Elementary school (grades K-5) · Hanford, CA

Hamilton Elementary

Federal NCES profile for Hamilton Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 15/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 061647011606
0/100100/10015/100
👥 S:T ratio
12
🌟 Gifted program
30
🎓 Counselors
16
📋 Attendance
0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Hamilton Elementary earns 15/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median.

#9 of 16
elementary schools in Hanford · Resource Index
15
Resource Index · Lower
22:1
students per teacher
85.3%
free-lunch eligible

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

By Resource Investment Index, Hamilton Elementary ranks #9 of 16 elementary schools in Hanford, CA.

School address

Enrollment

418

California · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

19.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

22:1

vs 21.5:1 California avg

+2% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

85.3%

vs 55.5% California avg

+54% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

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

Slightly above 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 Hamilton Elementary

Hamilton Elementary is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Hanford, California, enrolling 418 students.

At 22:1, 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: 85.3% of students qualify for free meals, 54% above the California average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.

With 418 students, its enrollment sits close to the California median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index trails 91% of the 9,998 California schools with a score on record, one of the lower results on this measure.

Among 1,662 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need California schools statewide, it ranks #1,421, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (81% of enrollment) (diversity index 33/100).

Counselor access is stretched at roughly 418 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 45.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Among Hanford's elementary schools, it stands alongside Kings River-Hardwick Elementary (860 students): Hamilton Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (22:1 vs 24.6:1).

Hanford Elementary also operates Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary (624 students) and Monroe Elementary (611 students) alongside Hamilton 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 Hamilton Elementary compares

Hamilton 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 22:1 ▲ 2% 21.5:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 85.3% ▲ 54% 55.5% 51.7%
Enrollment 418 top 58% - -

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

22:1
Leaner classes than 10% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
418
Bigger than 50% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
85.3%
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
22:1
students per teacher - 2% above state mean
Top 53% in California - lower ratio than 47% of state schools
Above 20:1, running heavier than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is comparatively stretched.
Engagement
45.2%
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
$15,403
per pupil, district-wide - below California avg of $16,509
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 418 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.0 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 81.3%
White 10.3%
African American 3.8%
Two or More 3.6%
Asian 0.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 81.3% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 32.6/100

Simpson diversity index - at 32.6, Hamilton Elementary is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.

Programs

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Hanford Elementary, which includes Hamilton Elementary.

$15,403
Per student
-7%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-7%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 8.5%
State 77.3%
Federal 14.2%

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 Hamilton Elementary Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Monroe Elementary Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
John F. Kennedy Junior High Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Joseph M. Simas Similar size Lower economic need Similar S:T ratio
Woodrow Wilson Junior High Similar size Lower economic need Lower S:T ratio

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

Other Schools in This District

Hanford Elementary · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools in Hanford

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 Hamilton 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 Hamilton Elementary

How many students attend Hamilton Elementary?

Hamilton Elementary has 418 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Hanford, CA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Hamilton Elementary?

The student-teacher ratio at Hamilton Elementary is 22:1, which is 2% higher than the California average of 21.5:1 and 40% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Hamilton Elementary?

85.3% of students at Hamilton Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Hamilton Elementary?

The largest demographic group at Hamilton Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 81.3% of enrollment, in Hanford, CA.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Hamilton Elementary?

Hamilton Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 15/100 (lower 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 Hamilton Elementary rank among elementary schools in Hanford?

By Resource Investment Index, Hamilton Elementary ranks #9 of 16 elementary schools in Hanford, 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 Hanford on the city page.

Is Hamilton Elementary a good school?

Hamilton Elementary earns 15/100 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 Hanford Elementary?

Besides Hamilton Elementary, Hanford Elementary also operates Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary (624 students), Monroe Elementary (611 students), and John F. Kennedy Junior High (531 students). See the Hanford Elementary 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.