Other / mixed grade configuration · Phoenix, AZ

Cactus View Elementary School

Federal NCES profile for Cactus View Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 60/100.

2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 040593000126
0/100100/10060/100
👥 S:T ratio
50
🌟 Gifted program
70
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Cactus View Elementary School earns 60/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 83% of Arizona schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Arizona schools.

#13 of 179
schools in Phoenix · Resource Index
60
Resource Index · Higher
12.4:1
small classes for Arizona
50.0%
free-lunch eligible

Cactus View Elementary School has class sizes smaller than 83% of Arizona schools. Computed live against every Arizona school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Cactus View Elementary School ranks #13 of 179 schools in Phoenix, AZ.

Enrollment

508

Arizona · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

41.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

12.4:1

vs 17:1 Arizona avg

-27% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

50.0%

vs 48.3% Arizona avg

+4% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Cactus View Elementary School compares with Arizona and U.S. medians

Smaller classes than state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Cactus View Elementary School

Cactus View Elementary School is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Phoenix, Arizona, enrolling 508 students.

Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.4:1 puts it in the smaller third of Arizona schools by student-teacher ratio.

Its free-meal eligibility rate of 50.0% lands close to the Arizona typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.

With 508 students, its enrollment sits close to the Arizona median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index outscores 94% of the 2,064 Arizona schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.

Among 322 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Arizona schools statewide, it ranks #6, a top-tier result once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (45%) and White (33%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 68/100).

Among Phoenix's public schools, it stands alongside Pan-American Charter School (1,221 students): Cactus View Elementary School is smaller than that campus by headcount.

Paradise Valley Unified District (4241) also operates Pinnacle High School (2,430 students) and Paradise Valley High School (1,900 students) alongside Cactus View Elementary School.

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 Cactus View Elementary School compares

Cactus View Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Arizona and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Arizona Arizona avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 12.4:1 ▼ 27% 17:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 50.0% ▲ 4% 48.3% 51.7%
Enrollment 508 top 38% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

12.4:1
Leaner classes than 72% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
508
Bigger than 63% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
50.0%
free-lunch eligible - 4% above the Arizona average of 48.3%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
12.4:1
students per teacher - 27% below state mean
Top 17% in Arizona - lower ratio than 83% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Funding equity
$11,154
per pupil, district-wide - below Arizona avg of $13,145
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
27
in-school suspensions + 16 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 8.5 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 44.7%
White 32.7%
African American 11.4%
Two or More 6.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native 4.1%
Asian 0.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 44.7% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 67.5/100

Simpson diversity index - at 67.5, Cactus View Elementary School is more mixed than the Arizona school average of 47.2.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Paradise Valley Unified District (4241), which includes Cactus View Elementary School.

$11,154
Per student
-15%
vs Arizona
Avg $13,145
-33%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 57.8%
State 27.3%
Federal 14.9%

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 Cactus View Elementary School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Pinnacle High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Paradise Valley High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Horizon High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
North Canyon High School Larger Similar economic need Higher S:T ratio
Shadow Mountain High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Cactus View Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Paradise Valley Unified District (4241) · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar other schools in Phoenix

6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.

Similar other schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Arizona, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Cactus View Elementary School's federal record.

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 Cactus View Elementary School

How many students attend Cactus View Elementary School?

Cactus View Elementary School has 508 students enrolled. It is a public school in Phoenix, AZ.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Cactus View Elementary School?

The student-teacher ratio at Cactus View Elementary School is 12.4:1, which is 27% lower than the Arizona average of 17:1 and 21% 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 Cactus View Elementary School?

50.0% of students at Cactus View Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arizona average of 48.3%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Cactus View Elementary School?

The largest demographic group at Cactus View Elementary School is Hispanic or Latino at 44.7% of enrollment, in Phoenix, AZ. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 67.5/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Cactus View Elementary School?

Cactus View Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 60/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 2 factors: student-teacher ratio. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology). Limited indicators were available, so the index reflects partial data.

How does Cactus View Elementary School rank among schools in Phoenix?

By Resource Investment Index, Cactus View Elementary School ranks #13 of 179 schools in Phoenix, AZ. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Phoenix on the city page.

Is Cactus View Elementary School a good school?

Cactus View Elementary School earns 60/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 83% of Arizona schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Arizona 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 Paradise Valley Unified District (4241)?

Besides Cactus View Elementary School, Paradise Valley Unified District (4241) also operates Pinnacle High School (2,430 students), Paradise Valley High School (1,900 students), and Horizon High School (1,767 students). See the Paradise Valley Unified District (4241) district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

View saved

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.