Enrollment
735
Maryland · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 240048001508
Waters Landing Elementary — Germantown, MD
Federal NCES profile for Waters Landing Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 31/100.
👥 Class size 43
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 2
📋 Attendance 8
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 →
School address
District: Montgomery County Public Schools · Maryland
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.
Teachers (FTE)
53.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.2:1
vs 14.4:1 Maryland avg
-1% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
62.0%
vs 49.0% Maryland avg
+27% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Waters Landing Elementary compares with Maryland and U.S. medians
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
Waters Landing Elementary reports 735 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 53.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 14.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 1% below the Maryland state mean of 14.4:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 11% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 62.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 27% above the Maryland average and 20% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 490 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 37.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Montgomery County Public Schools spends $20,473 per pupil district-wide, below the Maryland average of $22,498 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 66.0% from local sources (property taxes), 23.7% from the state, and 10.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (F), calculated from 4 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 Waters Landing Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against Maryland state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs Maryland | Maryland avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.2:1 | ▼ 1% | 14.4:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 62.0% | ▲ 27% | 49.0% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 735 | top 74% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 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
62.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 27% above the Maryland average of 49.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.2:1
students per teacher
— 1% below state mean
Top 43% in Maryland — lower ratio than 57% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
37.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$20,473
per pupil, district-wide
— below Maryland avg of $22,498
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.5 FTE
Per 490 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
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 735 Top 74% in Maryland — larger than 26% of 1,383 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 53.0
Students per teacher 14.2:1 -1% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 62.0% +27% vs state
NCES ID 240048001508
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 39.7%
African American 36.3%
White 12.0%
Asian 7.8%
Two or More 4.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 39.7% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.5
Students per counselor 490:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 37.0%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Montgomery County Public Schools, which includes Waters Landing Elementary.
$20,473
Per student
-9%
vs Maryland
Avg $22,498
+5%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 3,266
- Students per teacher
- 16.7:1
- Enrollment
- 3,016
- Students per teacher
- 18.6:1
- Enrollment
- 2,794
- Students per teacher
- 16.6:1
- Enrollment
- 2,441
- Students per teacher
- 14.3:1
- Enrollment
- 2,409
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
Similar other schools in Germantown
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Dr. Ronald E. Mcnair Elementary
Standard public school
673 students 17:1 students per teacher
Fox Chapel Elementary
Standard public school
617 students 14.8:1 students per teacher
William B. Gibbs Jr. Elementary
Standard public school
601 students 15.4:1 students per teacher
Captain James E. Daly Elementary
Standard public school
472 students 11.4:1 students per teacher
S. Christa Mcauliffe Elementary
Standard public school
467 students 12.6:1 students per teacher
Clopper Mill Elementary
Standard public school
458 students 11.5:1 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 Waters Landing Elementary
How many students attend Waters Landing Elementary?
Waters Landing Elementary has 735 students enrolled. It is a other school in Germantown, MD.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Waters Landing Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Waters Landing Elementary is 14.2:1, which is 1% lower than the Maryland average of 14.4:1 and 11% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Waters Landing Elementary?
62.0% of students at Waters Landing Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Maryland average of 49.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Waters Landing Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Waters Landing Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 39.7%. The school serves a diverse student body in Germantown, MD.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Waters Landing Elementary?
Waters Landing Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (F) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.