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.
Santa Ana, California - 51 schools
An equity score of 78/100 ranks Santa Ana Unified #116 of 1526 districts in California (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $22,289 per pupil, Santa Ana Unified ranks #279 of 1880 California districts by per-pupil spending (California districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
Santa Ana Unified operates 51 public schools serving 39,935 students, placing it among the larger districts in California. The school portfolio breaks down into 34 elementary, 8 high, 6 middle, 3 combined schools, giving families a clear picture of grade-band coverage across a sizeable portfolio 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 Orange County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $22,289 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 26.0% local, 54.7% state, and 19.3% 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 78/100, ranked #116 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 9 of 51 schools offering Advanced Placement (92 AP courses district-wide), a 265.1:1 student-counselor ratio, somewhat above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 40.8% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 96.2% Hispanic or Latino, 1.8% Asian, 0.9% White across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Greenville Fundamental Elementary, with a diversity index of 20.9/100.
Its largest campus is Santa Ana High, enrolling 2,505 students (7% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Reach Academy, at 36 students, a 70x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Santa Ana Unified school enrollment ranges from 36 students (lowest) to 2,505 students (highest), a spread of 2,469 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 sits between 62.5% and 75%, above a simple majority but below the highest descriptive band used here. 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 Variation between sub-units within Santa Ana Unified is typically wider than the Santa Ana Unified-aggregate figure suggests.
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 51 schools in Santa Ana Unified.
Source: NCES CCD School Membership 2024-25.
Average Simpson diversity index across Santa Ana Unified's schools, below the California average of 46.0.
Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22.
The California districts closest to this one in total enrollment.
| District | Enrollment | Spending | Funding Mix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riverside Unified | Similar size | Lower spending | Similar funding mix |
| Sacramento City Unified | Similar size | Lower spending | Similar funding mix |
| Garden Grove Unified | Similar size | Similar spending | Similar funding mix |
| San Juan Unified | Similar size | Lower spending | Similar funding mix |
| Capistrano Unified | Similar size | Lower spending | More locally funded |
Comparisons are relative to Santa Ana 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 →Santa Ana Unified has 51 schools, including 8 high, 3 combined, 6 middle, 34 elementary. Total enrollment is 39,935 students.
Santa Ana Unified spends $22,289 per student. The district has an equity score of 78/100, ranking #116 in California.
Santa Ana Unified students are 96.2% Hispanic or Latino, 1.8% Asian, 0.9% White, 0.2% African American, averaged across 51 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
Santa Ana Unified has an equity score of 78/100, ranking #116 out of 1526 districts in California.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.