Enrollment
333
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Alturas, CA
Alturas Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Alturas Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 26/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 062519003762
👥 S:T ratio 42
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 33
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Alturas Elementary earns 26/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 90% of California schools.
- #4 of 5
- public schools in Alturas · Resource Index
- 26
- Resource Index · Lower
- 14.5:1
- small classes for California
- 63.0%
- free-lunch eligible
Alturas Elementary has class sizes smaller than 90% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Alturas Elementary ranks #4 of 5 public schools in Alturas, CA.
School address
District: Modoc Joint Unified · California
NCES ID 062519003762 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
23.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.5:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-33% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
63.0%
vs 55.5% California avg
+14% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Alturas Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Alturas Elementary
Alturas Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized elementary school in Alturas, California, enrolling 333 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 14.5:1, Alturas Elementary is leaner than roughly 90% of California schools and 33% under the state's 21.5:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 63.0% lands close to the California typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 333 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 1,349 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #713.
Its student body is led by White (62%) and Hispanic or Latino (23%) (diversity index 56/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 333 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 45.6% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 15.7% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Modoc Joint Unified also operates Modoc High (245 students) and Modoc Middle (172 students) alongside Alturas Elementary.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Alturas Elementary compares
Alturas Elementary on the metrics families compare, against California and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 14.5:1 | ▼ 33% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 63.0% | ▲ 14% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 333 | top 70% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.5:1
Leaner classes than 52% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
333
Bigger than 37% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
63.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 14% above the California average of 55.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.5:1
students per teacher
- 33% below state mean
Top 10% in California - lower ratio than 90% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
45.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$14,587
per pupil, district-wide
- below California avg of $16,509
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 333 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 7 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 61.6%
Hispanic or Latino 22.8%
Two or More 8.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 6.0%
African American 0.3%
Asian 0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 61.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 55.7/100
Simpson diversity index - at 55.7, Alturas Elementary is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Modoc Joint Unified, which includes Alturas Elementary.
$14,587
Per student
-12%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-12%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 31.5%
State 52.8%
Federal 15.7%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Alturas Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Modoc High | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Modoc Middle | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Warner High | Smaller | Higher economic need | No ratio data |
| State Line Elementary | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| High Desert Community Day | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Alturas Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 245
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 172
- Students per teacher
- 17.2:1
- Resource Index
- 20/100
- Enrollment
- 13
- Students per teacher
- -
- Resource Index
- 64/100
- Enrollment
- 3
- Students per teacher
- 3:1
- Resource Index
- 59/100
- Enrollment
- 3
- Students per teacher
- 3:1
- Resource Index
- 59/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of California, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~333 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Alturas Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Alturas Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Modoc Joint Unified's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Alturas Elementary
How many students attend Alturas Elementary?
Alturas Elementary has 333 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Alturas, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Alturas Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Alturas Elementary is 14.5:1, which is 33% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 8% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Alturas Elementary?
63.0% of students at Alturas Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Alturas Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Alturas Elementary is White at 61.6% of enrollment, in Alturas, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 55.7/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Alturas Elementary?
Alturas Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 26/100 (lower reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Alturas Elementary rank among public schools in Alturas?
By Resource Investment Index, Alturas Elementary ranks #4 of 5 public schools in Alturas, CA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Alturas on the city page.
Is Alturas Elementary a good school?
Alturas Elementary earns 26/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 90% of California schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Modoc Joint Unified?
Besides Alturas Elementary, Modoc Joint Unified also operates Modoc High (245 students), Modoc Middle (172 students), and Warner High (13 students). See the Modoc Joint Unified district page for the complete list.
Related tools
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. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.