Enrollment
464
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 060948000962
Columbia Elementary — Columbia, CA
Federal NCES profile for Columbia Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 14/100.
👥 Class size 20
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 7
📋 Attendance 0
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: Columbia Union · 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)
22.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
19.9:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
-8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
50.3%
vs 55.5% California avg
-9% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Columbia 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
Columbia Elementary reports 464 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 22.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 19.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 8% below the California state mean of 21.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 25% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 50.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 9% below the California average and 3% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 464 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 49.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Columbia Union spends $14,306 per pupil district-wide, below the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 35.2% from local sources (property taxes), 51.3% from the state, and 13.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 14/100 (F), calculated from 4 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 Columbia 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 | 19.9:1 | ▼ 8% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 50.3% | ▼ 9% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 464 | top 50% | — | — |
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
50.3%
free-lunch eligible
— 9% 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
19.9:1
students per teacher
— 8% below state mean
Top 29% in California — lower ratio than 71% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
49.1%
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
$14,306
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
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 464 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 13 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 464 Top 50% in California — larger than 50% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 22.0
Students per teacher 19.9:1 -8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 50.3% -9% vs state
NCES ID 060948000962
Student demographics
White 69.5%
Hispanic or Latino 20.5%
Two or More 5.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 2.6%
African American 1.1%
Asian 0.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
Largest group: White at 69.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 464:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 49.1%
In-school suspensions 2
Out-of-school suspensions 13
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Columbia Union, which includes Columbia Elementary.
$14,306
Per student
-21%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-27%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 35.2%
State 51.3%
Federal 13.5%
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.
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 Columbia Elementary
How many students attend Columbia Elementary?
Columbia Elementary has 464 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Columbia, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Columbia Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Columbia Elementary is 19.9:1, which is 8% lower than the California average of 21.6:1 and 25% higher than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Columbia Elementary?
50.3% of students at Columbia Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Columbia Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Columbia Elementary is White at 69.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in Columbia, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Columbia Elementary?
Columbia Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 14/100 (F) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.