Enrollment
652
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 064212010141
Cottonwood Elementary — Palmdale, CA
Federal NCES profile for Cottonwood Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 26/100.
👥 Class size 0
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 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: Westside Union 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)
21.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
27.4:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
+27% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
46.8%
vs 55.5% California avg
-16% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Cottonwood 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
Cottonwood Elementary reports 652 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 21.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 27.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 27% 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 72% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 46.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 16% below the California average and 10% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 724 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 25.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Westside Union Elementary spends $13,156 per pupil district-wide, below the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 27.4% from local sources (property taxes), 65.5% from the state, and 7.1% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 26/100 (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 Cottonwood 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 | 27.4:1 | ▲ 27% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 46.8% | ▼ 16% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 652 | top 73% | — | — |
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
46.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 16% 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
27.4:1
students per teacher
— 27% above state mean
Top 94% in California — lower ratio than 6% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
25.9%
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
$13,156
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
Counselors0.9 FTE
Per 724 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 14 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 652 Top 73% in California — larger than 27% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 21.0
Students per teacher 27.4:1 +27% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 46.8% -16% vs state
NCES ID 064212010141
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 58.4%
White 16.1%
African American 11.0%
Two or More 8.9%
Asian 5.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 58.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 0.9
Students per counselor 724:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 25.9%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 14
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Westside Union Elementary, which includes Cottonwood Elementary.
$13,156
Per student
-27%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-32%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 27.4%
State 65.5%
Federal 7.1%
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
- 1,100
- Students per teacher
- 22.7:1
- Enrollment
- 962
- Students per teacher
- 26.4:1
- Enrollment
- 941
- Students per teacher
- 26.5:1
- Enrollment
- 893
- Students per teacher
- 27.1:1
- Enrollment
- 886
- Students per teacher
- 26.2:1
Similar elementary schools in Palmdale
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Los Amigos - Dual Immersion
Alternative education program
1,027 students 27.1:1 students per teacher
Esperanza Elementary
Standard public school
962 students 26.4:1 students per teacher
Dos Caminos Dual Immersion
Alternative education program
945 students 23.8:1 students per teacher
Gregg Anderson Academy
Standard public school
893 students 27.1:1 students per teacher
Rancho Vista Elementary
Standard public school
886 students 26.2:1 students per teacher
Palmdale Learning Plaza
Standard public school
800 students 22.4:1 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 Cottonwood Elementary
How many students attend Cottonwood Elementary?
Cottonwood Elementary has 652 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Palmdale, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Cottonwood Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Cottonwood Elementary is 27.4:1, which is 27% higher than the California average of 21.6:1 and 72% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Cottonwood Elementary?
46.8% of students at Cottonwood Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Cottonwood Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Cottonwood Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 58.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Palmdale, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Cottonwood Elementary?
Cottonwood Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 26/100 (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.