Enrollment
867
Massachusetts · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Needham, MA
Pollard Middle
Federal NCES profile for Pollard Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 57/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 250837001308
👥 S:T ratio 53
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 69
📋 Attendance 78
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Pollard Middle earns 57/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Massachusetts median.
- #2 of 8
- public schools in Needham · Resource Index
- 57
- Resource Index · Higher
- 11.7:1
- students per teacher
- 867
- students enrolled
Pollard Middle has class sizes near the Massachusetts median. Computed live against every Massachusetts school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Pollard Middle ranks #2 of 8 public schools in Needham, MA.
School address
District: Needham · Massachusetts
NCES ID 250837001308 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
74.0
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 Pollard Middle compares with Massachusetts and U.S. medians
What stands out at Pollard Middle
Pollard Middle is a large middle school in Needham, Massachusetts, enrolling 867 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.
Enrollment of 867 puts it in the larger third of Massachusetts schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 95% 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 (72%) and Asian (12%) (diversity index 46/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 155 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Attendance holds up well here: only 9.0% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
Among Needham's middle schools, it stands alongside High Rock School (441 students): Pollard Middle is larger than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (11.7:1 vs 12.3:1).
Needham also operates Needham High (1,633 students) and Newman Elementary (696 students) alongside Pollard 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 Pollard Middle compares
Pollard 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 | 867 | top 11% | - | - |
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.
867
Bigger than 88% 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
9.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$23,810
per pupil, district-wide
- above 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
Counselors5.6 FTE
Per 155 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
15
in-school suspensions + 6 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.4 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 72.2%
Asian 12.1%
Hispanic or Latino 6.4%
Two or More 5.5%
African American 3.8%
Largest group: White at 72.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 45.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 45.6, Pollard Middle is about as mixed as the Massachusetts school average of 47.3.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Needham, which includes Pollard Middle.
$23,810
Per student
+6%
vs Massachusetts
Avg $22,458
+43%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 75.6%
State 20.3%
Federal 4.1%
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 Pollard Middle Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Needham High | Larger | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Newman Elementary | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Sunita L. Williams Elementary | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Broadmeadow | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| High Rock School | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Pollard Middle's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,633
- Students per teacher
- 12.5:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 696
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 533
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Resource Index
- 48/100
- Enrollment
- 502
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 441
- Students per teacher
- 12.3:1
- Resource Index
- 58/100
Similar middle schools in Needham
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 (~867 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Pollard Middle's federal record.
- Compare Pollard Middle against another school. Compare schools
- Needham'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 Pollard Middle
How many students attend Pollard Middle?
Pollard Middle has 867 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Needham, MA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Pollard Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Pollard 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 Pollard Middle?
The largest demographic group at Pollard Middle is White at 72.2% of enrollment, in Needham, MA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Pollard Middle?
Pollard Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 57/100 (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 Pollard Middle rank among public schools in Needham?
By Resource Investment Index, Pollard Middle ranks #2 of 8 public schools in Needham, 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 Needham on the city page.
Is Pollard Middle a good school?
Pollard Middle earns 57/100 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 Needham?
Besides Pollard Middle, Needham also operates Needham High (1,633 students), Newman Elementary (696 students), and Sunita L. Williams Elementary (533 students). See the Needham 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.