Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal
records, no number is typed in by an editor. District totals are aggregated directly from the schools reporting under this district in the source records. See our
editorial standards & corrections policy, the
methodology behind these numbers, or
report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.
Colusa, California - 5 schools
An equity score of 37/100 ranks Colusa Unified #1089 of 1517 districts in California (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $12,834 per pupil, Colusa Unified ranks #1454 of 1862 California districts by per-pupil spending (California districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
1,533
Total Enrollment
5
Schools
$12,834
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Colusa Unified operates 5 public schools serving 1,533 students, placing it among the smallest districts in California. The school portfolio breaks down into 2 elementary, 2 high, 1 combined schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Colusa County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $12,834 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 1862 California districts by per-pupil spending. See how California compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 25.1% local, 67.5% state, and 7.5% federal, a state-revenue-heavy mix that insulates the district somewhat from local property-tax volatility, though it ties funding to state budget cycles. The district's equity score is 37/100, ranked #1089 of 1517 in California against a state average of 50, notably less even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 5 schools offering Advanced Placement (3 AP courses district-wide), a 306.6:1 student-counselor ratio, somewhat above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 26.5% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 71.1% Hispanic or Latino, 20.7% White, 1.2% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Colusa Alternative Home, with a diversity index of 58.7/100.
George T. Egling Middle accounts for 36.1% of all Colusa Unified student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Colusa Unified-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: elementary. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Colusa Unified school enrollment varies 20× across entities
Colusa Unified school enrollment ranges from 27 students (lowest) to 553 students (highest), a spread of 526 students. That spread is wider than typical and predicts noticeable gaps in service quality between the highest and lowest areas. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Colusa Unified has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 63.8% 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.
Colusa Unified student-counselor ratio is 307:1 — near the typical range (US average ~408) — within the typical range for U.S. public districts
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Variation between sub-units within Colusa Unified is typically wider than the Colusa Unified-aggregate figure suggests.
Colusa Unified chronic absenteeism rate is 26.5% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Variation between sub-units within Colusa Unified is typically wider than the Colusa Unified-aggregate figure suggests.