An equity score of 73/100 ranks Upper Lake Unified #215 of 1526 districts in California (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $21,497 per pupil, Upper Lake Unified ranks #323 of 1880 California districts by per-pupil spending (California districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
891
Total Enrollment
4
Schools
$21,497
Per-Pupil Spending
High, Elementary
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Upper Lake Unified operates 4 public schools serving 891 students, placing it among the smallest districts in California. The school portfolio breaks down into 2 high, 1 elementary, 1 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 Lake County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $21,497 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 28.5% local, 54.1% state, and 17.4% 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 73/100, ranked #215 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 1 of 4 schools offering Advanced Placement (3 AP courses district-wide), a 233.7:1 student-counselor ratio, that meets the ASCA-recommended benchmark, and 53.3% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 49.6% White, 31.5% Hispanic or Latino, 0.7% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Upper Lake Elementary, with a diversity index of 66.2/100.
Its largest campus is Upper Lake Elementary, enrolling 429 students (46% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Clover Valley High (Continuation), at 14 students, a 31x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Upper Lake Elementary accounts for 46.0% of all Upper Lake Unified student enrollment
That is an overwhelming concentration, leaving the rest of Upper Lake Unified a distant remainder — means Upper Lake Unified-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the largest entity. Grade band: elementary. The share measures enrollment concentration only; it does not establish how the district allocates programs, capital, or staff. Enrollment-weighted aggregates give this entity more weight than any smaller peer, while an unweighted entity average treats every record equally.
Upper Lake Unified school enrollment varies 31× across entities
Upper Lake Unified school enrollment ranges from 14 students (lowest) to 429 students (highest), a spread of 415 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.
Upper Lake Unified reports 69.5% free-lunch eligibility
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.
Upper Lake Unified student-counselor ratio is 234:1 — 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.
Upper Lake Unified chronic absenteeism rate is 53.3% — 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.
Upper Lake Unified has 4 schools, including 1 elementary, 2 high, 1 middle. Total enrollment is 891 students.
How much does Upper Lake Unified spend per student?
Upper Lake Unified spends $21,497 per student. The district has an equity score of 73/100, ranking #215 in California.
What is the demographic composition of Upper Lake Unified?
Upper Lake Unified students are 49.6% White, 31.5% Hispanic or Latino, 0.7% African American, 0.3% Asian, averaged across 4 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Upper Lake Unified?
Upper Lake Unified has an equity score of 73/100, ranking #215 out of 1526 districts in California.