Enrollment
283
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Mckinleyville, CA
Dow's Prairie Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Dow's Prairie Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 34/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 062430003650
👥 S:T ratio 24
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 49
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Dow's Prairie Elementary earns 34/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 74% of California schools.
- #2 of 3
- elementary schools in Mckinleyville · Resource Index
- 34
- Resource Index · Typical
- 18.9:1
- small classes for California
- 59.1%
- free-lunch eligible
Dow's Prairie Elementary has class sizes smaller than 74% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Dow's Prairie Elementary ranks #2 of 3 elementary schools in Mckinleyville, CA.
School address
District: Mckinleyville Union Elementary · California
NCES ID 062430003650 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
15.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.9:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-12% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
59.1%
vs 55.5% California avg
+6% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Dow's Prairie Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Dow's Prairie Elementary
Dow's Prairie Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized elementary school in Mckinleyville, California, enrolling 283 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 18.9:1 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 59.1% lands close to the California typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 283 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 941 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #290.
Its student body is led by White (51%) and Two or More (22%) (diversity index 66/100).
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 20.5% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 18.5% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Mckinleyville Union Elementary also operates Mckinleyville Middle (302 students) and Morris Elementary (255 students) alongside Dow's Prairie Elementary.
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 Dow's Prairie Elementary compares
Dow's Prairie Elementary on the metrics families compare, against California and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 18.9:1 | ▼ 12% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 59.1% | ▲ 6% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 283 | top 76% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
18.9:1
Leaner classes than 20% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
283
Bigger than 30% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
59.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 6% above the California average of 55.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
18.9:1
students per teacher
- 12% below state mean
Top 26% in California - lower ratio than 74% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
20.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$16,692
per pupil, district-wide
- above California avg of $16,509
Close to the U.S. public-school average per-pupil spend.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
6
in-school suspensions + 9 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 2.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 5.3 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
White 50.5%
Two or More 21.9%
Hispanic or Latino 18.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 7.8%
African American 1.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
Largest group: White at 50.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 65.8/100
Simpson diversity index - at 65.8, Dow's Prairie Elementary is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mckinleyville Union Elementary, which includes Dow's Prairie Elementary.
$16,692
Per student
+1%
vs California
Avg $16,509
+1%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 44.0%
State 37.4%
Federal 18.5%
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.
How Dow's Prairie Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mckinleyville Middle | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Morris Elementary | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Dow's Prairie Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 302
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 255
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of California, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~283 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Dow's Prairie Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Dow's Prairie Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Mckinleyville Union Elementary's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
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 Dow's Prairie Elementary
How many students attend Dow's Prairie Elementary?
Dow's Prairie Elementary has 283 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Mckinleyville, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Dow's Prairie Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Dow's Prairie Elementary is 18.9:1, which is 12% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 20% higher 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 Dow's Prairie Elementary?
59.1% of students at Dow's Prairie Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Dow's Prairie Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Dow's Prairie Elementary is White at 50.5% of enrollment, in Mckinleyville, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 65.8/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Dow's Prairie Elementary?
Dow's Prairie Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Dow's Prairie Elementary rank among elementary schools in Mckinleyville?
By Resource Investment Index, Dow's Prairie Elementary ranks #2 of 3 elementary schools in Mckinleyville, CA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Mckinleyville on the city page.
Is Dow's Prairie Elementary a good school?
Dow's Prairie Elementary earns 34/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 74% of California 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 Mckinleyville Union Elementary?
Besides Dow's Prairie Elementary, Mckinleyville Union Elementary also operates Mckinleyville Middle (302 students) and Morris Elementary (255 students). See the Mckinleyville Union Elementary district page for the complete list.
Related tools
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.