Education (K-12) · 2024–25 school year
Rhode Island Public Schools
Public K-12 education statistics for Rhode Island — 133,879 students in 316 schools in 2024–25, with enrollment history back to 1986 and county-level detail from 2002.
| Statistic | Value | School year |
|---|---|---|
| Student enrollment | 133,879 | 2024–25 |
| Public schools | 316 | 2024–25 |
| Teachers (full-time equivalent) | 10,399 | 2024–25 |
| Pupil-teacher ratio | 13 | 2024–25 |
| Free/reduced-price lunch students | 54.1% | 2024–25 |
| School poverty rate (MEPS) | 13.3% | 2022–23 |
| Charter school enrollment | 10.1% | 2024–25 |
| High school graduation rate | 84.1% | 2023–24 |
| Math proficiency (of tested) | 26.6% | 2021–22 |
| Reading proficiency (of tested) | 33.1% | 2021–22 |
| Chronically absent students | 37.4% | 2021–22 |
| White students | 50.0% | 2024–25 |
| Black students | 9.2% | 2024–25 |
| Hispanic students | 30.5% | 2024–25 |
| Asian students | 3.2% | 2024–25 |
Not every statistic is collected every year — each row shows its most recent available school year (amber when older than 2024–25). Blank/absent means not collected or below reliability floors, never zero. Some universal-meals states no longer report free/reduced-price lunch — school poverty (MEPS) is the better lens there. A 0% charter share in a state without a charter-school law is a true zero.
Rhode Island state report card
Outcomes reported directly by Rhode Island’s education agency — often more current than the federal series above. Because each state uses its own tests, definitions, and reporting windows, these figures are not comparable state-to-state; each row notes how Rhode Island measures it.
| Measure | Latest | Trend | School year |
|---|---|---|---|
5-year graduation rate How Rhode Island measures this5-year cohort graduation rate, Class of 2023 cohort tracked one additional year (through SY 2023-24); computed as CohortGraduationRate4 (84.1) + CohortGraduationRate5 (2.27) from the '5 Year Rates' row of the SY 2023-24 report file. In RIDE's file for SY N, the '5 Year Rates' row covers the Class of N-1 (verified: the same row's 4-yr component echoes the prior file's 4-yr rate, e.g. 83.46 in the 2023-24 file's 6-yr row vs 83.45 published for Class of 2022). | 86.4% | 2022–23 | |
College enrollment rate How Rhode Island measures thisPercent of Class of 2024 (SY 2023-24) high-school graduates enrolled in postsecondary education: RI public (40.43%) + RI private (6.47%) + out-of-state (18.49%) institutions; equals 100 minus Not_Enrolled (34.6121%). Enrollment window not specified in the file (RIDE postsecondary-enrollment reporting, typically enrollment in the year after graduation). | 65.4% | 2023–24 | |
Dropout rate How Rhode Island measures this4-year cohort dropout rate, Class of 2024 (SY 2023-24), statewide: percent of the 4-year adjusted cohort who dropped out (CohortDropoutRate on the '4 Year Rates' row; cohort components graduate/dropout/GED/retained sum to 100). | 7.7% | 2023–24 | |
Math proficiency (state test) How Rhode Island measures thisPercent of participating students at performance Level 3 or 4 (Meeting/Exceeding Expectations), Mathematics, assessment labeled 'DLM, RICAS & SAT - Mathematics' (grades 3-8 RICAS + grade 11 SAT + DLM alternate assessment), SY 2024-25 statewide; published PercP3P4 on the State Level / All Students / all-grades row (percent base = Participants). | 30.0% | 2024–25 | |
Reading / ELA proficiency (state test) How Rhode Island measures thisPercent of participating students at performance Level 3 or 4 (Meeting/Exceeding Expectations), ELA, assessment labeled 'DLM, RICAS & SAT - English Language Arts/Literacy' (grades 3-8 RICAS + grade 11 SAT + DLM alternate assessment), SY 2024-25 statewide; published PercP3P4 on the State Level / All Students / all-grades row (percent base = Participants). | 36.1% | 2024–25 | |
Chronic absenteeism (recent) How Rhode Island measures thisPercent of students chronically absent (RIDE definition: absent 10% or more of days enrolled), SY 2024-25, statewide K-12 public schools. No statewide All-Students rate is published anywhere in RI's files; computed as the denominator-weighted average of 'student_ca_pct' across all 64 LEA All-Students rows in the 2024-25 accountability (compiled 11/6/2025) LEA Indicator Data sheet, weights = 'adm_student_abs' (Student Chronic Abs Denom, an average-daily-membership-style decimal count). | 22.1% | 2024–25 |
Source: Rhode IslandDepartment of Education (public reporting), 2026 collection. Not comparable across states — proficiency reflects different assessments and cut scores; graduation, dropout, and college-going use each state’s own cohort definitions and windows. Absent rows mean the state doesn’t publish that measure in a comparable file.
Rhode Island schools by county
Students enrolled, 2024–25.
Rhode Island schools — FAQ
How many students attend public school in Rhode Island?+
133,879 students were enrolled in Rhode Island's 316 public K-12 schools in the 2024–25 school year, taught by 10,399 full-time-equivalent teachers (NCES Common Core of Data).
What share of Rhode Island students get free or reduced-price lunch?+
54.1% of Rhode Island public school students were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch in 2024–25 — a common proxy for student economic need.
What is Rhode Island's high school graduation rate?+
84.1% of Rhode Island's adjusted cohort graduated in the 2023–24 school year — reported by Rhode Island's education agency (its 4-year ACGR, more current than the federal series, which lags to 2021–22). Graduation rates run from 2010–11 onward.
Where does this data come from?+
Core statistics (enrollment, schools, teachers, poverty, demographics) come from the National Center for Education Statistics — the Common Core of Data, EDFacts, and the Civil Rights Data Collection. The most recent graduation rates and the state report-card outcomes (proficiency, college-going, dropout, chronic absenteeism) come directly from state education agencies, which publish sooner than the federal series. Full source and license details are on the methodology page. pumsdata is independent and not affiliated with NCES or any state agency.
Other states
Data: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (CCD, EDFacts, CRDC) and ED Data Express, plus current-year graduation and report-card outcomes from state education agencies. Full source and license details on the methodology page.