Enrollment
226
California · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · San Diego, CA
Garfield High
Federal NCES profile for Garfield High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 37/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 063432005468
👥 S:T ratio 55
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 88
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Garfield High earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 94% of California schools.
- #3 of 41
- high schools in San Diego · Resource Index
- 37
- Resource Index · Typical
- 11.3:1
- small classes for California
- 85.6%
- free-lunch eligible
Garfield High has class sizes smaller than 94% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Garfield High ranks #3 of 41 high schools in San Diego, CA.
School address
District: San Diego Unified · California
NCES ID 063432005468 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
20.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.3:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-47% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
85.6%
vs 55.5% California avg
+54% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Garfield High compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Garfield High
Garfield High is a high-poverty, mid-sized high school in San Diego, California, enrolling 226 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 11.3:1, Garfield High is leaner than roughly 94% of California schools and 47% under the state's 21.5:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Economic need is high: 85.6% of students qualify for free meals, 54% above the California average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
Enrollment of 226 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 562 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #90.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (85% of enrollment) (diversity index 26/100).
No Advanced Placement courses are reported for this campus in the federal data.
Counselor coverage is strong, about 60 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 92.9% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Among San Diego's high schools, it stands alongside Del Norte High (2,557 students): Garfield High is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (11.3:1 vs 26.9:1).
San Diego Unified also operates Henry High (2,485 students) and Mira Mesa High (2,187 students) alongside Garfield High.
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 Garfield High compares
Garfield High on the metrics families compare, against California and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.3:1 | ▼ 47% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 85.6% | ▲ 54% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 226 | top 81% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.3:1
Leaner classes than 81% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
226
Bigger than 22% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
85.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 54% 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
11.3:1
students per teacher
- 47% below state mean
Top 6% in California - lower ratio than 94% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
92.9%
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
$18,665
per pupil, district-wide
- above California avg of $16,509
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors3.8 FTE
Per 60 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.8 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 85.4%
African American 5.8%
White 4.4%
Two or More 3.5%
Asian 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 85.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 26.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 26.4, Garfield High is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
AP program Not offered
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for San Diego Unified, which includes Garfield High.
$18,665
Per student
+13%
vs California
Avg $16,509
+12%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 60.5%
State 25.1%
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.
How Garfield High Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henry High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Mira Mesa High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Hoover High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Scripps Ranch High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Point Loma High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Garfield High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,485
- Students per teacher
- 25.9:1
- Resource Index
- 21/100
- Enrollment
- 2,187
- Students per teacher
- 24.9:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 2,011
- Students per teacher
- 20.5:1
- Resource Index
- 12/100
- Enrollment
- 1,890
- Students per teacher
- 27:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
- Enrollment
- 1,724
- Students per teacher
- 26.1:1
- Resource Index
- 24/100
Similar high schools in San Diego
6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Del Norte High
Standard public school
2,557 students 26.9:1 students per teacher
Torrey Pines High
Standard public school
2,536 students 24.9:1 students per teacher
Henry High
Standard public school
2,485 students 25.9:1 students per teacher
Rancho Bernardo High
Standard public school
2,210 students 24.8:1 students per teacher
Mira Mesa High
Standard public school
2,187 students 24.9:1 students per teacher
Canyon Crest Academy
Standard public school
2,147 students 25.3:1 students per teacher
Similar high 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 (~226 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11.3:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Garfield High's federal record.
- Compare Garfield High against another school. Compare schools
- San Diego 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 Garfield High
How many students attend Garfield High?
Garfield High has 226 students enrolled. It is a high school in San Diego, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Garfield High?
The student-teacher ratio at Garfield High is 11.3:1, which is 47% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 28% lower 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 Garfield High?
85.6% of students at Garfield High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Garfield High?
The largest demographic group at Garfield High is Hispanic or Latino at 85.4% of enrollment, in San Diego, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Garfield High?
Garfield High has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Garfield High rank among high schools in San Diego?
By Resource Investment Index, Garfield High ranks #3 of 41 high schools in San Diego, CA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all high schools in San Diego on the city page.
Is Garfield High a good school?
Garfield High earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 94% 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 Diego Unified?
Besides Garfield High, San Diego Unified also operates Henry High (2,485 students), Mira Mesa High (2,187 students), and Hoover High (2,011 students). See the San Diego 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.