Enrollment
479
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Freedom, CA
Freedom Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Freedom Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 26/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 062949004541
👥 S:T ratio 9
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Freedom Elementary earns 26/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most California schools.
- 26
- Resource Index · Lower
- 22.8:1
- students per teacher
- 82.7%
- free-lunch eligible
- 479
- students enrolled
Freedom Elementary has class sizes near the California median. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Pajaro Valley Unified · California
NCES ID 062949004541 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
21.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
22.8:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
+6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
82.7%
vs 55.5% California avg
+49% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Freedom Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Freedom Elementary
Freedom Elementary is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Freedom, California, enrolling 479 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 22.8:1 puts it in the larger third of California schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need is high: 82.7% of students qualify for free meals, 49% above the California average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
With 479 students, its enrollment sits close to the California median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 1,981 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #971.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (95% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 9/100).
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 54.1% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Pajaro Valley Unified also operates Watsonville High (2,215 students) and Pajaro Valley High (1,293 students) alongside Freedom 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 Freedom Elementary compares
Freedom 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 | 22.8:1 | ▲ 6% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 82.7% | ▲ 49% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 479 | top 48% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
22.8:1
Leaner classes than 9% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
479
Bigger than 59% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
82.7%
free-lunch eligible
- 49% 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
22.8:1
students per teacher
- 6% above state mean
Top 61% in California - lower ratio than 39% of state schools
Above 20:1, running heavier than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is comparatively stretched.
Engagement
54.1%
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
$17,011
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
0
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.4 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 95.2%
White 4.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
African American 0.2%
Asian 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 95.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 9.2/100
Simpson diversity index - at 9.2, Freedom Elementary is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Pajaro Valley Unified, which includes Freedom Elementary.
$17,011
Per student
+3%
vs California
Avg $16,509
+3%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 30.6%
State 56.5%
Federal 12.9%
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 Freedom Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Watsonville High | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Pajaro Valley High | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Aptos High | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Alianza Charter | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Rolling Hills Middle | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Freedom Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,215
- Students per teacher
- 21.7:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 1,293
- Students per teacher
- 19.9:1
- Resource Index
- 26/100
- Enrollment
- 1,274
- Students per teacher
- 19.6:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 626
- Students per teacher
- 22.4:1
- Resource Index
- 18/100
- Enrollment
- 588
- Students per teacher
- 21:1
- Resource Index
- 22/100
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 (~479 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Freedom Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Freedom Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Pajaro Valley Unified'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 Freedom Elementary
How many students attend Freedom Elementary?
Freedom Elementary has 479 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Freedom, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Freedom Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Freedom Elementary is 22.8:1, which is 6% higher than the California average of 21.5:1 and 45% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Freedom Elementary?
82.7% of students at Freedom Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Freedom Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Freedom Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 95.2% of enrollment, in Freedom, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Freedom Elementary?
Freedom Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 26/100 (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).
Is Freedom Elementary a good school?
Freedom Elementary earns 26/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most 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 Pajaro Valley Unified?
Besides Freedom Elementary, Pajaro Valley Unified also operates Watsonville High (2,215 students), Pajaro Valley High (1,293 students), and Aptos High (1,274 students). See the Pajaro Valley Unified 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.