2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 440003000005

Sowams Elementary School — Barrington, RI

Federal NCES profile for Sowams Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 45/100.

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0/100100/10045/100
👥 Class size
36
🌟 Gifted program
30
📋 Attendance
68
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 →

The verdict

Sowams Elementary School earns a D Resource Investment Index (45/100), with class sizes larger than 88% of Rhode Island schools.

D
Resource Index · 45/100
16.1:1
large classes for Rhode Island
4.3%
free-lunch eligible
250
students enrolled

School address

Barrington, RI 02806
District: Barrington · 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.

Enrollment

250

Rhode Island · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

16.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

16.1:1

vs 13.4:1 Rhode Island avg

+20% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

4.3%

vs 39.6% Rhode Island avg

-89% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Sowams Elementary School compares with Rhode Island and U.S. medians

Slightly above state median
0:135:116.1:1

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

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

Sowams Elementary School reports 250 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 16.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 20% above the Rhode Island state mean of 13.4:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.7:1, it is 3% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.

Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 4.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 89% below the Rhode Island average and 92% below the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 12.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.

On the finance side, the surrounding Barrington spends $17,236 per pupil district-wide, below the Rhode Island average of $20,315 and above the national average of $16,593. Revenue comes 75.0% from local sources (property taxes), 19.6% from the state, and 5.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (D), calculated from 3 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 Sowams Elementary 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 16.1:1 ▲ 20% 13.4:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 4.3% ▼ 89% 39.6% 51.8%
Enrollment 250 top 23% — —

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

Class size vs. every US school

Students per teacher (lower means more individual attention)

16 smaller classes than 38% of 92,598 US schools

0–2: 295 US schools (0%). Below this entry. 2–4: 597 US schools (1%). Below this entry. 4–6: 1,033 US schools (1%). Below this entry. 6–8: 1,939 US schools (2%). Below this entry. 8–10: 4,805 US schools (5%). Below this entry. 10–12: 11,082 US schools (12%). Below this entry. 12–14: 16,971 US schools (18%). Below this entry. 14–16: 18,959 US schools (20%). Below this entry. 16–18: 13,660 US schools (15%). This entry sits in this band. 18–20: 8,300 US schools (9%). Above this entry. 20–22: 5,448 US schools (6%). Above this entry. 22–24: 4,007 US schools (4%). Above this entry. 24–26: 2,663 US schools (3%). Above this entry. 26–28: 1,131 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 28–30: 504 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 30–32: 307 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 32–34: 189 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 34–36: 141 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 36–38: 93 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 38–40: 94 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 40–42: 59 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 42–44: 46 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 44–46: 56 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 46–48: 58 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 48–50: 34 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 50–52: 37 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 52–54: 30 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 54–56: 15 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 56–58: 25 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 58–60: 20 US schools (0%). Above this entry. This school 0 60 every US school, by class size, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25

School size vs. every US school

Total enrollment — where this school sits by size (neither large nor small is 'better')

250 larger than 25% of 95,891 US schools

0–150: 14,035 US schools (15%). Below this entry. 150–300: 16,928 US schools (18%). This entry sits in this band. 300–450: 21,633 US schools (23%). Above this entry. 450–600: 17,006 US schools (18%). Above this entry. 600–750: 10,042 US schools (10%). Above this entry. 750–900: 5,568 US schools (6%). Above this entry. 900–1,050: 3,006 US schools (3%). Above this entry. 1,050–1,200: 1,826 US schools (2%). Above this entry. 1,200–1,350: 1,220 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 1,350–1,500: 908 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 1,500–1,650: 692 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 1,650–1,800: 607 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 1,800–1,950: 502 US schools (1%). Above this entry. 1,950–2,100: 432 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 2,100–2,250: 346 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 2,250–2,400: 252 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 2,400–2,550: 203 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 2,550–2,700: 163 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 2,700–2,850: 115 US schools (0%). Above this entry. 2,850–3,000: 85 US schools (0%). Above this entry. This school 0 3,000 every US school, by enrollment, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 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
4.3%
free-lunch eligible — 89% 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
16.1:1
students per teacher — 20% above state mean
Top 88% in Rhode Island — lower ratio than 12% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
12.8%
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
$17,236
per pupil, district-wide — below Rhode Island avg of $20,315
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting 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 + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.

Overview

Enrollment 250 Top 23% in Rhode Island — larger than 77% of 309 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 16.0
Students per teacher 16.1:1 +20% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 4.3% -89% vs state
NCES ID 440003000005

Student demographics

White 74.8%
Asian 9.6%
Hispanic or Latino 7.6%
Two or More 7.2%
African American 0.8%

Largest group: White at 74.8% of enrollment.

Programs & staff

Counselors (FTE) 0.0

Discipline & special education

Chronically absent 12.8%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Barrington, which includes Sowams Elementary School.

$17,236
Per student
-15%
vs Rhode Island
Avg $20,315
+4%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 75.0%
State 19.6%
Federal 5.4%

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.

Other Schools in This District

Barrington · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools in Barrington

2 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.

Hampden Meadows School
Standard public school
471 students 16.7:1 students per teacher
Nayatt School
Standard public school
356 students 14.1:1 students per teacher

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 Sowams Elementary School

How many students attend Sowams Elementary School?

Sowams Elementary School has 250 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Barrington, RI.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Sowams Elementary School?

The student-teacher ratio at Sowams Elementary School is 16.1:1, which is 20% higher than the Rhode Island average of 13.4:1 and 3% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Sowams Elementary School?

4.3% of students at Sowams Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Rhode Island average of 39.6%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sowams Elementary School?

The largest demographic group at Sowams Elementary School is White at 74.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Barrington, RI.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Sowams Elementary School?

Sowams Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (D) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.

Is Sowams Elementary School a good school?

Sowams Elementary School earns a D Resource Investment Index (45/100), with class sizes larger than 88% of Rhode Island schools. The Resource Investment Index reflects staffing, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance reported to NCES, not test scores or academic outcomes, so treat it as a resource snapshot rather than an overall rating.

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Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type — administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page
  • NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) — universe of U.S. public schools and districts. nces.ed.gov/ccd
  • NCES Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) — discipline, absenteeism, and AP-course participation. ocrdata.ed.gov
  • NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey — per-pupil expenditure and revenue sources. nces.ed.gov/ccd/f33agency
  • USDA National School Lunch Program (NSLP) — free and reduced-price lunch eligibility. fns.usda.gov/nslp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS — demographic and socioeconomic context for school catchment areas. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • U.S. Department of Education ESSA Title I — federal Title I program participation. ed.gov