Enrollment
492
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 061185001311
Ceres Elementary — Whittier, CA
Federal NCES profile for Ceres Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 38/100.
👥 Class size 8
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 35
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: East Whittier City Elementary · 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)
19.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
22.9:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
+6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
55.2%
vs 55.5% California avg
-1% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Ceres Elementary 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
Ceres Elementary reports 492 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 19.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 22.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 6% 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 44% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 55.2% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 1% below the California average and 7% above the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 26.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding East Whittier City Elementary spends $17,765 per pupil district-wide, below the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 22.6% from local sources (property taxes), 65.5% from the state, and 11.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (F), calculated from 3 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 Ceres Elementary 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 | 22.9:1 | ▲ 6% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 55.2% | ▼ 1% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 492 | top 54% | — | — |
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
55.2%
free-lunch eligible
— 1% below the California average of 55.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
22.9:1
students per teacher
— 6% above state mean
Top 60% in California — lower ratio than 40% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
26.0%
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
$17,765
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
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 492 Top 54% in California — larger than 46% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 19.0
Students per teacher 22.9:1 +6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 55.2% -1% vs state
NCES ID 061185001311
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 89.4%
White 5.7%
Asian 2.2%
Two or More 1.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.0%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 89.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 26.0%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 4
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for East Whittier City Elementary, which includes Ceres Elementary.
$17,765
Per student
-2%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-9%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 22.6%
State 65.5%
Federal 11.9%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 989
- Students per teacher
- 23.4:1
- Enrollment
- 985
- Students per teacher
- 23.5:1
- Enrollment
- 668
- Students per teacher
- 25.6:1
- Enrollment
- 643
- Students per teacher
- 18.7:1
- Enrollment
- 551
- Students per teacher
- 23.5:1
Similar elementary schools in Whittier
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Ocean View Elementary
Standard public school
668 students 25.6:1 students per teacher
Leffingwell Elementary
Standard public school
551 students 23.5:1 students per teacher
Wallen L. Andrews Elementary
Standard public school
542 students 22.2:1 students per teacher
Jordan Elementary
Standard public school
516 students 21.7:1 students per teacher
Daniel Phelan Elementary
Standard public school
507 students 25.4:1 students per teacher
Longfellow Elementary
Standard public school
499 students 24.3:1 students per teacher
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 Ceres Elementary
How many students attend Ceres Elementary?
Ceres Elementary has 492 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Whittier, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ceres Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Ceres Elementary is 22.9:1, which is 6% higher than the California average of 21.6:1 and 44% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Ceres Elementary?
55.2% of students at Ceres Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Ceres Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Ceres Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 89.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Whittier, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Ceres Elementary?
Ceres Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (F) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.