36 public K-12 schools in Santa Maria from NCES Common Core of Data: enrollment, grade span, demographics, and Civil Rights Data Collection statistics for every active campus.
36 public schools ranked by quality score. NCES CCD 2024-25 data.
The highest-ranked of Santa Maria's 36 public schools is Santa Maria High, scoring 33/100, against a city average of 27.1/100. Computed live across every Santa Maria campus reporting to NCES.
How the Santa Maria Public-School Landscape Breaks Down
Santa Maria, CA enrolls 31,170 students across 36 public schools reporting to the National Center for Education Statistics. Of those, 2 are charter schools, giving families genuine alternatives to the traditional neighbourhood assignment model. The average student-teacher ratio across the city is 23:1, and the composite quality score, derived from student-teacher ratio, counselor access, gifted-program availability, and CRDC attendance data, averages 27.1/100. Schools must report at least five campuses in a city to appear in this listing, which is why very small towns may redirect to the broader county or state view.
The most-resourced campus in Santa Maria on this index is Santa Maria High, at 33/100 on the Resource Investment Index with 3,143 enrolled students. What the index does and doesn't measure; click any school below for its full component breakdown.
Santa Maria spans 6 districts, each filing its own NCES F-33 return, per-pupil spending can vary between neighbouring campuses. Sort the table below by enrollment, level, or district; click any school for its full profile.
Santa Maria school enrollment varies 71× across entities
Santa Maria school enrollment ranges from 44 students (lowest) to 3,143 students (highest), a spread of 3,099 students. That ratio is an extreme outlier spread — among the widest gaps observed anywhere in this dataset. Per-school staffing, programme depth, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same city based on enrollment shape, a 200-student magnet runs a different operational model than a 2,000-student comprehensive high school.
Santa Maria has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 65.1% of the population qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch
free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is the federal threshold for Title I funding allocations, established under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). Eligibility here is approaching the 75% concentration-grant threshold; it does not yet unlock the extra funding tier but sits meaningfully above the baseline 50% majority mark. Regions with eligibility this high typically draw a substantially larger federal funding share relative to their local tax base, which can either offset or reinforce existing gaps depending on allocation policy.
Santa Maria operates 6 school districts — among the most fragmented governance structures in the country
Each school district has independent budgeting, hiring, and service delivery authority. The fragmentation reflects historical patterns of inter-municipal boundary lines that pre-date modern city growth, students in different parts of the same city can attend different districts with different per-pupil spending, calendars, and graduation requirements. Per-region variation is largest in fragmented systems because each school district sets its own budget, contracts, and priorities without higher-level coordination above the regulatory floor.
Santa Maria student-teacher ratio is 23.0:1 — high (typically associated with larger urban scale or staffing constraints that have widened the headcount gap)
student-teacher ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE classroom teachers against total enrollment, push-in specialists, English-language aides, special-education co-teachers, and counselors are not included in most reporting Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Most racially and ethnically mixed schools in Santa Maria
Ranked by the Simpson student-body diversity index (0-100) from NCES race and ethnicity data, where higher means a more evenly mixed student body. It measures mix, not quality.
The highest-ranked school in Santa Maria is Santa Maria High with a quality score of 33/100. There are 36 public schools in Santa Maria with 31,170 total students.
How many schools are in Santa Maria, CA? ▼
Santa Maria has 36 public schools with a total enrollment of 31,170 students. 2 are charter schools. Average student-teacher ratio: 23:1.
Data from NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 and Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22. Quality scores based on student-teacher ratio,
counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance. Schools must have 5+ in the city to be listed.
Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD). Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.
Read our methodology, which explains how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
