Elementary school (grades K-5) · San Pablo, CA

Lake Elementary

Federal NCES profile for Lake Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 14/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 063255005041
0/100100/10014/100
👥 S:T ratio
12
🌟 Gifted program
30
📋 Attendance
0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Lake Elementary earns 14/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median.

#4 of 7
elementary schools in San Pablo · Resource Index
14
Resource Index · Lower
21.9:1
students per teacher
53.9%
free-lunch eligible

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

By Resource Investment Index, Lake Elementary ranks #4 of 7 elementary schools in San Pablo, CA.

Enrollment

350

California · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

16.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

21.9:1

vs 21.5:1 California avg

+2% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

53.9%

vs 55.5% California avg

-3% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Lake 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 Lake Elementary

Lake Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized elementary school in San Pablo, California, enrolling 350 students.

At 21.9:1, 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.

Its free-meal eligibility rate of 53.9% lands close to the California typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.

Enrollment of 350 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index trails 93% of the 9,998 California schools with a score on record, one of the lower results on this measure.

Among 1,196 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need California schools statewide, it ranks #1,057, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.

Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (80% of enrollment) (diversity index 35/100).

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 62.6% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Among San Pablo's elementary schools, it stands alongside Caliber: Beta Academy (971 students): Lake Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (21.9:1 vs 24.9:1).

West Contra Costa Unified also operates El Cerrito High (1,460 students) and Richmond High (1,280 students) alongside Lake 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 Lake Elementary compares

Lake 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 21.9:1 ▲ 2% 21.5:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 53.9% ▼ 3% 55.5% 51.7%
Enrollment 350 top 68% - -

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

21.9:1
Leaner classes than 11% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
350
Bigger than 40% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
53.9%
free-lunch eligible - 3% below the California average of 55.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
21.9:1
students per teacher - 2% above state mean
Top 52% in California - lower ratio than 48% of state schools
Above 20:1, running heavier than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is comparatively stretched.
Engagement
62.6%
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
$17,537
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
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 10 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.9 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 80.0%
Asian 8.3%
African American 5.1%
White 3.7%
Two or More 2.0%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 80.0% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 34.9/100

Simpson diversity index - at 34.9, Lake Elementary is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.

Programs

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for West Contra Costa Unified, which includes Lake Elementary.

$17,537
Per student
+6%
vs California
Avg $16,509
+6%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 42.1%
State 46.9%
Federal 11.0%

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 Lake Elementary Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
El Cerrito High Larger Lower economic need Similar S:T ratio
Richmond High Larger Similar economic need Lower S:T ratio
Pinole Valley High Larger Lower economic need Lower S:T ratio
De Anza High Larger Similar economic need Lower S:T ratio
Hercules High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio

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

Other Schools in This District

West Contra Costa Unified · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools in San Pablo

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 Lake 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 Lake Elementary

How many students attend Lake Elementary?

Lake Elementary has 350 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in San Pablo, CA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Lake Elementary?

The student-teacher ratio at Lake Elementary is 21.9:1, which is 2% higher than the California average of 21.5:1 and 39% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Lake Elementary?

53.9% of students at Lake Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Lake Elementary?

The largest demographic group at Lake Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 80.0% of enrollment, in San Pablo, CA.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Lake Elementary?

Lake Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 14/100 (lower reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).

How does Lake Elementary rank among elementary schools in San Pablo?

By Resource Investment Index, Lake Elementary ranks #4 of 7 elementary schools in San Pablo, 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 San Pablo on the city page.

Is Lake Elementary a good school?

Lake Elementary earns 14/100 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 West Contra Costa Unified?

Besides Lake Elementary, West Contra Costa Unified also operates El Cerrito High (1,460 students), Richmond High (1,280 students), and Pinole Valley High (1,245 students). See the West Contra Costa 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.