Enrollment
341
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 060444000403
Ernie Pyle Elementary — Bellflower, CA
Federal NCES profile for Ernie Pyle Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 36/100.
👥 Class size 9
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 66
📋 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: Bellflower 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)
16.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
22.7:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
+5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
64.7%
vs 55.5% California avg
+17% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Ernie Pyle 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
Ernie Pyle Elementary reports 341 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 16.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 22.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 5% 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 43% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 64.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 17% above the California average and 25% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 171 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 39.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Bellflower Unified spends $21,423 per pupil district-wide, above the California average of $18,039 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 14.9% from local sources (property taxes), 70.8% from the state, and 14.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 36/100 (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 Ernie Pyle 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 | 22.7:1 | ▲ 5% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 64.7% | ▲ 17% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 341 | top 31% | — | — |
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
64.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 17% 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
22.7:1
students per teacher
— 5% above state mean
Top 57% in California — lower ratio than 43% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
39.9%
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
$21,423
per pupil, district-wide
— above California avg of $18,039
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 171 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 5 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 341 Top 31% in California — larger than 69% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 16.0
Students per teacher 22.7:1 +5% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 64.7% +17% vs state
NCES ID 060444000403
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 71.6%
African American 12.6%
Asian 8.8%
Two or More 4.1%
White 2.9%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 71.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 171:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 39.9%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 5
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Bellflower Unified, which includes Ernie Pyle Elementary.
$21,423
Per student
+19%
vs California
Avg $18,039
+10%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 14.9%
State 70.8%
Federal 14.4%
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
- 2,422
- Students per teacher
- 22.6:1
- Enrollment
- 1,997
- Students per teacher
- 21.8:1
- Enrollment
- 646
- Students per teacher
- 20.8:1
- Enrollment
- 579
- Students per teacher
- 21.2:1
- Enrollment
- 552
- Students per teacher
- 23.2:1
Similar elementary schools in Bellflower
5 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Washington Elementary
Standard public school
579 students 21.2:1 students per teacher
Thomas Jefferson Elementary
Standard public school
457 students 24.5:1 students per teacher
Ramona Elementary
Standard public school
454 students 25.5:1 students per teacher
Frank E. Woodruff Elementary
Standard public school
444 students 25.7:1 students per teacher
Albert Baxter Elementary
Standard public school
309 students 25.6:1 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 Ernie Pyle Elementary
How many students attend Ernie Pyle Elementary?
Ernie Pyle Elementary has 341 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Bellflower, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ernie Pyle Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Ernie Pyle Elementary is 22.7:1, which is 5% higher than the California average of 21.6:1 and 43% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Ernie Pyle Elementary?
64.7% of students at Ernie Pyle Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Ernie Pyle Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Ernie Pyle Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 71.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in Bellflower, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Ernie Pyle Elementary?
Ernie Pyle Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 36/100 (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.