Enrollment
180
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Tulare, CA
Buena Vista Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Buena Vista Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 31/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 060642000562
👥 S:T ratio 34
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 28
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Buena Vista Elementary earns 31/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 86% of California schools.
- #5 of 20
- elementary schools in Tulare · Resource Index
- 31
- Resource Index · Lower
- 16.4:1
- small classes for California
- 62.9%
- free-lunch eligible
Buena Vista Elementary has class sizes smaller than 86% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Buena Vista Elementary ranks #5 of 20 elementary schools in Tulare, CA.
School address
District: Buena Vista Elementary · California
NCES ID 060642000562 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
11.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.4:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
62.9%
vs 55.5% California avg
+13% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Buena Vista Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Buena Vista Elementary
Buena Vista Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized elementary school in Tulare, California, enrolling 180 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 16.4:1, Buena Vista Elementary is leaner than roughly 86% of California schools and 24% under the state's 21.5:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 62.9% lands close to the California typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 180 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 475 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #269.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (73%) and White (26%) (diversity index 40/100).
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 28.9% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Among Tulare's elementary schools, it stands alongside Liberty Elementary (861 students): Buena Vista Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (16.4:1 vs 26.1:1).
Buena Vista Elementary operates only this one school, so Buena Vista Elementary has no district-mates to compare against locally.
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 Buena Vista Elementary compares
Buena Vista 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 | 16.4:1 | ▼ 24% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 62.9% | ▲ 13% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 180 | top 84% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
16.4:1
Leaner classes than 35% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
180
Bigger than 17% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
62.9%
free-lunch eligible
- 13% 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
16.4:1
students per teacher
- 24% below state mean
Top 14% in California - lower ratio than 86% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
28.9%
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
$13,759
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
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 5 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 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 72.8%
White 25.6%
Two or More 1.7%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 72.8% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 40.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 40.4, Buena Vista Elementary is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Buena Vista Elementary, which includes Buena Vista Elementary.
$13,759
Per student
-17%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-17%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 10.5%
State 79.8%
Federal 9.7%
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.
Similar elementary schools in Tulare
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Liberty Elementary
Standard public school
861 students 26.1:1 students per teacher
Sundale Elementary
Standard public school
840 students 26.3:1 students per teacher
Mulcahy Middle
Standard public school
745 students 22.6:1 students per teacher
Garden Elementary
Standard public school
689 students 23.8:1 students per teacher
Mission Valley Elementary
Standard public school
671 students 23.1:1 students per teacher
Pleasant Elementary
Standard public school
668 students 23.9:1 students per teacher
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 (~180 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~16.4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Buena Vista Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Buena Vista Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Buena Vista Elementary'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 Buena Vista Elementary
How many students attend Buena Vista Elementary?
Buena Vista Elementary has 180 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Tulare, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Buena Vista Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Buena Vista Elementary is 16.4:1, which is 24% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 4% 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 Buena Vista Elementary?
62.9% of students at Buena Vista Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Buena Vista Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Buena Vista Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 72.8% of enrollment, in Tulare, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Buena Vista Elementary?
Buena Vista Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (lower reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Buena Vista Elementary rank among elementary schools in Tulare?
By Resource Investment Index, Buena Vista Elementary ranks #5 of 20 elementary schools in Tulare, CA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Tulare on the city page.
Is Buena Vista Elementary a good school?
Buena Vista Elementary earns 31/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 86% 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 Buena Vista Elementary?
None reported; Buena Vista Elementary operates only Buena Vista Elementary as a public school district in NCES's records.
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.