Enrollment
60
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Helm, CA
Helm Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Helm Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 31/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 069113410216
👥 S:T ratio 52
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 40
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Helm Elementary earns 31/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 94% of California schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most California schools.
- 31
- Resource Index · Lower
- 12:1
- small classes for California
- 83.3%
- free-lunch eligible
- 60
- students enrolled
Helm Elementary has class sizes smaller than 94% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Golden Plains Unified · California
NCES ID 069113410216 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
5.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-44% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
83.3%
vs 55.5% California avg
+50% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Helm Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Helm Elementary
Helm Elementary is a high-poverty, small elementary school in Helm, California, enrolling 60 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 12:1, Helm Elementary is leaner than roughly 94% of California schools and 44% under the state's 21.5:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Economic need is high: 83.3% of students qualify for free meals, 50% above the California average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
This is a small campus: fewer students than 93% of California schools, with 60 enrolled.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 169 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #116.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (100% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 0/100).
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 300 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 98.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Golden Plains Unified also operates San Joaquin Elementary (518 students) and Tranquillity High (370 students) alongside Helm 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 Helm Elementary compares
Helm 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 | 12:1 | ▼ 44% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 83.3% | ▲ 50% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 60 | top 93% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12:1
Leaner classes than 75% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
60
Bigger than 6% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
83.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 50% 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
12:1
students per teacher
- 44% 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
98.3%
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
$18,384
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
Counselors0.2 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 6 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.0 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 100.0%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 100.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 0.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 0.0, Helm Elementary is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Golden Plains Unified, which includes Helm Elementary.
$18,384
Per student
+11%
vs California
Avg $16,509
+11%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 24.1%
State 61.9%
Federal 14.0%
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 Helm Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Joaquin Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Tranquillity High | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Tranquillity Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Cantua Elementary | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Rio Del Rey High (Continuation) | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Helm Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 518
- Students per teacher
- 19.9:1
- Resource Index
- 13/100
- Enrollment
- 370
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Resource Index
- 30/100
- Enrollment
- 209
- Students per teacher
- 20.9:1
- Resource Index
- 12/100
- Enrollment
- 184
- Students per teacher
- 20.4:1
- Resource Index
- 12/100
- Enrollment
- 10
- Students per teacher
- 10:1
- Resource Index
- 57/100
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 (~60 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~12:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Helm Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Helm Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Golden Plains 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 Helm Elementary
How many students attend Helm Elementary?
Helm Elementary has 60 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Helm, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Helm Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Helm Elementary is 12:1, which is 44% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 24% 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 Helm Elementary?
83.3% of students at Helm Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Helm Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Helm Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 100.0% of enrollment, in Helm, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Helm Elementary?
Helm Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (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).
Is Helm Elementary a good school?
Helm Elementary earns 31/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 94% of California schools. 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 Golden Plains Unified?
Besides Helm Elementary, Golden Plains Unified also operates San Joaquin Elementary (518 students), Tranquillity High (370 students), and Tranquillity Elementary (209 students). See the Golden Plains 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.