Enrollment
316
Rhode Island · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Portsmouth, RI
Melville School
Federal NCES profile for Melville School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 49/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 440087000206
👥 S:T ratio 53
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 37
📋 Attendance 77
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Melville School earns 49/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 74% of Rhode Island schools.
- #2 of 4
- public schools in Portsmouth · Resource Index
- 49
- Resource Index · Higher
- 11.7:1
- small classes for Rhode Island
- 8.5%
- free-lunch eligible
Melville School has class sizes smaller than 74% of Rhode Island schools. Computed live against every Rhode Island school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Melville School ranks #2 of 4 public schools in Portsmouth, RI.
School address
District: Portsmouth · Rhode Island
NCES ID 440087000206 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
27.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.7:1
vs 13.8:1 Rhode Island avg
-15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
8.5%
vs 39.6% Rhode Island avg
-79% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Melville School compares with Rhode Island and U.S. medians
What stands out at Melville School
Melville School is a lower-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, enrolling 316 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11.7:1 puts it in the smaller third of Rhode Island schools by student-teacher ratio.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 8.5% free-meal eligibility runs 79% below the Rhode Island average.
With 316 students, its enrollment sits close to the Rhode Island median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 308 scored Rhode Island schools.
Against 57 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #11.
Its student body is led by White (77%) and Hispanic or Latino (11%) (diversity index 39/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 316 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Attendance holds up well here: only 9.2% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
Portsmouth also operates Portsmouth High School (785 students) and Portsmouth Middle School (604 students) alongside Melville 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 Melville School compares
Melville School on the metrics families compare, against Rhode Island and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Rhode Island | Rhode Island avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.7:1 | ▼ 15% | 13.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 8.5% | ▼ 79% | 39.6% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 316 | top 61% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.7:1
Leaner classes than 78% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
316
Bigger than 35% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
8.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 79% below the Rhode Island average of 39.6%
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
11.7:1
students per teacher
- 15% below state mean
Top 26% in Rhode Island - lower ratio than 74% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
9.2%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$18,687
per pupil, district-wide
- below Rhode Island avg of $20,315
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 316 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 76.6%
Hispanic or Latino 10.8%
Two or More 8.2%
Asian 2.5%
African American 1.9%
Largest group: White at 76.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 39.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 39.4, Melville School is less mixed than the Rhode Island school average of 47.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Portsmouth, which includes Melville School.
$18,687
Per student
-8%
vs Rhode Island
Avg $20,315
+13%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 78.4%
State 13.5%
Federal 8.1%
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 Melville School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portsmouth High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Portsmouth Middle School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Howard Hathaway School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Melville School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 785
- Students per teacher
- 11.4:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 604
- Students per teacher
- 11:1
- Resource Index
- 55/100
- Enrollment
- 409
- Students per teacher
- 14.1:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Rhode Island, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~316 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Melville School's federal record.
- Compare Melville School against another school. Compare schools
- Portsmouth'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 Melville School
How many students attend Melville School?
Melville School has 316 students enrolled. It is a public school in Portsmouth, RI.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Melville School?
The student-teacher ratio at Melville School is 11.7:1, which is 15% lower than the Rhode Island average of 13.8:1 and 25% 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 Melville School?
8.5% of students at Melville School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Rhode Island average of 39.6%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Melville School?
The largest demographic group at Melville School is White at 76.6% of enrollment, in Portsmouth, RI.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Melville School?
Melville School has a Resource Investment Index of 49/100 (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 Melville School rank among public schools in Portsmouth?
By Resource Investment Index, Melville School ranks #2 of 4 public schools in Portsmouth, RI. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Portsmouth on the city page.
Is Melville School a good school?
Melville School earns 49/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 74% of Rhode Island 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 Portsmouth?
Besides Melville School, Portsmouth also operates Portsmouth High School (785 students), Portsmouth Middle School (604 students), and Howard Hathaway School (409 students). See the Portsmouth 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.