Total enrollment
12,505
-60 (0%) vs SY 2020-21
25 schools in New Bedford
Massachusetts · 12,505 students · 1 city
New Bedford in Massachusetts runs 25 public K-12 schools today, teaching roughly 12,505 students (an average of 500 per school).
4-year change in New Bedford
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25School count
24
-1 (-4%) vs SY 2020-21
Source: NCES Common Core of Data, enrollment-weighted demographic averages
How New Bedford ranks
Among districts| Measure | This district | In Massachusetts | In the US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 12,505 | #8 of 231 | #703 of 9,234 |
| Number of schools ranked most first | 24 | #8 of 231 | N/A |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 11.8:1 | #109 of 231 | #1,829 of 9,044 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 65.9% | #15 of 206 | #870 of 6,853 |
Districts need at least 2 schools and 500 students to be ranked. Test proficiency is ranked within the state only, since each state gives a different test. Each rank links to the full list.
Inside New Bedford
Since 2017-18, the 24 district schools that reported both years went from 12,403 to 12,505 students (up 1%) and from 897 to 1,060 full-time teachers (up 18%), as of 2024-25.
Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across each school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25; schools with fewer than 100 students and schools serving specialized populations are left out. Staffing figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data and count only schools that reported students and teachers in both years.
About New Bedford
New Bedford is an average-sized Massachusetts school district running 25 schools with combined enrollment near 12,505.
For a sense of the school types, New Bedford is built around 18 elementary, 3 middle, 3 high schools, and 1 combined or other.
Five-year track record. Total public-school enrollment in New Bedford has held roughly steady since SY 2020-21, moving from about 12,565 students to 12,505. The school count fell from 25 to 24 across the same 4-year window.
In the discussion threads here, the community for New Bedford discusses open enrollment windows, redistricting talk, and busing logistics. Discussions cut across districts, schools, and grade levels.