Enrollment
711
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Santa Clara, CA
Buchser Middle
Federal NCES profile for Buchser Middle, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 39/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 063543007866
👥 S:T ratio 27
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 53
📋 Attendance 46
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Buchser Middle earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 78% of California schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most California schools.
- #5 of 24
- public schools in Santa Clara · Resource Index
- 39
- Resource Index · Typical
- 18.2:1
- small classes for California
- 38.3%
- free-lunch eligible
Buchser Middle has class sizes smaller than 78% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Buchser Middle ranks #5 of 24 public schools in Santa Clara, CA.
School address
District: Santa Clara Unified · California
NCES ID 063543007866 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
39.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.2:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-15% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
38.3%
vs 55.5% California avg
-31% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Buchser Middle compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Buchser Middle
Buchser Middle is a mid-sized middle school in Santa Clara, California, enrolling 711 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 18.2:1 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 38.3% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 711 puts it in the larger third of California schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 1,282 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #238.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (50%) and White (20%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 67/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 237 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 21.5% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
The surrounding Santa Clara Unified spends $24,038 per pupil, 46% above the California average, a better-resourced district than most.
Among Santa Clara's middle schools, it stands alongside Juan Cabrillo Middle (796 students): Buchser Middle is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (18.2:1 vs 18.5:1).
Santa Clara Unified also operates Santa Clara High (1,663 students) and Adrian Wilcox High (1,614 students) alongside Buchser Middle.
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 Buchser Middle compares
Buchser Middle on the metrics families compare, against California and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.2:1 | ▼ 15% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 38.3% | ▼ 31% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 711 | top 23% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
18.2:1
Leaner classes than 23% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
711
Bigger than 81% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
38.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 31% below the California average of 55.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
18.2:1
students per teacher
- 15% below state mean
Top 22% in California - lower ratio than 78% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
21.5%
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
$24,038
per pupil, district-wide
- above California avg of $16,509
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 237 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 18 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.8 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
Hispanic or Latino 50.1%
White 20.3%
Asian 17.0%
Two or More 8.9%
African American 3.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 50.1% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 67.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 67.0, Buchser Middle is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Santa Clara Unified, which includes Buchser Middle.
$24,038
Per student
+46%
vs California
Avg $16,509
+45%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 81.9%
State 13.2%
Federal 4.9%
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 Buchser Middle Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Clara High | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Adrian Wilcox High | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Juan Cabrillo Middle | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Marian a. Peterson Middle | Similar size | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Kathleen Macdonald High | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Buchser Middle's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,663
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 1,614
- Students per teacher
- 17.5:1
- Resource Index
- 30/100
- Enrollment
- 796
- Students per teacher
- 18.5:1
- Resource Index
- 26/100
- Enrollment
- 759
- Students per teacher
- 21.7:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
- Enrollment
- 683
- Students per teacher
- 48.8:1
- Resource Index
- 0/100
Similar middle schools in Santa Clara
1 comparable middle schools (grades 6-8) serving the same city.
Similar middle 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 (~711 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~18.2:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Buchser Middle's federal record.
- Compare Buchser Middle against another school. Compare schools
- Santa Clara 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 Buchser Middle
How many students attend Buchser Middle?
Buchser Middle has 711 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Santa Clara, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Buchser Middle?
The student-teacher ratio at Buchser Middle is 18.2:1, which is 15% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 16% higher 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 Buchser Middle?
38.3% of students at Buchser Middle are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Buchser Middle?
The largest demographic group at Buchser Middle is Hispanic or Latino at 50.1% of enrollment, in Santa Clara, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 67.0/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Buchser Middle?
Buchser Middle has a Resource Investment Index of 39/100 (typical 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 Buchser Middle rank among public schools in Santa Clara?
By Resource Investment Index, Buchser Middle ranks #5 of 24 public schools in Santa Clara, 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 Santa Clara on the city page.
Is Buchser Middle a good school?
Buchser Middle earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 78% of California schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most 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 Santa Clara Unified?
Besides Buchser Middle, Santa Clara Unified also operates Santa Clara High (1,663 students), Adrian Wilcox High (1,614 students), and Juan Cabrillo Middle (796 students). See the Santa Clara 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.