Mahadev Maitri Foundation
US Initiatives

Data Sources & Methodology

Every metric on this site comes from a US federal government open dataset. Our school rankings are built purely from these federal figures — no editorial scores, no advertising influence. This page documents exactly where the data comes from, what it means, and what its known limitations are.

Data Sources

NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) ↗~100,000 public schools
Covers: School name, address, grades, enrollment, demographics, staff, locale
The primary federal school directory. Updated annually. Includes race/ethnicity enrollment, FRL counts, teacher FTE, and school characteristics.
Covers: Total revenue, expenditure, per-pupil spending, revenue by source (local/state/federal)
District-level only — school-level spending data is not publicly available. Per-pupil figures are computed as total expenditure ÷ student membership.
Covers: Graduation rates by school and demographic subgroup
Covers only schools with a graduating Grade 12 cohort. Small cohorts are range-coded (e.g., "90–94%") to protect student privacy. Most recent school-level file available for public download.
Opportunity Atlas ↗~74,000 Census tracts (all of US)
Covers: Expected income percentile rank at age 35 for children raised at the 25th income percentile
Based on children born 1978–1983, outcomes measured at age ~35. Reflects neighborhood quality effects — not a current school rating. Joined to schools via ZIP code → Census tract crosswalk.
Covers: ZIP code to Census tract geographic crosswalk
Used to link school ZIP codes to the Opportunity Atlas Census tract data. For ZIPs spanning multiple tracts, the largest tract by land area is used.

Methodology & FAQ

Why no school ratings or grades?
Composite ratings obscure more than they reveal. A school serving high-need students that achieves 80% graduation is arguably doing more than a wealthy suburban school achieving 98% with far more resources. We show the data — you draw your conclusions.
What is the Opportunity Score?
The Opportunity Score is the expected income percentile rank at age 35 for a child who grew up in a modest-income (25th percentile) family in that school's Census tract. A score of 59 means children from that neighborhood typically reach the 59th income percentile as adults. This is neighborhood-level data — it reflects the community surrounding the school, not the school's teaching quality alone.
Why is per-pupil spending at the district level, not school level?
The US government does not require states to report school-level spending publicly. The NCES F-33 Finance Survey collects district-level data only. We apply the district figure to all schools in the district — which is an approximation, but the best available public data.
Why are some graduation rates shown as ranges (e.g., "90–94%")?
The federal EDFacts ACGR suppresses exact rates for small graduating cohorts to protect student privacy. Schools with fewer than ~200 graduates may show range values instead of exact percentages.
How current is this data?
School directory and enrollment: most recent NCES CCD release. Fiscal data: NCES F-33 most recent survey. Graduation rates: most recent EDFacts ACGR public file. Opportunity Atlas: based on 1978–1983 birth cohorts (outcomes at age ~35). We refresh annually when new NCES data is published.
Why is assessment proficiency data missing for some schools?
The federal EDFacts system receives state-reported assessment data, but not all grades or states are included. California, for example, does not report high school assessment data to EDFacts. We show data where available and explain clearly when it's absent.
Are private schools included?
Currently, the directory covers public schools only (from NCES CCD). Private schools are surveyed separately by NCES in the Private School Survey and will be added in a future update.

About Mahadev Maitri Foundation

Mahadev Maitri Foundation is an education-focused NGO. This US Schools directory was built to serve families worldwide with accurate, unbiased school data — the same mission we bring to school data in India.

Learn more about MMF →