Enrollment
963
Massachusetts · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Arlington, MA
Ottoson Middle
Federal NCES profile for Ottoson Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 56/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 250198000063
👥 S:T ratio 53
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 68
📋 Attendance 73
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Ottoson Middle earns 56/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Massachusetts median.
- #1 of 11
- public schools in Arlington · Resource Index
- 56
- Resource Index · Higher
- 11.7:1
- students per teacher
- 963
- students enrolled
Ottoson Middle has class sizes near the Massachusetts median. Computed live against every Massachusetts school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Ottoson Middle ranks #1 of 11 public schools in Arlington, MA.
School address
District: Arlington · Massachusetts
NCES ID 250198000063 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
82.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.7:1
vs 12.3:1 Massachusetts avg
-5% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Ottoson Middle compares with Massachusetts and U.S. medians
What stands out at Ottoson Middle
Ottoson Middle is a large middle school in Arlington, Massachusetts, enrolling 963 students.
At 11.7:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Massachusetts median, within a few percentage points of the 12.3:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in Massachusetts, bigger than 91% of state schools at 963 students.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 92% of the 1,831 Massachusetts schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Its student body is led by White (68%) and Asian (14%) (diversity index 50/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 161 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
10.8% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
Among Arlington's middle schools, it stands alongside Gibbs School (529 students): Ottoson Middle is larger than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (11.7:1 vs 13.2:1).
Arlington also operates Arlington High (1,677 students) and Thompson (537 students) alongside Ottoson Middle.
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 Ottoson Middle compares
Ottoson Middle on the metrics families compare, against Massachusetts and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Massachusetts | Massachusetts avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.7:1 | ▼ 5% | 12.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 963 | top 9% | - | - |
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.
963
Bigger than 90% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
11.7:1
students per teacher
- 5% below state mean
Top 47% in Massachusetts - lower ratio than 53% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
10.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$20,341
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
Counselors6.0 FTE
Per 161 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
20
in-school suspensions + 12 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.3 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 68.2%
Asian 13.8%
Hispanic or Latino 8.6%
Two or More 6.5%
African American 2.9%
Largest group: White at 68.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 50.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 50.3, Ottoson Middle is more mixed than the Massachusetts school average of 47.3.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Arlington, which includes Ottoson Middle.
$20,341
Per student
-9%
vs Massachusetts
Avg $22,458
+23%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 62.2%
State 32.9%
Federal 4.9%
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 Ottoson Middle Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arlington High | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Thompson | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Gibbs School | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| M Norcross Stratton | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Brackett | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Ottoson Middle's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,677
- Students per teacher
- 14.6:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 537
- Students per teacher
- 13.8:1
- Resource Index
- 48/100
- Enrollment
- 529
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Resource Index
- 56/100
- Enrollment
- 448
- Students per teacher
- 12.4:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
- Enrollment
- 394
- Students per teacher
- 11.9:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
Similar middle schools in Arlington
1 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
Similar middle 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 (~963 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Ottoson Middle's federal record.
- Compare Ottoson Middle against another school. Compare schools
- Arlington'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 Ottoson Middle
How many students attend Ottoson Middle?
Ottoson Middle has 963 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Arlington, MA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ottoson Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Ottoson Middle is 11.7:1, which is 5% lower than the Massachusetts average of 12.3:1 and 25% 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 Ottoson Middle?
The largest demographic group at Ottoson Middle is White at 68.2% of enrollment, in Arlington, MA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 50.3/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Ottoson Middle?
Ottoson Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (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 Ottoson Middle rank among public schools in Arlington?
By Resource Investment Index, Ottoson Middle ranks #1 of 11 public schools in Arlington, MA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Arlington on the city page.
Is Ottoson Middle a good school?
Ottoson Middle earns 56/100 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 Arlington?
Besides Ottoson Middle, Arlington also operates Arlington High (1,677 students), Thompson (537 students), and Gibbs School (529 students). See the Arlington 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.