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Wasco, California - 2 schools
An equity score of 52/100 ranks Wasco Union High #702 of 1517 districts in California (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $14,333 per pupil, Wasco Union High ranks #1130 of 1862 California districts by per-pupil spending (California districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
1,854
Total Enrollment
2
Schools
$14,333
Per-Pupil Spending
High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Wasco Union High operates 2 public schools serving 1,854 students, placing it among the smallest districts in California. The school portfolio breaks down into 2 high 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 Kern County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $14,333 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 36.5% local, 54.3% state, and 9.2% 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 52/100, ranked #702 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.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 2 schools offering Advanced Placement (6 AP courses district-wide), a 221.7:1 student-counselor ratio, that meets the ASCA-recommended benchmark, and 24.2% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 94.9% Hispanic or Latino, 2.5% White, 2.3% African American across the district's schools.
Its largest campus is Wasco High, enrolling 1,672 students (94% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Wasco Independence High, at 109 students, a 15x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Wasco High accounts for 90.2% of all Wasco Union High student enrollment
That is an overwhelming concentration, leaving the rest of Wasco Union High a distant remainder — means Wasco Union High-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: high. 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.
Wasco Union High has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 79.2% 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 — including this one — 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.
Wasco Union High student-counselor ratio is 222:1 — 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.
Wasco Union High chronic absenteeism rate is 24.2% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
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 Variation between sub-units within Wasco Union High is typically wider than the Wasco Union High-aggregate figure suggests.
Wasco Union High has 2 schools, including 2 high. Total enrollment is 1,854 students.
How much does Wasco Union High spend per student?
Wasco Union High spends $14,333 per student. The district has an equity score of 52/100, ranking #702 in California.
What is the demographic composition of Wasco Union High?
Wasco Union High students are 94.9% Hispanic or Latino, 2.5% White, 2.3% African American, 0.3% Asian, averaged across 2 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Wasco Union High?
Wasco Union High has an equity score of 52/100, ranking #702 out of 1517 districts in California.