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, the data changelog, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.
Porterville, California - 22 schools
An equity score of 71/100 ranks Porterville Unified #256 of 1526 districts in California (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $18,988 per pupil, Porterville Unified ranks #640 of 1880 California districts by per-pupil spending (California districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
Porterville Unified operates 22 public schools serving 14,208 students, placing it in the mid-size range in California. The school portfolio breaks down into 10 elementary, 6 high, 3 middle, 3 combined schools, giving families a clear picture of grade-band coverage 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 Tulare County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $18,988 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the upper half of 1880 California districts by per-pupil spending. See how California compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 12.4% local, 66.8% state, and 20.8% 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 71/100, ranked #256 of 1526 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 5 of 22 schools offering Advanced Placement (26 AP courses district-wide), a 407.4:1 student-counselor ratio, well above the ASCA benchmark though still under the roughly 408:1 national average, and 40.5% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 86.0% Hispanic or Latino, 8.6% White, 1.5% Asian across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Vandalia Elementary, with a diversity index of 43.8/100.
Its largest campus is Porterville High, enrolling 2,125 students (15% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Vine Street Community Day, at 14 students, a 152x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Porterville Unified school enrollment ranges from 14 students (lowest) to 2,125 students (highest), a spread of 2,111 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
The reported share is at least 75%, indicating a high concentration of measured economic need. Title I operates under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015), but its statutory allocation uses additional LEA-level counts and rules not represented by this average. This percentage is an economic-need context measure; it does not establish a Title I award, show dollars received, or describe how funds are distributed among campuses.
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
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.
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.
This district scores well on funding equity, with balanced funding sources and good resource allocation.
Average demographic composition across 22 schools in Porterville Unified.
Source: NCES CCD School Membership 2024-25.
Average Simpson diversity index across Porterville Unified's schools, below the California average of 46.0.
Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22.
| School | Enrollment |
|---|---|
| Porterville High | 2,125 |
| Monache High | 1,855 |
| Granite Hills High | 1,206 |
| Santa Fe Elementary | 809 |
| Pioneer Middle | 754 |
| Westfield Elementary | 661 |
| Olive Street Elementary | 624 |
| Vandalia Elementary | 556 |
| John J. Doyle Elementary | 552 |
| Sequoia Middle | 532 |
| Harmony Magnet Academy Charter | 509 |
| Butterfield Charter Charter | 504 |
| West Putnam Elementary | 478 |
| Bartlett Middle | 443 |
| Monte Vista Elementary | 440 |
| Los Robles Elementary | 424 |
| Belleview Elementary | 377 |
| Roche Elementary | 334 |
| Strathmore High | 286 |
| Porterville Military Academy Charter | 255 |
| Citrus High | 155 |
| Vine Street Community Day | 14 |
The California districts closest to this one in total enrollment.
| District | Enrollment | Spending | Funding Mix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oxnard | Similar size | Similar spending | Similar funding mix |
| Pasadena Unified | Similar size | Similar spending | More locally funded |
| Escondido Union | Similar size | Similar spending | More locally funded |
| Modesto City Elementary | Similar size | No spending data | No revenue-mix data |
| Lancaster Elementary | Similar size | Similar spending | Similar funding mix |
Comparisons are relative to Porterville Unified's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data and the F-33 Finance Survey.
Top districts in the same state, compare side-by-side for enrollment, spending, and demographics.
Out-of-state peers matched by enrollment and by per-pupil expenditure, not the same-state lists above.
See how this district compares to others in enrollment, spending, demographics, and academic resources.
Compare vs Los Angeles Unified →Porterville Unified has 22 schools, including 6 high, 10 elementary, 3 middle, 3 combined. Total enrollment is 14,208 students.
Porterville Unified spends $18,988 per student. The district has an equity score of 71/100, ranking #256 in California.
Porterville Unified students are 86.0% Hispanic or Latino, 8.6% White, 1.5% Asian, 0.3% African American, averaged across 22 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
Porterville Unified has an equity score of 71/100, ranking #256 out of 1526 districts in California.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.