Enrollment
333
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 060174212437 Charter school
Ararat Charter — Van Nuys, CA
Federal NCES profile for Ararat Charter, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 20/100.
👥 Class size 7
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 22
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: Ararat Charter District · California
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
14.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
23.2:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
+7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
68.0%
vs 55.5% California avg
+23% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Ararat Charter compares with California and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Ararat Charter reports 333 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 14.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 23.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 7% above the California state mean of 21.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 46% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 68.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 23% above the California average and 31% above the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 31.2% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Ararat Charter District spends $15,206 per pupil district-wide, below the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 27.5% from local sources (property taxes), 58.3% from the state, and 14.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 20/100 (F), calculated from 3 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Ararat Charter compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against California state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 23.2:1 | ▲ 7% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 68.0% | ▲ 23% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 333 | top 30% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
68.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 23% 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
23.2:1
students per teacher
— 7% above state mean
Top 63% in California — lower ratio than 37% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
31.2%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$15,206
per pupil, district-wide
— below California avg of $18,039
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 333 Top 30% in California — larger than 70% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 14.0
Students per teacher 23.2:1 +7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 68.0% +23% vs state
NCES ID 060174212437
Student demographics
White 91.0%
Hispanic or Latino 8.7%
African American 0.3%
Largest group: White at 91.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 31.2%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Ararat Charter District, which includes Ararat Charter.
$15,206
Per student
-16%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-22%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 27.5%
State 58.3%
Federal 14.2%
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.
Similar elementary schools in Van Nuys
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Kester Avenue Elementary
Standard public school
886 students 25.3:1 students per teacher
Kittridge Street Elementary
Standard public school
768 students 20.9:1 students per teacher
Valerio Street Elementary
Standard public school
645 students 22.3:1 students per teacher
Sylvan Park Elementary
Standard public school
643 students 21.5:1 students per teacher
Hazeltine Avenue Elementary
Standard public school
621 students 19.4:1 students per teacher
Lashon Academy
Standard public school
595 students 21:1 students per teacher
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Ararat Charter
How many students attend Ararat Charter?
Ararat Charter has 333 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Van Nuys, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ararat Charter?
The student-teacher ratio at Ararat Charter is 23.2:1, which is 7% higher than the California average of 21.6:1 and 46% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Ararat Charter?
68.0% of students at Ararat Charter are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Ararat Charter?
The largest demographic group at Ararat Charter is White at 91.0%. The school serves a student body in Van Nuys, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Ararat Charter?
Ararat Charter has a Resource Investment Index of 20/100 (F) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.