Other / mixed grade configuration · Frederick, MD

Tuscarora Elementary

Federal NCES profile for Tuscarora Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 48/100.

2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 240033001355
0/100100/10048/100
👥 S:T ratio
35
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
47
📋 Attendance
39
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Tuscarora Elementary earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 73% of Maryland schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Maryland schools.

#7 of 18
schools in Frederick · Resource Index
48
Resource Index · Typical
16.2:1
large classes for Maryland
38.4%
free-lunch eligible

Tuscarora Elementary has class sizes larger than 73% of Maryland schools. Computed live against every Maryland school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Tuscarora Elementary ranks #7 of 18 schools in Frederick, MD.

Enrollment

793

Maryland · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

49.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

16.2:1

vs 14.5:1 Maryland avg

+12% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

38.4%

vs 49.0% Maryland avg

-22% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Tuscarora Elementary compares with Maryland and U.S. medians

Slightly above state median

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

What stands out at Tuscarora Elementary

Tuscarora Elementary is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Frederick, Maryland, enrolling 793 students.

Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 16.2:1 puts it in the larger third of Maryland schools by student-teacher ratio.

Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 38.4% of students eligible for free meals.

Enrollment of 793 puts it in the larger third of Maryland schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 1,382 scored Maryland schools.

Against 244 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #48.

Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (29%) and African American (28%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 77/100).

Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 264 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.

Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 24.5% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.

The surrounding Frederick County Public Schools spends $14,981 per pupil, 27% below the Maryland average, a leaner-resourced district than most.

Among Frederick's public schools, it stands alongside Waverley Elementary (965 students): Tuscarora Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (16.2:1 vs 14.8:1).

Frederick County Public Schools also operates Gov. Thomas Johnson High (2,066 students) and Urbana High (1,989 students) alongside Tuscarora 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 Tuscarora Elementary compares

Tuscarora 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 16.2:1 ▲ 12% 14.5:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 38.4% ▼ 22% 49.0% 51.7%
Enrollment 793 top 23% - -

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

16.2:1
Leaner classes than 36% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
793
Bigger than 85% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
38.4%
free-lunch eligible - 22% 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
16.2:1
students per teacher - 12% above state mean
Top 73% in Maryland - lower ratio than 27% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
24.5%
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
$14,981
per pupil, district-wide - below Maryland avg of $20,446
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 264 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.3 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

Hispanic or Latino 28.8%
African American 27.7%
White 23.2%
Two or More 11.7%
Asian 8.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 28.8% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 76.6/100

Simpson diversity index - at 76.6, Tuscarora Elementary is more mixed than the Maryland school average of 52.3.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Frederick County Public Schools, which includes Tuscarora Elementary.

$14,981
Per student
-27%
vs Maryland
Avg $20,446
-10%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 50.4%
State 38.3%
Federal 11.2%

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 Tuscarora Elementary Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Gov. Thomas Johnson High Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Urbana High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Frederick High Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Tuscarora High Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Oakdale High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Tuscarora Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Frederick County Public Schools · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar other schools in Frederick

6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.

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.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Tuscarora Elementary's federal record.

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 Tuscarora Elementary

How many students attend Tuscarora Elementary?

Tuscarora Elementary has 793 students enrolled. It is a public school in Frederick, MD.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Tuscarora Elementary?

The student-teacher ratio at Tuscarora Elementary is 16.2:1, which is 12% higher than the Maryland average of 14.5:1 and 3% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Tuscarora Elementary?

38.4% of students at Tuscarora Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Maryland average of 49.0%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Tuscarora Elementary?

The largest demographic group at Tuscarora Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 28.8% of enrollment, in Frederick, MD. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 76.6/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Tuscarora Elementary?

Tuscarora Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 48/100 (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).

How does Tuscarora Elementary rank among schools in Frederick?

By Resource Investment Index, Tuscarora Elementary ranks #7 of 18 schools in Frederick, MD. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Frederick on the city page.

Is Tuscarora Elementary a good school?

Tuscarora Elementary earns 48/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger 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 Frederick County Public Schools?

Besides Tuscarora Elementary, Frederick County Public Schools also operates Gov. Thomas Johnson High (2,066 students), Urbana High (1,989 students), and Frederick High (1,821 students). See the Frederick County Public Schools district page for the complete list.

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

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.