Enrollment
396
Rhode Island · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Middle school (grades 6-8) NCES 440042000117
Ponaganset Middle School — North Scituate, RI
Federal NCES profile for Ponaganset Middle School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 56/100.
👥 Class size 54
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 80
📋 Attendance 60
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: Foster-Glocester · Rhode Island
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
37.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.5:1
vs 13.4:1 Rhode Island avg
-14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
14.6%
vs 39.6% Rhode Island avg
-63% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Ponaganset Middle School compares with Rhode Island and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Ponaganset Middle School reports 396 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 37.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 11.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 14% below the Rhode Island state mean of 13.4:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 28% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 14.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 63% below the Rhode Island average and 72% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 99 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 16.2% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Foster-Glocester spends $23,230 per pupil district-wide, above the Rhode Island average of $22,892 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 65.3% from local sources (property taxes), 27.8% from the state, and 6.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (C), calculated from 4 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Ponaganset Middle School compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Rhode Island state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Rhode Island | Rhode Island avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.5:1 | ▼ 14% | 13.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 14.6% | ▼ 63% | 39.6% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 396 | top 54% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
14.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 63% below the Rhode Island average of 39.6%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
11.5:1
students per teacher
— 14% below state mean
Top 22% in Rhode Island — lower ratio than 78% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
16.2%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$23,230
per pupil, district-wide
— above Rhode Island avg of $22,892
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors4.0 FTE
Per 99 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
33
in-school suspensions + 15 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 8.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 12.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 396 Top 54% in Rhode Island — larger than 46% of 309 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 37.0
Students per teacher 11.5:1 -14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 14.6% -63% vs state
NCES ID 440042000117
Student demographics
White 90.9%
Hispanic or Latino 4.5%
Two or More 3.0%
African American 1.5%
Largest group: White at 90.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 4.0
Students per counselor 99:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 16.2%
In-school suspensions 33
Out-of-school suspensions 15
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Foster-Glocester, which includes Ponaganset Middle School.
$23,230
Per student
+1%
vs Rhode Island
Avg $22,892
+19%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 65.3%
State 27.8%
Federal 6.9%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 869
- Students per teacher
- 13:1
Similar middle schools in North Scituate
1 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Ponaganset Middle School
How many students attend Ponaganset Middle School?
Ponaganset Middle School has 396 students enrolled. It is a middle school in North Scituate, RI.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ponaganset Middle School?
The student-teacher ratio at Ponaganset Middle School is 11.5:1, which is 14% lower than the Rhode Island average of 13.4:1 and 28% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Ponaganset Middle School?
14.6% of students at Ponaganset Middle School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Rhode Island average of 39.6%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Ponaganset Middle School?
The largest demographic group at Ponaganset Middle School is White at 90.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in North Scituate, RI.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Ponaganset Middle School?
Ponaganset Middle School has a Resource Investment Index of 56/100 (C) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.