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 68.9%
State 26.8%
Federal 4.3%
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.
How Howitt School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Farmingdale Senior High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Woodward Parkway Elementary School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Saltzman East Memorial Elementary School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Albany Avenue Elementary School | Smaller | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Northside Elementary School | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Howitt School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,704
- Students per teacher
- 10.4:1
- Resource Index
- 57/100
- Enrollment
- 815
- Students per teacher
- 13.4:1
- Resource Index
- 57/100
- Enrollment
- 592
- Students per teacher
- 10.2:1
- Resource Index
- 54/100
- Enrollment
- 536
- Students per teacher
- 11.2:1
- Resource Index
- 62/100
- Enrollment
- 353
- Students per teacher
- 10.7:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
Similar middle schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of New York, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~1,180 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Howitt School's federal record.
- Compare Howitt School against another school. Compare schools
- Farmingdale Union Free 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 Howitt School
How many students attend Howitt School?
Howitt School has 1,180 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Farmingdale, NY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Howitt School?
The student-teacher ratio at Howitt School is 9.2:1, which is 22% lower than the New York average of 11.8:1 and 41% 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 Howitt School?
20.9% of students at Howitt School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the New York average of 56.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Howitt School?
The largest demographic group at Howitt School is White at 51.9% of enrollment, in Farmingdale, NY. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 63.2/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Howitt School?
Howitt School has a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (higher 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 Howitt School rank among public schools in Farmingdale?
By Resource Investment Index, Howitt School ranks #3 of 5 public schools in Farmingdale, NY. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Farmingdale on the city page.
Is Howitt School a good school?
Howitt School earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 80% of New York schools. It is also one of the largest schools in New York. 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 Farmingdale Union Free School District?
Besides Howitt School, Farmingdale Union Free School District also operates Farmingdale Senior High School (1,704 students), Woodward Parkway Elementary School (815 students), and Saltzman East Memorial Elementary School (592 students). See the Farmingdale Union Free School District 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.