Elementary school (grades K-5) · Van Nuys, CA

Erwin Elementary

Federal NCES profile for Erwin Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 31/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 062271002991
0/100100/10031/100
👥 S:T ratio
17
🌟 Gifted program
70
📋 Attendance
7
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Erwin Elementary earns 31/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median.

#5 of 12
elementary schools in Van Nuys · Resource Index
31
Resource Index · Lower
20.7:1
students per teacher
90.9%
free-lunch eligible

Erwin Elementary has class sizes near the California median. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Erwin Elementary ranks #5 of 12 elementary schools in Van Nuys, CA.

School address

Enrollment

580

California · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

28.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

20.7:1

vs 21.5:1 California avg

-4% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

90.9%

vs 55.5% California avg

+64% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Erwin Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians

At or below state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Erwin Elementary

Erwin Elementary is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Van Nuys, California, enrolling 580 students.

At 20.7:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the California median, within a few percentage points of the 21.5:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.

Economic need is high: 90.9% of students qualify for free meals, 64% above the California average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.

Enrollment of 580 puts it in the larger third of California schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 9,998 scored California schools.

Against 1,347 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #371.

Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (59%) and White (31%) (diversity index 55/100).

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 37.4% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

The surrounding Los Angeles Unified spends $21,940 per pupil, 33% above the California average, a better-resourced district than most.

Its district draws 19.2% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Among Van Nuys's elementary schools, it stands alongside Kester Avenue Elementary (886 students): Erwin Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (20.7:1 vs 26.8:1).

Los Angeles Unified also operates Grover Cleveland Charter High (2,719 students) and North Hollywood Senior High (2,444 students) alongside Erwin 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 Erwin Elementary compares

Erwin 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 20.7:1 ▼ 4% 21.5:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 90.9% ▲ 64% 55.5% 51.7%
Enrollment 580 top 35% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

20.7:1
Leaner classes than 14% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
580
Bigger than 71% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
90.9%
free-lunch eligible - 64% above the California average of 55.5%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
20.7:1
students per teacher - 4% below state mean
Top 41% in California - lower ratio than 59% of state schools
Above 20:1, running heavier than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is comparatively stretched.
Engagement
37.4%
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
$21,940
per pupil, district-wide - above California avg of $16,509
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.3 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

Hispanic or Latino 59.0%
White 31.4%
Two or More 6.9%
Asian 1.4%
African American 1.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 59.0% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 54.8/100

Simpson diversity index - at 54.8, Erwin Elementary is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Los Angeles Unified, which includes Erwin Elementary.

$21,940
Per student
+33%
vs California
Avg $16,509
+32%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 26.3%
State 54.5%
Federal 19.2%

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 Erwin Elementary Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Grover Cleveland Charter High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
North Hollywood Senior High Larger Lower economic need Similar S:T ratio
Phineas Banning Senior High Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
San Pedro Senior High Larger Lower economic need Similar S:T ratio
Venice Senior High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Erwin Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Los Angeles Unified · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools in Van Nuys

6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.

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.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Erwin Elementary's federal record.

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 Erwin Elementary

How many students attend Erwin Elementary?

Erwin Elementary has 580 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Van Nuys, CA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Erwin Elementary?

The student-teacher ratio at Erwin Elementary is 20.7:1, which is 4% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 32% 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 Erwin Elementary?

90.9% of students at Erwin Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Erwin Elementary?

The largest demographic group at Erwin Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 59.0% of enrollment, in Van Nuys, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 54.8/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Erwin Elementary?

Erwin Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (lower 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 Erwin Elementary rank among elementary schools in Van Nuys?

By Resource Investment Index, Erwin Elementary ranks #5 of 12 elementary schools in Van Nuys, 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 Van Nuys on the city page.

Is Erwin Elementary a good school?

Erwin Elementary earns 31/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median. 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 Los Angeles Unified?

Besides Erwin Elementary, Los Angeles Unified also operates Grover Cleveland Charter High (2,719 students), North Hollywood Senior High (2,444 students), and Phineas Banning Senior High (2,422 students). See the Los Angeles Unified district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.