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Salinas, California - 6 schools
An equity score of 56/100 ranks Santa Rita Union Elementary #606 of 1517 districts in California (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $14,415 per pupil, Santa Rita Union Elementary ranks #1108 of 1862 California districts by per-pupil spending (California districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
3,231
Total Enrollment
6
Schools
$14,415
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, Middle
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Santa Rita Union Elementary operates 6 public schools serving 3,231 students, placing it among the smallest districts in California. The school portfolio breaks down into 4 elementary, 2 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 Monterey County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $14,415 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 1862 California districts by per-pupil spending. See how California compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 22.0% local, 65.6% state, and 12.5% 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 56/100, ranked #606 of 1517 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.
a 514.7:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 34.8% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 91.5% Hispanic or Latino, 3.9% White, 2.7% Asian across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is New Republic Elementary, with a diversity index of 30.1/100.
Its largest campus is John Gutierrez Middle, enrolling 568 students (18% of the district's total enrollment).
John Gutierrez Middle accounts for 17.6% of all Santa Rita Union Elementary student enrollment
That concentration means Santa Rita Union Elementary-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: middle. 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.
Santa Rita Union Elementary has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 67.9% 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.
Santa Rita Union Elementary student-counselor ratio is 515:1 — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
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 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.
Santa Rita Union Elementary chronic absenteeism rate is 34.8% — 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.
How many schools are in Santa Rita Union Elementary?
Santa Rita Union Elementary has 6 schools, including 2 middle, 4 elementary. Total enrollment is 3,231 students.
How much does Santa Rita Union Elementary spend per student?
Santa Rita Union Elementary spends $14,415 per student. The district has an equity score of 56/100, ranking #606 in California.
What is the demographic composition of Santa Rita Union Elementary?
Santa Rita Union Elementary students are 91.5% Hispanic or Latino, 3.9% White, 2.7% Asian, 0.5% African American, averaged across 6 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Santa Rita Union Elementary?
Santa Rita Union Elementary has an equity score of 56/100, ranking #606 out of 1517 districts in California.