Enrollment
624
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Foster City, CA
Foster City Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Foster City Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 33/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 063492005905
👥 S:T ratio 24
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 40
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Foster City Elementary earns 33/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 74% of California schools.
- #2 of 4
- elementary schools in Foster City · Resource Index
- 33
- Resource Index · Typical
- 18.9:1
- small classes for California
- 6.0%
- free-lunch eligible
Foster City Elementary has class sizes smaller than 74% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Foster City Elementary ranks #2 of 4 elementary schools in Foster City, CA.
School address
District: San Mateo-Foster City · California
NCES ID 063492005905 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
33.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.9:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-12% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
6.0%
vs 55.5% California avg
-89% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Foster City Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Foster City Elementary
Foster City Elementary is a lower-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Foster City, California, enrolling 624 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.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 6.0% free-meal eligibility runs 89% below the California average.
Enrollment of 624 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 703 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #466.
Its student body is led by Asian (60%) and White (17%) (diversity index 59/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 624 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 24.2% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Among Foster City's elementary schools, it stands alongside Audubon Elementary (445 students): Foster City Elementary is larger than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (18.9:1 vs 20.2:1).
San Mateo-Foster City also operates Bowditch Middle (929 students) and Borel Middle (903 students) alongside Foster City 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 Foster City Elementary compares
Foster City 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 | 6.0% | ▼ 89% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 624 | top 30% | - | - |
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.
624
Bigger than 75% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
6.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 89% below the California average of 55.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
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
24.2%
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
$17,395
per pupil, district-wide
- above California avg of $16,509
Close to the U.S. public-school average per-pupil spend.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 624 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.2 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
Asian 59.9%
White 17.1%
Two or More 11.2%
Hispanic or Latino 9.6%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 1.1%
African American 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Largest group: Asian at 59.9% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 59.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 59.0, Foster City Elementary is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for San Mateo-Foster City, which includes Foster City Elementary.
$17,395
Per student
+5%
vs California
Avg $16,509
+5%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 79.9%
State 14.6%
Federal 5.4%
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.
How Foster City Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bowditch Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Borel Middle | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Bayside Academy | Larger | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Abbott Middle | Similar size | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Baywood Elementary | Similar size | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Foster City Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 929
- Students per teacher
- 20.2:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 903
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
- Enrollment
- 840
- Students per teacher
- 19.1:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 721
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 489
- Students per teacher
- 21.3:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
Similar elementary schools in Foster City
3 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.
Similar enrollment (~624 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Foster City Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Foster City Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- San Mateo-Foster City'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 Foster City Elementary
How many students attend Foster City Elementary?
Foster City Elementary has 624 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Foster City, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Foster City Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Foster City 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 Foster City Elementary?
6.0% of students at Foster City Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Foster City Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Foster City Elementary is Asian at 59.9% of enrollment, in Foster City, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 59.0/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Foster City Elementary?
Foster City Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 33/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Foster City Elementary rank among elementary schools in Foster City?
By Resource Investment Index, Foster City Elementary ranks #2 of 4 elementary schools in Foster City, 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 Foster City on the city page.
Is Foster City Elementary a good school?
Foster City Elementary earns 33/100 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 San Mateo-Foster City?
Besides Foster City Elementary, San Mateo-Foster City also operates Bowditch Middle (929 students), Borel Middle (903 students), and Bayside Academy (840 students). See the San Mateo-Foster City 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.