Plumas Unified

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.

Quincy, California - 10 schools

An equity score of 60/100 ranks Plumas Unified #494 of 1517 districts in California (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.

At $17,371 per pupil, Plumas Unified ranks #478 of 1862 California districts by per-pupil spending (California districts). NCES F-33 finance data.

1,755
Total Enrollment
10
Schools
$17,371
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, Combined
School Types

District-Level NCES Analysis

Plumas Unified operates 10 public schools serving 1,755 students, placing it among the smaller districts in California. The school portfolio breaks down into 4 elementary, 4 combined, 2 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 Plumas County.

Per-pupil expenditure runs $17,371 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the upper half of 1862 California districts by per-pupil spending. See how California compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 66.4% local, 19.5% state, and 14.1% federal, a local-revenue-heavy mix that leaves the district more exposed to property-tax swings and local ballot measures than state-funded peers. The district's equity score is 60/100, ranked #494 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.

Academic infrastructure includes 3 of 10 schools offering Advanced Placement (12 AP courses district-wide), a 219.5:1 student-counselor ratio, that meets the ASCA-recommended benchmark, and 71.7% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 66.3% White, 18.6% Hispanic or Latino, 0.6% Asian across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Greenville Elementary, with a diversity index of 67.3/100.

Its largest campus is C. Roy Carmichael Elementary, enrolling 344 students (20% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Almanor High (Continuation), at 3 students, a 115x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.

C. Roy Carmichael Elementary accounts for 19.6% of all Plumas Unified student enrollment

That concentration means Plumas 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.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data NCES Common Core of Data

Plumas Unified school enrollment varies 115× across entities

Plumas Unified school enrollment ranges from 3 students (lowest) to 344 students (highest), a spread of 341 students. That ratio is an extreme outlier spread — among the widest gaps observed anywhere in this dataset. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data NCES Common Core of Data

Plumas Unified has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 54.1% 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). Areas above 75% eligibility receive concentration grants on top of the basic Title I formula. 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.

Source: ESSA Title I Part A; ED EDFacts file system ESSA Title I Part A; ED EDFacts file system

Plumas Unified student-counselor ratio is 220:1 — low (typically associated with meeting or exceeding the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) recommended 250:1 benchmark, which correlates with stronger college and career counseling capacity)

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 Lower values often correlate with smaller scale and population characteristics rather than higher resource budgets per se.

Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection NCES Civil Rights Data Collection

Plumas Unified chronic absenteeism rate is 71.7% — 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.

Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22 NCES Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22

Where does the funding come from?

14.1%
Federal
19.5%
State
66.4%
Local

Funding Equity

60
Equity Score
494 / 1517
State Rank
50
State Average

This district has moderate funding equity. There may be room to improve funding diversity or resource allocation.

Student Demographics

Average demographic composition across 10 schools in Plumas Unified.

White 66.3%
Hispanic or Latino 18.6%
Asian 0.6%
Multiracial 11.3%
Other 2.8%

Source: NCES CCD School Membership 2024-25.

Student-body diversity

Average diversity index 48.5/100

Average Simpson diversity index across Plumas Unified's schools, above the California average of 46.0.

Most mixed schools

  1. 1 Greenville Elementary 67.3
  2. 2 C. Roy Carmichael Elementary 58.6
  3. 3 Portola Junior/Senior High 54.4
  4. 4 Chester Elementary 51.0
  5. 5 Quincy Elementary 46.8

Programs & Resources

3 / 10
Schools with AP
12 AP courses total
219.5:1
Student-Counselor Ratio
71.7%
Chronically Absent

Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22.

Schools in Plumas Unified

School Enrollment
C. Roy Carmichael Elementary
344
Quincy Elementary
342
Quincy Junior/Senior High
310
Portola Junior/Senior High
256
Chester Elementary
171
Chester Junior/Senior High
124
Greenville Elementary
106
Greenville Junior/Senior High
32
Beckwourth (Jim) High (Continuation)
15
Almanor High (Continuation)
3

How Plumas Unified Compares to Similar-Size Districts

The California districts closest to this one in total enrollment.

District Enrollment Spending Funding Mix
Red Bluff Joint Union High Similar size Similar spending Less locally funded
Gustine Unified Similar size Lower spending Less locally funded
California Connections Academy @ Ripon District Similar size Lower spending Less locally funded
Options for Youth-Acton District Similar size Similar spending Less locally funded
Muroc Joint Unified Similar size Lower spending Less locally funded

Comparisons are relative to Plumas Unified'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.

Los Angeles Unified
427,795 students · 785 schools · $21,940/pupil
Compare vs Plumas Unified →
San Diego Unified
93,893 students · 175 schools · $18,665/pupil
Compare vs Plumas Unified →
Fresno Unified
69,668 students · 101 schools · $18,783/pupil
Compare vs Plumas Unified →
Long Beach Unified
65,554 students · 84 schools · $16,028/pupil
Compare vs Plumas Unified →
Elk Grove Unified
62,061 students · 67 schools · $14,134/pupil
Compare vs Plumas Unified →

Compare Plumas Unified

See how this district compares to others in enrollment, spending, demographics, and academic resources.

Compare vs Los Angeles Unified →

Frequently Asked Questions

How many schools are in Plumas Unified?

Plumas Unified has 10 schools, including 4 elementary, 4 combined, 2 high. Total enrollment is 1,755 students.

How much does Plumas Unified spend per student?

Plumas Unified spends $17,371 per student. The district has an equity score of 60/100, ranking #494 in California.

What is the demographic composition of Plumas Unified?

Plumas Unified students are 66.3% White, 18.6% Hispanic or Latino, 0.6% Asian, 0.3% African American, averaged across 10 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.

What is the equity score for Plumas Unified?

Plumas Unified has an equity score of 60/100, ranking #494 out of 1517 districts in California.