Enrollment
331
New York · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · West Harrison, NY
Samuel J Preston School
Federal NCES profile for Samuel J Preston School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 53/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 361374001126
👥 S:T ratio 62
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 68
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Samuel J Preston School earns 53/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 77% of New York schools.
- 53
- Resource Index · Higher
- 9.5:1
- small classes for New York
- 25.6%
- free-lunch eligible
- 331
- students enrolled
Samuel J Preston School has class sizes smaller than 77% of New York schools. Computed live against every New York school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Harrison Central School District · New York
NCES ID 361374001126 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
35.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
9.5:1
vs 11.8:1 New York avg
-19% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
25.6%
vs 56.2% New York avg
-54% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Samuel J Preston School compares with New York and U.S. medians
What stands out at Samuel J Preston School
Samuel J Preston School is a mid-sized elementary school in West Harrison, New York, enrolling 331 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 9.5:1 puts it in the smaller third of New York schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 25.6% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 331 puts it in the smaller third of New York schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 4,801 scored New York schools.
Against 606 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #91.
Its student body is led by White (58%) and Hispanic or Latino (34%) (diversity index 55/100).
12.7% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
The surrounding Harrison Central School District spends $32,929 per pupil, 25% above the New York average, a better-resourced district than most.
Harrison Central School District also operates Harrison High School (1,066 students) and Louis M Klein Middle School (923 students) alongside Samuel J Preston 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 Samuel J Preston School compares
Samuel J Preston School on the metrics families compare, against New York and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs New York | New York avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 9.5:1 | ▼ 19% | 11.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 25.6% | ▼ 54% | 56.2% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 331 | top 69% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
9.5:1
Leaner classes than 91% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
331
Bigger than 37% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
25.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 54% below the New York average of 56.2%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
9.5:1
students per teacher
- 19% below state mean
Top 23% in New York - lower ratio than 77% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
12.7%
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
$32,929
per pupil, district-wide
- above New York avg of $26,410
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.3 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 57.7%
Hispanic or Latino 34.4%
Asian 3.3%
Two or More 2.7%
African American 1.8%
Largest group: White at 57.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 54.7/100
Simpson diversity index - at 54.7, Samuel J Preston School is more mixed than the New York school average of 45.5.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Harrison Central School District, which includes Samuel J Preston School.
$32,929
Per student
+25%
vs New York
Avg $26,410
+98%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 89.0%
State 6.4%
Federal 4.6%
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 Samuel J Preston School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harrison High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Louis M Klein Middle School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Harrison Avenue Elementary School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Parsons Memorial School | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Purchase School | Similar size | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Samuel J Preston School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,066
- Students per teacher
- 10.2:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 923
- Students per teacher
- 10.1:1
- Resource Index
- 57/100
- Enrollment
- 607
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 480
- Students per teacher
- 10.7:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
- Enrollment
- 385
- Students per teacher
- 13.3:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of New York, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~331 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Samuel J Preston School's federal record.
- Compare Samuel J Preston School against another school. Compare schools
- Harrison Central School District'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 Samuel J Preston School
How many students attend Samuel J Preston School?
Samuel J Preston School has 331 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in West Harrison, NY.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Samuel J Preston School?
The student-teacher ratio at Samuel J Preston School is 9.5:1, which is 19% lower than the New York average of 11.8:1 and 39% 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 Samuel J Preston School?
25.6% of students at Samuel J Preston School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the New York average of 56.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Samuel J Preston School?
The largest demographic group at Samuel J Preston School is White at 57.7% of enrollment, in West Harrison, NY. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 54.7/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Samuel J Preston School?
Samuel J Preston School has a Resource Investment Index of 53/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Samuel J Preston School a good school?
Samuel J Preston School earns 53/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 77% of New York 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 Harrison Central School District?
Besides Samuel J Preston School, Harrison Central School District also operates Harrison High School (1,066 students), Louis M Klein Middle School (923 students), and Harrison Avenue Elementary School (607 students). See the Harrison Central School District 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.