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

James Monroe Elementary

Federal NCES profile for James Monroe Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 10/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 062334003551
0/100100/10010/100
👥 S:T ratio
11
🌟 Gifted program
30
🎓 Counselors
0
📋 Attendance
0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

James Monroe Elementary earns 10/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most California schools.

#16 of 24
elementary schools in Madera · Resource Index
10
Resource Index · Lower
22.3:1
students per teacher
94.1%
free-lunch eligible

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

By Resource Investment Index, James Monroe Elementary ranks #16 of 24 elementary schools in Madera, CA.

School address

Enrollment

624

California · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

28.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

22.3:1

vs 21.5:1 California avg

+4% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

94.1%

vs 55.5% California avg

+70% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How James Monroe 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 James Monroe Elementary

James Monroe Elementary is a high-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Madera, California, enrolling 624 students.

At 22.3:1, 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: 94.1% of students qualify for free meals, 70% above the California average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.

Enrollment of 624 puts it in the larger third of California schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index trails 98% of the 9,998 California schools with a score on record, one of the lower results on this measure.

Among 1,052 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need California schools statewide, it ranks #988, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (97% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 7/100).

Counselor access is stretched at roughly 624 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 50.0% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Its district draws 15.7% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.

Among Madera's elementary schools, it stands alongside Lincoln Elementary (816 students): James Monroe Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (22.3:1 vs 22.7:1).

Madera Unified also operates Matilda Torres High (2,017 students) and Madera High (1,869 students) alongside James Monroe 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 James Monroe Elementary compares

James Monroe 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 22.3:1 ▲ 4% 21.5:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 94.1% ▲ 70% 55.5% 51.7%
Enrollment 624 top 30% - -

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

22.3:1
Leaner classes than 10% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
624
Bigger than 75% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
94.1%
free-lunch eligible - 70% 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
22.3:1
students per teacher - 4% above state mean
Top 56% in California - lower ratio than 44% of state schools
Above 20:1, running heavier than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is comparatively stretched.
Engagement
50.0%
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
$15,587
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 624 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 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 96.5%
White 1.4%
African American 0.8%
Two or More 0.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Asian 0.2%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 96.5% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 6.8/100

Simpson diversity index - at 6.8, James Monroe Elementary is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.

Programs

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Madera Unified, which includes James Monroe Elementary.

$15,587
Per student
-6%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 13.4%
State 70.9%
Federal 15.7%

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 James Monroe Elementary Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Matilda Torres High Larger Lower economic need Similar S:T ratio
Madera High Larger Lower economic need Similar S:T ratio
Madera South High Larger Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Thomas Jefferson Middle Larger Lower economic need Lower S:T ratio
Martin Luther King Jr. Middle Larger Similar economic need Lower S:T ratio

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

Other Schools in This District

Madera Unified · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools in Madera

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 James Monroe 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 James Monroe Elementary

How many students attend James Monroe Elementary?

James Monroe Elementary has 624 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Madera, CA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at James Monroe Elementary?

The student-teacher ratio at James Monroe Elementary is 22.3:1, which is 4% higher than the California average of 21.5:1 and 42% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at James Monroe Elementary?

94.1% of students at James Monroe Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of James Monroe Elementary?

The largest demographic group at James Monroe Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 96.5% of enrollment, in Madera, CA.

What is the Resource Investment Index for James Monroe Elementary?

James Monroe Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 10/100 (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 James Monroe Elementary rank among elementary schools in Madera?

By Resource Investment Index, James Monroe Elementary ranks #16 of 24 elementary schools in Madera, 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 Madera on the city page.

Is James Monroe Elementary a good school?

James Monroe Elementary earns 10/100 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 Madera Unified?

Besides James Monroe Elementary, Madera Unified also operates Matilda Torres High (2,017 students), Madera High (1,869 students), and Madera South High (1,859 students). See the Madera Unified 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.