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How has Ridgely Elementary School changed in the last five years, for better or worse?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
433
Elementary
DISTRICT 533 · STATE 481
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·CAROLINE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 240018000525
Ridgely Elementary School
118 N Central Ave, Ridgely, MD 21660 · (410) 479-3243 · Caroline County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY42-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL433 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
12.4:1
35 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 12.5:1 · STATE 13.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
60%
258 students
DISTRICT 66% · STATE 54%
Community
3
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade
Student demographics
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
MCAP 2024-25 . % Proficient (Levels 3-4)English Language Arts
61.1%
MD avg 50.6% . +19.7pp since 2023
Math
38.3%
MD avg 34.8% . +10.9pp since 2023
What this means: On the MCAP, Maryland's statewide test, about 61 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 38 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Maryland schools, those numbers are about 51 and 35. Reading and writing scores are up about 20 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 11 points.
Source: MCAP. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
42.0%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
39.0%
based on MD schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+3.1pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 42% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 39% typical for Maryland schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Maryland's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
7-year change
SY 2017-18 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
433
-54 (-11%) vs 2017
Student : Teacher
12.4:1
was 13.9:1
% White
69%
was 68%
% Hispanic
12%
was 9%
% Black
11%
was 12%
% Asian
0%
was 1%
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
About Ridgely Elementary School
Ridgely Elementary School operates as a reasonably sized elementary campus in Ridgely, Maryland, run under Caroline County Public Schools. Current enrollment sits at 433 students spanning grades pre-K through 5.
Caroline County Public Schools runs 9 schools in total, collectively educating 5,648 students. Ridgely Elementary School is one of those campuses.
On demographics, Ridgely Elementary School logs that 69% of the student body identifies as White. Beyond that, the school shows 12% Hispanic, 11% Black, 7% multiracial.
In terms of school funding signals, Staff filings list 35 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 12.4:1 students per teacher. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 13.8:1 average. Roughly 60% of students at Ridgely Elementary School qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal.
On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), Ridgely Elementary School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 39.0%; this one delivers 42.0%.
In the broader community, ACS estimates for Caroline County put the typical household earns roughly $68,457 per year, 16% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 9%. Across Caroline County's 10 public schools (combined enrollment of about 5,648 students), Ridgely Elementary School is one campus in the mix.
North Caroline High School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 3.8 miles from this campus. 2 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Ridgely Elementary School at 5th of 9; the average score across the group is 44.2%.
The campus sits in a small-town setting.
Over the past 7-year window. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Ridgely Elementary School has contracted 11%, going from 487 students in 2018 to 433 in 2025. The student-to-teacher ratio tightened from 13.9:1 in 2018 to 12.4:1 today.
On allk12, recent activity here tends to focus on open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Caroline County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
33,669
Census ACS
Median income
$68,457
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
16%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
10
5,648 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Caroline County Public Schools
- North Caroline High SchoolHigh · 1,238 students
- Greensboro Elementary SchoolElementary · 840 students
- Lockerman Middle SchoolMiddle · 827 students
- Denton Elementary SchoolElementary · 596 students
- Colonel Richardson High SchoolHigh · 528 students
- Federalsburg Elementary SchoolElementary · 415 students
Other schools in Ridgely
- North Caroline High SchoolHigh · 1,238 students
- Caroline Career & Technology CenterHigh
Nearby schools
- North Caroline High School3.8 mi · 1,238
- Greensboro Elementary School4.9 mi · 840
- Lockerman Middle School5.3 mi · 827
- Denton Elementary School6.4 mi · 596
- Chapel District Elementary9.1 mi · 359
- Centreville Middle School10.6 mi · 501
Frequently asked questions
About Ridgely Elementary SchoolHow many students attend Ridgely Elementary School?
Ridgely Elementary School enrolls approximately 433 students in grades PK-05.
What grades does Ridgely Elementary School serve?
Ridgely Elementary School serves grades PK-05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ridgely Elementary School?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Ridgely Elementary School is approximately 12.4:1 (35 FTE teachers).
What is the student diversity at Ridgely Elementary School?
Student demographics at Ridgely Elementary School are roughly 69% White, 12% Hispanic, 11% Black, 0% Asian, 7% Two or more.
What district is Ridgely Elementary School in?
Ridgely Elementary School is part of Caroline County Public Schools.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.