National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
http://nces.ed.gov/
Description: An agency within the U.S. Dept. Education responsible for collecting and analyzing data related to education in the United States and internationally. Numerous publications and data sets available online. Information on ordering NCES publications. 

Education Statistics at a Glance/Encyclopedia of ED Stats
http://nces.ed.gov/edstats/
Description: Quick access to all the major NCES statistical compendia.

Education Statistics of the United States (First Ed., 1999)
Description: Useful paper compilation published by Bernan Press. Data drawn primarily from U.S. Census Bureau and National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) sources. Recent data and historical time series. National, state, and county levels.
Paper: Perkins Ref. 370.973 E24 1999

ERIC (Education Resources Information Center) Database
Description: Administered by the National Library of Education ERIC provides an index to a wide variety of literature in the field of education, broadly defined. Most reports indexed since document number ED297086 are included in the ERIC microfiche collection housed in the Newspaper and Microforms Department. Those reports issued by the U.S. Dept. of Education are also found in the Public Documents and Maps Department microfiche at the call number ED 1.310/2:[document#]. For journal literature with an EJ number in its citation, look up the title of the journal in the online catalog.
Access Note: A free search site is available at http://www.accesseric.org/searchdb/searchdb.html.

ERIC Clearinghouses
http://www.eric.ed.gov/
Description: Subject-specific web sites.

Statistical Universe (Duke Only)

120 Years of American Education: A Statistical Portrait
Description: Analytical essays and tables on "Education Characteristics of the Population", "Elementary and Secondary Education", and "Higher Education". Published January 1993 by NCES (pub. no. 93-442).
Paper: Docs. Ref. ED 1.302:ED 8/12

Notable NCES Web Pages

Electronic Catalog
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/
Description: A very effective tool for accessing the wealth of reports and data published by NCES. Keyword searching by author, title, and abstract. Optional qualifiers include date, publication type, and survey/program area. Quick search by NCES pub. no. also available.

Popular Reports
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/majorpub.asp
Description: Current issues plus archives of major publications.

Survey and Program Areas
http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/
Description: Listing of all NCES survey and program group, with links to more detailed information.

Major NCES Publications

The Digest of Education Statistics
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/majorpub.asp#digest Description: Published annually since 1962, includes data from government and private sources "covering the broad field of American education from kindergarten through graduate school." [Foreword, 1998 ed.]
Paper: Docs. ED 1.326: (latest in Docs. Ref. Desk)

The Condition of Education
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/majorpub.asp#condition
Paper: Docs. ED 1.109: (latest in Docs. Ref. Desk)

Education Statistics Quarterly
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/majorpub.asp#quarterly
Description: Review of all current work of NCES. Annual index of NCES publications in the Winter issue.
Paper: Docs. ED 1.328/13: (latest in Docs. Per.)

Projections of Education Statistics
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/majorpub.asp#proj
Description: Published since 1964, includes national-level statistics on elementary/secondary and postsecondary institutions for enrollment, graduates, classroom teachers, and expenditures.
Paper: Docs. ED 1.120: (latest in Docs. Ref.)