Enrollment
502
Massachusetts · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Worcester, MA
Rice Square
Federal NCES profile for Rice Square, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 25/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 251323002242
👥 S:T ratio 28
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 33
📋 Attendance 9
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Rice Square earns 25/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 96% of Massachusetts schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Massachusetts schools.
- #15 of 16
- elementary schools in Worcester · Resource Index
- 25
- Resource Index · Lower
- 17.9:1
- large classes for Massachusetts
- 502
- students enrolled
Rice Square has class sizes larger than 96% of Massachusetts schools. Computed live against every Massachusetts school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Rice Square ranks #15 of 16 elementary schools in Worcester, MA.
School address
District: Worcester · Massachusetts
NCES ID 251323002242 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
28.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.9:1
vs 12.3:1 Massachusetts avg
+46% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Rice Square compares with Massachusetts and U.S. medians
What stands out at Rice Square
Rice Square is a mid-sized elementary school in Worcester, Massachusetts, enrolling 502 students.
Class loads run heavy: 17.9:1 is larger than about 96% of Massachusetts schools and 46% above the 12.3:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
With 502 students, its enrollment sits close to the Massachusetts median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index trails 97% 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 (39%) and African American (26%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 73/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 335 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 36.5% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 16.4% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Among Worcester's elementary schools, it stands alongside Learning First Charter Public School (666 students): Rice Square is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (17.9:1 vs 21.5:1).
Worcester also operates South High Community (1,800 students) and Doherty Memorial High (1,573 students) alongside Rice Square.
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 Rice Square compares
Rice Square on the metrics families compare, against Massachusetts and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Massachusetts | Massachusetts avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.9:1 | ▲ 46% | 12.3:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 502 | top 36% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17.9:1
Leaner classes than 25% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
502
Bigger than 62% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
17.9:1
students per teacher
- 46% above state mean
Top 96% in Massachusetts - lower ratio than 4% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
36.5%
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
$20,642
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
Counselors1.5 FTE
Per 335 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 7 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.8 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 38.6%
African American 25.9%
White 20.7%
Asian 10.0%
Two or More 4.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 38.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 72.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 72.9, Rice Square is more mixed than the Massachusetts school average of 47.3.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Worcester, which includes Rice Square.
$20,642
Per student
-8%
vs Massachusetts
Avg $22,458
+24%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 13.5%
State 70.1%
Federal 16.4%
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 Rice Square Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| South High Community | Larger | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Doherty Memorial High | Larger | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Worcester Technical High | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| North High | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Burncoat Senior High | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Rice Square's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,800
- Students per teacher
- 18:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 1,573
- Students per teacher
- 18.3:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 1,442
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 1,376
- Students per teacher
- 16.2:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 1,073
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Resource Index
- 37/100
Similar elementary schools in Worcester
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Learning First Charter Public School
Standard public school
666 students 21.5:1 students per teacher
Woodland Academy
Standard public school
482 students 11.8:1 students per teacher
Elm Park Community
Standard public school
478 students 16.5:1 students per teacher
Flagg Street
Standard public school
412 students 18.7:1 students per teacher
Chandler Elementary Community
Standard public school
402 students 13:1 students per teacher
Grafton Street
Standard public school
386 students 16.8:1 students per teacher
Similar elementary 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 (~502 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~17.9:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Rice Square's federal record.
- Compare Rice Square against another school. Compare schools
- Worcester'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 Rice Square
How many students attend Rice Square?
Rice Square has 502 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Worcester, MA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Rice Square?
The student-teacher ratio at Rice Square is 17.9:1, which is 46% higher than the Massachusetts average of 12.3:1 and 14% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Rice Square?
The largest demographic group at Rice Square is Hispanic or Latino at 38.6% of enrollment, in Worcester, MA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 72.9/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Rice Square?
Rice Square has a Resource Investment Index of 25/100 (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 Rice Square rank among elementary schools in Worcester?
By Resource Investment Index, Rice Square ranks #15 of 16 elementary schools in Worcester, MA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Worcester on the city page.
Is Rice Square a good school?
Rice Square earns 25/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 96% 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 Worcester?
Besides Rice Square, Worcester also operates South High Community (1,800 students), Doherty Memorial High (1,573 students), and Worcester Technical High (1,442 students). See the Worcester 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.