Enrollment
2,046
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 062547003790
Bell Gardens High — Bell Gardens, CA
Federal NCES profile for Bell Gardens High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 43/100.
👥 Class size 20
📚 AP courses 85
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 42
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: Montebello Unified · 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)
111.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
-7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
76.1%
vs 55.5% California avg
+37% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Bell Gardens High 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
Bell Gardens High reports 2,046 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 111.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 20:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 7% below the California state mean of 21.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 26% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 76.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 37% above the California average and 47% above the national baseline. The school offers 17 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 1364 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 23.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Montebello Unified spends $22,933 per pupil district-wide, above the California average of $18,039 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 17.8% from local sources (property taxes), 57.9% from the state, and 24.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (D), calculated from 5 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 Bell Gardens High 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 | 20:1 | ▼ 7% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 76.1% | ▲ 37% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 2,046 | top 97% | — | — |
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
76.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 37% 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
20:1
students per teacher
— 7% below state mean
Top 29% in California — lower ratio than 71% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
23.1%
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
$22,933
per pupil, district-wide
— above California avg of $18,039
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.5 FTE
Per 1364 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 40 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
Overview
Enrollment 2,046 Top 97% in California — larger than 3% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 111.0
Students per teacher 20:1 -7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 76.1% +37% vs state
NCES ID 062547003790
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 99.6%
White 0.2%
African American 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 99.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 17
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.5
Students per counselor 1364:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 23.1%
In-school suspensions 3
Out-of-school suspensions 40
Expulsions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Montebello Unified, which includes Bell Gardens High.
$22,933
Per student
+27%
vs California
Avg $18,039
+18%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 17.8%
State 57.9%
Federal 24.4%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,121
- Students per teacher
- 20.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,907
- Students per teacher
- 19.9:1
- Enrollment
- 790
- Students per teacher
- 20.4:1
- Enrollment
- 746
- Students per teacher
- 17.8:1
- Enrollment
- 733
- Students per teacher
- 18.5:1
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 Bell Gardens High
How many students attend Bell Gardens High?
Bell Gardens High has 2,046 students enrolled. It is a high school in Bell Gardens, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Bell Gardens High?
The student-teacher ratio at Bell Gardens High is 20:1, which is 7% lower than the California average of 21.6:1 and 26% higher than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Bell Gardens High?
76.1% of students at Bell Gardens High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Bell Gardens High?
The largest demographic group at Bell Gardens High is Hispanic or Latino at 99.6%. The school serves a student body in Bell Gardens, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Bell Gardens High?
Bell Gardens High has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (D) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.