Choose a state to rank its school districts by student need, measured with the U.S. Census child-poverty estimates that drive federal Title I funding. Weight need by intensity or by scale, open any district for its numbers, and see strategies matched to its need level.
Ranked by needs score. Click any district for detail.
| # | District | Child pov. % | In poverty | Pop 5-17 | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Needs-sensing is how a research lab and its partners decide where to study and where to send technical assistance. This tool ranks every school district in a state on a needs score built from one authoritative measure, the Census SAIPE estimate of children ages 5 to 17 living in families in poverty. That is the measure the U.S. Department of Education uses to allocate Title I funds, so it is a defensible, public starting point for targeting.
The needs score is a national percentile that blends two things. Intensity is the child-poverty rate, how concentrated need is in a district. Scale is the number of children in poverty, how many students are affected. The slider sets the balance between them, and the ranking updates live. Because the score is a national percentile, a district in one state can be compared to a district in another.
The data refreshes from the Census API or the SAIPE annual file when prompted, so the tool stays current as new estimates are released. Figures are estimates with margins of error and are a screening aid, not a substitute for local knowledge.