Elementary school (grades K-5) · Fargo, ND

Madison Elementary School

Federal NCES profile for Madison Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 61/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 380678000203
0/100100/10061/100
👥 S:T ratio
72
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
73
📋 Attendance
29
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Madison Elementary School earns 61/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 86% of North Dakota schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most North Dakota schools.

#3 of 20
elementary schools in Fargo · Resource Index
61
Resource Index · Higher
7.1:1
small classes for North Dakota
80.2%
free-lunch eligible

Madison Elementary School has class sizes smaller than 86% of North Dakota schools. Computed live against every North Dakota school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Madison Elementary School ranks #3 of 20 elementary schools in Fargo, ND.

School address

Enrollment

134

North Dakota · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

19.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

7.1:1

vs 11.8:1 North Dakota avg

-40% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

80.2%

vs 28.2% North Dakota avg

+184% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Madison Elementary School compares with North Dakota and U.S. medians

Smaller classes than state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Madison Elementary School

Madison Elementary School is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Fargo, North Dakota, enrolling 134 students.

Classes run notably small here: at 7.1:1, Madison Elementary School is leaner than roughly 86% of North Dakota schools and 40% under the state's 11.8:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.

Economic need is high: 80.2% of students qualify for free meals, 184% above the North Dakota average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.

With 134 students, its enrollment sits close to the North Dakota median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 498 scored North Dakota schools.

Its student body is led by White (41%) and Hispanic or Latino (22%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 74/100).

Counselor coverage is strong, about 134 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 28.4% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Its district draws 15.3% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Among Fargo's elementary schools, it stands alongside Centennial Elementary School (639 students): Madison Elementary School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (7.1:1 vs 16.4:1).

Fargo 1 also operates Fargo Davies High School (1,277 students) and North High School (1,110 students) alongside Madison Elementary 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 Madison Elementary School compares

Madison Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against North Dakota and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs North Dakota North Dakota avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 7.1:1 ▼ 40% 11.8:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 80.2% ▲ 184% 28.2% 51.7%
Enrollment 134 top 54% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

7.1:1
Leaner classes than 96% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
134
Bigger than 13% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
80.2%
free-lunch eligible - 184% above the North Dakota average of 28.2%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
7.1:1
students per teacher - 40% below state mean
Top 14% in North Dakota - lower ratio than 86% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
28.4%
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
$16,941
per pupil, district-wide - below North Dakota avg of $18,450
Close to the U.S. public-school average per-pupil spend.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 134 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
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 41.0%
Hispanic or Latino 22.4%
African American 16.4%
Two or More 9.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 7.5%
Asian 3.7%

Largest group: White at 41.0% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 74.0/100

Simpson diversity index - at 74.0, Madison Elementary School is more mixed than the North Dakota school average of 29.7.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Fargo 1, which includes Madison Elementary School.

$16,941
Per student
-8%
vs North Dakota
Avg $18,450
+2%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 36.1%
State 48.6%
Federal 15.3%

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 Madison Elementary School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Fargo Davies High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
North High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Discovery Middle School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
South High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Ben Franklin Middle School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Madison Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Fargo 1 · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools in Fargo

6 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 North Dakota, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Madison Elementary School's federal record.

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 Madison Elementary School

How many students attend Madison Elementary School?

Madison Elementary School has 134 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Fargo, ND.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Madison Elementary School?

The student-teacher ratio at Madison Elementary School is 7.1:1, which is 40% lower than the North Dakota average of 11.8:1 and 55% 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 Madison Elementary School?

80.2% of students at Madison Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Dakota average of 28.2%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Madison Elementary School?

The largest demographic group at Madison Elementary School is White at 41.0% of enrollment, in Fargo, ND. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 74.0/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Madison Elementary School?

Madison Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 61/100 (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 Madison Elementary School rank among elementary schools in Fargo?

By Resource Investment Index, Madison Elementary School ranks #3 of 20 elementary schools in Fargo, ND. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Fargo on the city page.

Is Madison Elementary School a good school?

Madison Elementary School earns 61/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 86% of North Dakota schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most North Dakota 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 Fargo 1?

Besides Madison Elementary School, Fargo 1 also operates Fargo Davies High School (1,277 students), North High School (1,110 students), and Discovery Middle School (992 students). See the Fargo 1 district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.