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Merced, California - 8 schools
An equity score of 73/100 ranks Merced County Office of Education #195 of 1517 districts in California (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $61,111 per pupil, Merced County Office of Education ranks #13 of 1862 California districts by per-pupil spending (California districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
1,706
Total Enrollment
8
Schools
$61,111
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Merced County Office of Education operates 8 public schools serving 1,706 students, placing it among the smaller districts in California. The school portfolio breaks down into 7 combined, 1 high schools, a compact enough portfolio that families can compare every campus directly before they move, rent, or enrol. 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 $61,111 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, among the top 187 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, 44.1% state, and 30.8% federal, a balanced mix across local, state, and federal sources, spreading budget risk across funding cycles rather than concentrating it in one. The district's equity score is 73/100, ranked #195 of 1517 in California against a state average of 50, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
a 271.8:1 student-counselor ratio, somewhat above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 49.6% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 78.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.5% White, 4.1% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Merced County Special Education, with a diversity index of 45.5/100.
Its largest campus is Merced County Special Education, enrolling 942 students (50% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Merced County Juvenile Court, at 20 students, a 47x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Merced County Special Education accounts for 49.7% of all Merced County Office of Education student enrollment
That is an overwhelming concentration, leaving the rest of Merced County Office of Education a distant remainder — means Merced County Office of Education-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: combined. 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.
Merced County Office of Education school enrollment varies 47× across entities
Merced County Office of Education school enrollment ranges from 20 students (lowest) to 942 students (highest), a spread of 922 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.
Merced County Office of Education has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 72.8% 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.
Merced County Office of Education student-counselor ratio is 272:1 — 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 Merced County Office of Education is typically wider than the Merced County Office of Education-aggregate figure suggests.
Merced County Office of Education chronic absenteeism rate is 49.6% — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
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 Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
Comparisons are relative to Merced County Office of Education's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data and the F-33 Finance Survey.
Nearby Districts in California
Top districts in the same state, compare side-by-side for enrollment, spending, and demographics.
How many schools are in Merced County Office of Education?
Merced County Office of Education has 8 schools, including 7 combined, 1 high. Total enrollment is 1,706 students.
How much does Merced County Office of Education spend per student?
Merced County Office of Education spends $61,111 per student. The district has an equity score of 73/100, ranking #195 in California.
What is the demographic composition of Merced County Office of Education?
Merced County Office of Education students are 78.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.5% White, 4.1% African American, 2.3% Asian, averaged across 8 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Merced County Office of Education?
Merced County Office of Education has an equity score of 73/100, ranking #195 out of 1517 districts in California.