Enrollment
487
Massachusetts · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Chelsea, MA
Joseph a. Browne School
Federal NCES profile for Joseph a. Browne School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 35/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 250354001776
👥 S:T ratio 57
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 51
📋 Attendance 3
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Joseph a. Browne School earns 35/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Massachusetts median.
- #3 of 7
- elementary schools in Chelsea · Resource Index
- 35
- Resource Index · Typical
- 10.8:1
- students per teacher
- 487
- students enrolled
Joseph a. Browne School has class sizes near the Massachusetts median. Computed live against every Massachusetts school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Joseph a. Browne School ranks #3 of 7 elementary schools in Chelsea, MA.
School address
District: Chelsea · Massachusetts
NCES ID 250354001776 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
45.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.8:1
vs 12.3:1 Massachusetts avg
-12% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Joseph a. Browne School compares with Massachusetts and U.S. medians
What stands out at Joseph a. Browne School
Joseph a. Browne School is a mid-sized elementary school in Chelsea, Massachusetts, enrolling 487 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 10.8:1 puts it in the smaller third of Massachusetts schools by student-teacher ratio.
With 487 students, its enrollment sits close to the Massachusetts median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,831 scored Massachusetts schools.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (86% of enrollment) (diversity index 25/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 244 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 38.6% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Among Chelsea's elementary schools, it stands alongside Clark Avenue School (673 students): Joseph a. Browne School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (10.8:1 vs 13.5:1).
Chelsea also operates Chelsea High (1,649 students) and Shurtleff Early Childhood (779 students) alongside Joseph a. Browne 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 Joseph a. Browne School compares
Joseph a. Browne School on the metrics families compare, against Massachusetts and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Massachusetts | Massachusetts avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.8:1 | ▼ 12% | 12.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 487 | top 38% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
10.8:1
Leaner classes than 84% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
487
Bigger than 60% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
10.8:1
students per teacher
- 12% below state mean
Top 31% in Massachusetts - lower ratio than 69% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
38.6%
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
$19,814
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 244 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
11
in-school suspensions + 13 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.9 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
Hispanic or Latino 86.0%
African American 7.4%
White 5.5%
Asian 0.8%
Two or More 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 86.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 25.2/100
Simpson diversity index - at 25.2, Joseph a. Browne School is less mixed than the Massachusetts school average of 47.3.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Chelsea, which includes Joseph a. Browne School.
$19,814
Per student
-12%
vs Massachusetts
Avg $22,458
+19%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 1.9%
State 83.4%
Federal 14.7%
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 Joseph a. Browne School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chelsea High | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Shurtleff Early Childhood | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Clark Avenue School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| George F. Kelly Elementary | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Frank M Sokolowski Elementary | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Joseph a. Browne School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,649
- Students per teacher
- 15.1:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 779
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Resource Index
- 26/100
- Enrollment
- 673
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Resource Index
- 30/100
- Enrollment
- 527
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
- Enrollment
- 472
- Students per teacher
- 11.5:1
- Resource Index
- 29/100
Similar elementary schools in Chelsea
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Clark Avenue School
Standard public school
673 students 13.5:1 students per teacher
George F. Kelly Elementary
Standard public school
527 students 13.9:1 students per teacher
Frank M Sokolowski Elementary
Standard public school
472 students 11.5:1 students per teacher
William a Berkowitz Elementary
Standard public school
455 students 13:1 students per teacher
Eugene Wright Science and Technology Academy
Standard public school
436 students 10.1:1 students per teacher
Edgar a Hooks Elementary
Standard public school
430 students 10.5:1 students per teacher
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 (~487 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Joseph a. Browne School's federal record.
- Compare Joseph a. Browne School against another school. Compare schools
- Chelsea'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 Joseph a. Browne School
How many students attend Joseph a. Browne School?
Joseph a. Browne School has 487 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Chelsea, MA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Joseph a. Browne School?
The student-teacher ratio at Joseph a. Browne School is 10.8:1, which is 12% lower than the Massachusetts average of 12.3:1 and 31% 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 Joseph a. Browne School?
The largest demographic group at Joseph a. Browne School is Hispanic or Latino at 86.0% of enrollment, in Chelsea, MA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Joseph a. Browne School?
Joseph a. Browne School has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (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 Joseph a. Browne School rank among elementary schools in Chelsea?
By Resource Investment Index, Joseph a. Browne School ranks #3 of 7 elementary schools in Chelsea, MA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Chelsea on the city page.
Is Joseph a. Browne School a good school?
Joseph a. Browne School earns 35/100 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 Chelsea?
Besides Joseph a. Browne School, Chelsea also operates Chelsea High (1,649 students), Shurtleff Early Childhood (779 students), and Clark Avenue School (673 students). See the Chelsea 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.