Enrollment
198
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 060744012894
California Preparatory Academy — San Juan Capistrano, CA
Federal NCES profile for California Preparatory Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 34/100.
👥 Class size 0
📚 AP courses 25
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 21
📋 Attendance 53
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 →
The verdict
California Preparatory Academy earns an F Resource Investment Index (34/100), with class sizes larger than 96% of California schools.
- F
- Resource Index · 34/100
- 28.1:1
- large classes for California
- 23.1%
- free-lunch eligible
- 198
- students enrolled
School address
District: Capistrano 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)
8.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
28.1:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
+30% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
23.1%
vs 55.5% California avg
-58% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How California Preparatory Academy 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
California Preparatory Academy reports 198 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 8.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 28.1:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 30% 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 77% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 23.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 58% below the California average and 55% below the national baseline. The school offers 5 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 396 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 18.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Capistrano Unified spends $15,039 per pupil district-wide, below the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 61.2% from local sources (property taxes), 31.0% from the state, and 7.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (F), 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 California Preparatory Academy 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 | 28.1:1 | ▲ 30% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 23.1% | ▼ 58% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 198 | top 17% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
Class size vs. every US school
Students per teacher (lower means more individual attention)
28 smaller classes than 2% of 92,598 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25
School size vs. every US school
Total enrollment — where this school sits by size (neither large nor small is 'better')
198 larger than 19% of 95,891 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 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
23.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 58% 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
28.1:1
students per teacher
— 30% above state mean
Top 96% in California — lower ratio than 4% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
18.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$15,039
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
Counselors0.5 FTE
Per 396 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 198 Top 17% in California — larger than 83% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 8.0
Students per teacher 28.1:1 +30% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 23.1% -58% vs state
NCES ID 060744012894
Student demographics
White 70.6%
Hispanic or Latino 12.7%
Two or More 11.7%
Asian 3.0%
African American 1.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.5%
Largest group: White at 70.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 5
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.5
Students per counselor 396:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 18.7%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Capistrano Unified, which includes California Preparatory Academy.
$15,039
Per student
-17%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-23%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 61.2%
State 31.0%
Federal 7.7%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,740
- Students per teacher
- 22.7:1
- Enrollment
- 2,641
- Students per teacher
- 23.2:1
- Enrollment
- 2,563
- Students per teacher
- 24.3:1
- Enrollment
- 2,030
- Students per teacher
- 24.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,991
- Students per teacher
- 22.3:1
Similar high schools in San Juan Capistrano
2 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
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 California Preparatory Academy
How many students attend California Preparatory Academy?
California Preparatory Academy has 198 students enrolled. It is a high school in San Juan Capistrano, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at California Preparatory Academy?
The student-teacher ratio at California Preparatory Academy is 28.1:1, which is 30% higher than the California average of 21.6:1 and 77% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at California Preparatory Academy?
23.1% of students at California Preparatory Academy are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of California Preparatory Academy?
The largest demographic group at California Preparatory Academy is White at 70.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in San Juan Capistrano, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for California Preparatory Academy?
California Preparatory Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (F) 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.