Enrollment
392
Massachusetts · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · South Dartmouth, MA
Joseph Demello
Federal NCES profile for Joseph Demello, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 40/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 250402000544
👥 S:T ratio 42
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 49
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Joseph Demello earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 84% of Massachusetts schools.
- 40
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14.5:1
- large classes for Massachusetts
- 392
- students enrolled
Joseph Demello has class sizes larger than 84% of Massachusetts schools. Computed live against every Massachusetts school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Dartmouth · Massachusetts
NCES ID 250402000544 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
27.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.5:1
vs 12.3:1 Massachusetts avg
+18% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Joseph Demello compares with Massachusetts and U.S. medians
What stands out at Joseph Demello
Joseph Demello is a mid-sized elementary school in South Dartmouth, Massachusetts, enrolling 392 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 14.5:1 puts it in the larger third of Massachusetts schools by student-teacher ratio.
With 392 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 (81% of enrollment) (diversity index 34/100).
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 20.4% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
The surrounding Dartmouth spends $17,966 per pupil, 20% below the Massachusetts average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
Dartmouth also operates Dartmouth High (902 students) and Dartmouth Middle (801 students) alongside Joseph Demello.
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 Demello compares
Joseph Demello on the metrics families compare, against Massachusetts and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Massachusetts | Massachusetts avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.5:1 | ▲ 18% | 12.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 392 | top 54% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.5:1
Leaner classes than 52% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
392
Bigger than 46% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
14.5:1
students per teacher
- 18% above state mean
Top 84% in Massachusetts - lower ratio than 16% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
20.4%
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
$17,966
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
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 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 80.6%
Hispanic or Latino 9.0%
Two or More 6.9%
African American 2.3%
Asian 1.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: White at 80.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 33.7/100
Simpson diversity index - at 33.7, Joseph Demello is less mixed than the Massachusetts school average of 47.3.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Dartmouth, which includes Joseph Demello.
$17,966
Per student
-20%
vs Massachusetts
Avg $22,458
+8%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 55.6%
State 32.9%
Federal 11.5%
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 Demello Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dartmouth High | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Dartmouth Middle | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| James M. Quinn School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| George H Potter | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Andrew B. Cushman School | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Joseph Demello's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 902
- Students per teacher
- 12.2:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 801
- Students per teacher
- 10.5:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
- Enrollment
- 703
- Students per teacher
- 13:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 407
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
- Enrollment
- 92
- Students per teacher
- 7.1:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
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 (~392 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Joseph Demello's federal record.
- Compare Joseph Demello against another school. Compare schools
- Dartmouth'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 Demello
How many students attend Joseph Demello?
Joseph Demello has 392 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in South Dartmouth, MA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Joseph Demello?
The student-teacher ratio at Joseph Demello is 14.5:1, which is 18% higher than the Massachusetts average of 12.3:1 and 8% lower than the national average of 15.7:1.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Joseph Demello?
The largest demographic group at Joseph Demello is White at 80.6% of enrollment, in South Dartmouth, MA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Joseph Demello?
Joseph Demello has a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Joseph Demello a good school?
Joseph Demello earns 40/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 84% of Massachusetts 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 Dartmouth?
Besides Joseph Demello, Dartmouth also operates Dartmouth High (902 students), Dartmouth Middle (801 students), and James M. Quinn School (703 students). See the Dartmouth 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.