Enrollment
2,331
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 061623002020
Granite Hills High — El Cajon, CA
Federal NCES profile for Granite Hills High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 31/100.
👥 Class size 1
📚 AP courses 45
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 29
📋 Attendance 12
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: Grossmont Union High · 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)
97.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
24.7:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
+14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
39.1%
vs 55.5% California avg
-30% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Granite Hills High 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
Granite Hills High reports 2,331 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 97.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 24.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 14% 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 55% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 39.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 30% below the California average and 25% below the national baseline. The school offers 9 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 353 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 35.4% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Grossmont Union High spends $22,403 per pupil district-wide, above the California average of $18,039 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 49.2% from local sources (property taxes), 38.6% from the state, and 12.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (F), calculated from 5 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 Granite Hills High 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 | 24.7:1 | ▲ 14% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 39.1% | ▼ 30% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 2,331 | top 98% | — | — |
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
39.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 30% below the California average of 55.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
24.7:1
students per teacher
— 14% above state mean
Top 79% in California — lower ratio than 21% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
35.4%
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
$22,403
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
Counselors6.6 FTE
Per 353 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 47 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 2 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 2,331 Top 98% in California — larger than 2% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 97.0
Students per teacher 24.7:1 +14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 39.1% -30% vs state
NCES ID 061623002020
Student demographics
White 48.5%
Hispanic or Latino 38.8%
Two or More 5.2%
Asian 4.0%
African American 1.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 48.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 9
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 6.6
Students per counselor 353:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 35.4%
In-school suspensions 1
Out-of-school suspensions 47
Expulsions 2
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Grossmont Union High, which includes Granite Hills High.
$22,403
Per student
+24%
vs California
Avg $18,039
+15%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 49.2%
State 38.6%
Federal 12.2%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,172
- Students per teacher
- 24.4:1
- Enrollment
- 1,810
- Students per teacher
- 22.8:1
- Enrollment
- 1,728
- Students per teacher
- 24.5:1
- Enrollment
- 1,701
- Students per teacher
- 21.7:1
- Enrollment
- 1,624
- Students per teacher
- 23.9:1
Similar high schools in El Cajon
6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Valhalla High
Standard public school
1,728 students 24.5:1 students per teacher
El Cajon Valley High
Standard public school
1,701 students 21.7:1 students per teacher
Idea Center
Alternative education program
127 students 8.8:1 students per teacher
Merit Academy
Special-education school
68 students 13.2:1 students per teacher
Chaparral High
Alternative education program
45 students 8.9:1 students per teacher
Grossmont Middle College High
Alternative education program
37 students 24.5:1 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 Granite Hills High
How many students attend Granite Hills High?
Granite Hills High has 2,331 students enrolled. It is a high school in El Cajon, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Granite Hills High?
The student-teacher ratio at Granite Hills High is 24.7:1, which is 14% higher than the California average of 21.6:1 and 55% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Granite Hills High?
39.1% of students at Granite Hills High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Granite Hills High?
The largest demographic group at Granite Hills High is White at 48.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in El Cajon, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Granite Hills High?
Granite Hills High has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (F) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.