Enrollment
598
Massachusetts · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Fall River, MA
Mary Fonseca Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Mary Fonseca Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 27/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 250483002650
👥 S:T ratio 37
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 40
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Mary Fonseca Elementary School earns 27/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 91% of Massachusetts schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Massachusetts schools.
- #11 of 12
- schools in Fall River · Resource Index
- 27
- Resource Index · Lower
- 15.7:1
- large classes for Massachusetts
- 598
- students enrolled
Mary Fonseca Elementary School has class sizes larger than 91% of Massachusetts schools. Computed live against every Massachusetts school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Mary Fonseca Elementary School ranks #11 of 12 schools in Fall River, MA.
School address
District: Fall River · Massachusetts
NCES ID 250483002650 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
38.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
15.7:1
vs 12.3:1 Massachusetts avg
+28% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Mary Fonseca Elementary School compares with Massachusetts and U.S. medians
What stands out at Mary Fonseca Elementary School
Mary Fonseca Elementary School is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Fall River, Massachusetts, enrolling 598 students.
Class loads run heavy: 15.7:1 is larger than about 91% of Massachusetts schools and 28% above the 12.3:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Enrollment of 598 puts it in the larger third of Massachusetts schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index trails 96% of the 1,831 Massachusetts schools with a score on record, one of the lower results on this measure.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (44%) and White (31%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 68/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 299 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 47.7% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Among Fall River's public schools, it stands alongside Atlantis Charter School (1,246 students): Mary Fonseca Elementary School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (15.7:1 vs 11.9:1).
Fall River also operates B M C Durfee High (2,642 students) and Henry Lord Community School (817 students) alongside Mary Fonseca 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 Mary Fonseca Elementary School compares
Mary Fonseca Elementary 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 | 15.7:1 | ▲ 28% | 12.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 598 | top 26% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
15.7:1
Leaner classes than 41% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
598
Bigger than 72% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
15.7:1
students per teacher
- 28% above state mean
Top 91% in Massachusetts - lower ratio than 9% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
47.7%
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
$20,266
per pupil, district-wide
- below Massachusetts avg of $22,458
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 299 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
21
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 3.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.0 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
Hispanic or Latino 44.4%
White 30.7%
African American 17.3%
Two or More 5.9%
Asian 1.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 44.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 67.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 67.5, Mary Fonseca Elementary School is more mixed than the Massachusetts school average of 47.3.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Fall River, which includes Mary Fonseca Elementary School.
$20,266
Per student
-10%
vs Massachusetts
Avg $22,458
+22%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 10.7%
State 76.1%
Federal 13.1%
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 Mary Fonseca Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| B M C Durfee High | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Henry Lord Community School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Morton Middle | Larger | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| William S Greene | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Carlton M. Viveiros Elementary School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Mary Fonseca Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,642
- Students per teacher
- 13.1:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 817
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 751
- Students per teacher
- 15.3:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 733
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Resource Index
- 29/100
- Enrollment
- 712
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
- Resource Index
- 25/100
Similar other schools in Fall River
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Atlantis Charter School
Standard public school
1,246 students 11.9:1 students per teacher
Henry Lord Community School
Standard public school
817 students 13.2:1 students per teacher
William S Greene
Standard public school
733 students 15.9:1 students per teacher
North End Elementary
Standard public school
655 students 13.6:1 students per teacher
Argosy Collegiate Charter School
Standard public school
587 students 19.6:1 students per teacher
Spencer Borden
Standard public school
575 students 13.7:1 students per teacher
Similar other 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 (~598 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~15.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Mary Fonseca Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Mary Fonseca Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Fall River'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 Mary Fonseca Elementary School
How many students attend Mary Fonseca Elementary School?
Mary Fonseca Elementary School has 598 students enrolled. It is a public school in Fall River, MA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Mary Fonseca Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Mary Fonseca Elementary School is 15.7:1, which is 28% higher than the Massachusetts average of 12.3:1 and 0% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Mary Fonseca Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Mary Fonseca Elementary School is Hispanic or Latino at 44.4% of enrollment, in Fall River, MA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 67.5/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Mary Fonseca Elementary School?
Mary Fonseca Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 27/100 (lower 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 Mary Fonseca Elementary School rank among schools in Fall River?
By Resource Investment Index, Mary Fonseca Elementary School ranks #11 of 12 schools in Fall River, MA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Fall River on the city page.
Is Mary Fonseca Elementary School a good school?
Mary Fonseca Elementary School earns 27/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 91% of Massachusetts schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most 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 Fall River?
Besides Mary Fonseca Elementary School, Fall River also operates B M C Durfee High (2,642 students), Henry Lord Community School (817 students), and Morton Middle (751 students). See the Fall River 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.