An equity score of 53/100 ranks Hilmar Unified #678 of 1526 districts in California (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $15,436 per pupil, Hilmar Unified ranks #1288 of 1880 California districts by per-pupil spending (California districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
2,313
Total Enrollment
5
Schools
$15,436
Per-Pupil Spending
High, Elementary
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Hilmar Unified operates 5 public schools serving 2,313 students, placing it among the smallest districts in California. The school portfolio breaks down into 2 high, 2 elementary, 1 middle 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 Merced County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $15,436 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 1880 California districts by per-pupil spending. See how California compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 27.5% local, 61.3% state, and 11.3% 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 53/100, ranked #678 of 1526 in California against a state average of 50, in line with the typical spread seen across the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 5 schools offering Advanced Placement (8 AP courses district-wide), a 431.3:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 39.1% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 59.0% Hispanic or Latino, 39.1% White, 0.4% Asian across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Hilmar Middle, with a diversity index of 52.8/100.
Its largest campus is Hilmar High, enrolling 696 students (38% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Irwin High (Continuation), at 16 students, a 44x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Hilmar High accounts for 30.1% of all Hilmar Unified student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Hilmar Unified-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the largest entity. Grade band: high. The share measures enrollment concentration only; it does not establish how the district allocates programs, capital, or staff. Enrollment-weighted aggregates give this entity more weight than any smaller peer, while an unweighted entity average treats every record equally.
Hilmar Unified school enrollment varies 44× across entities
Hilmar Unified school enrollment ranges from 16 students (lowest) to 696 students (highest), a spread of 680 students. That ratio is among the widest observed and reflects extreme enrollment heterogeneity, the district operates both small specialty programs and large comprehensive campuses inside a single budgeting unit. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Hilmar Unified student-counselor ratio is 431:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)
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 Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Hilmar Unified chronic absenteeism rate is 39.1% — high (typically associated with higher-than-average disruption; recent CRDC data showed elevated rates persisting after pandemic-era schooling changes)
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 Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.