Enrollment
498
Maryland · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Sandy Spring, MD
Sherwood Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Sherwood Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 43/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 240048000920
👥 S:T ratio 49
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 53
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Sherwood Elementary earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 73% of Maryland schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Maryland schools.
- 43
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.8:1
- small classes for Maryland
- 25.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 498
- students enrolled
Sherwood Elementary has class sizes smaller than 73% of Maryland schools. Computed live against every Maryland school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Montgomery County Public Schools · Maryland
NCES ID 240048000920 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
39.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.8:1
vs 14.5:1 Maryland avg
-12% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
25.0%
vs 49.0% Maryland avg
-49% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sherwood Elementary compares with Maryland and U.S. medians
What stands out at Sherwood Elementary
Sherwood Elementary is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Sandy Spring, Maryland, enrolling 498 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.8:1 puts it in the smaller third of Maryland schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 25.0% of students eligible for free meals.
With 498 students, its enrollment sits close to the Maryland median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,382 scored Maryland schools.
Against 265 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #157.
Its student body is led by White (37%) and Hispanic or Latino (24%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 75/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 498 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 18.7% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Montgomery County Public Schools also operates Montgomery Blair High (3,266 students) and Walter Johnson High (3,016 students) alongside Sherwood Elementary.
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 Sherwood Elementary compares
Sherwood Elementary on the metrics families compare, against Maryland and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Maryland | Maryland avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.8:1 | ▼ 12% | 14.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 25.0% | ▼ 49% | 49.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 498 | top 55% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.8:1
Leaner classes than 68% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
498
Bigger than 61% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
25.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 49% below the Maryland average of 49.0%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
12.8:1
students per teacher
- 12% below state mean
Top 27% in Maryland - lower ratio than 73% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
18.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$18,101
per pupil, district-wide
- below Maryland avg of $20,446
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 498 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
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: 0.2 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 36.5%
Hispanic or Latino 23.5%
African American 20.7%
Asian 11.4%
Two or More 7.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: White at 36.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 75.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 75.1, Sherwood Elementary is more mixed than the Maryland school average of 52.3.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Montgomery County Public Schools, which includes Sherwood Elementary.
$18,101
Per student
-11%
vs Maryland
Avg $20,446
+9%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 66.0%
State 23.7%
Federal 10.3%
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 Sherwood Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery Blair High | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Walter Johnson High | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Wheaton High | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Gaithersburg High | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Seneca Valley High | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Sherwood Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 3,266
- Students per teacher
- 17:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 3,016
- Students per teacher
- 19.1:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 2,794
- Students per teacher
- 17.8:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 2,441
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Resource Index
- 56/100
- Enrollment
- 2,409
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Maryland, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~498 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Sherwood Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Sherwood Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Montgomery County Public Schools'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 Sherwood Elementary
How many students attend Sherwood Elementary?
Sherwood Elementary has 498 students enrolled. It is a public school in Sandy Spring, MD.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sherwood Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Sherwood Elementary is 12.8:1, which is 12% lower than the Maryland average of 14.5:1 and 18% 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 Sherwood Elementary?
25.0% of students at Sherwood Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Maryland average of 49.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sherwood Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Sherwood Elementary is White at 36.5% of enrollment, in Sandy Spring, MD. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 75.1/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sherwood Elementary?
Sherwood Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (typical 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).
Is Sherwood Elementary a good school?
Sherwood Elementary earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 73% of Maryland schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Maryland 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 Montgomery County Public Schools?
Besides Sherwood Elementary, Montgomery County Public Schools also operates Montgomery Blair High (3,266 students), Walter Johnson High (3,016 students), and Wheaton High (2,794 students). See the Montgomery County Public Schools 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.