Enrollment
658
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 062457003684
Laurel Elementary — Atherton, CA
Federal NCES profile for Laurel Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 37/100.
👥 Class size 34
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 86
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: Menlo Park City Elementary · 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)
41.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.4:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
-24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
10.3%
vs 55.5% California avg
-81% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Laurel Elementary 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
Laurel Elementary reports 658 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 41.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 24% below the California state mean of 21.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 3% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 10.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 81% below the California average and 80% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 658 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 5.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Menlo Park City Elementary spends $26,717 per pupil district-wide, above the California average of $18,039 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 86.3% from local sources (property taxes), 11.5% from the state, and 2.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (F), calculated from 4 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 Laurel Elementary 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 | 16.4:1 | ▼ 24% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 10.3% | ▼ 81% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 658 | top 73% | — | — |
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
10.3%
free-lunch eligible
— 81% 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
16.4:1
students per teacher
— 24% below state mean
Top 12% in California — lower ratio than 88% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
5.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Below 10% — strong attendance relative to the post-pandemic national landscape.
Funding equity
$26,717
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
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 658 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
Enrollment 658 Top 73% in California — larger than 27% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 41.0
Students per teacher 16.4:1 -24% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 10.3% -81% vs state
NCES ID 062457003684
Student demographics
White 39.4%
Asian 22.6%
Hispanic or Latino 22.5%
Two or More 13.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 1.2%
African American 0.9%
Largest group: White at 39.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 658:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 5.8%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Menlo Park City Elementary, which includes Laurel Elementary.
$26,717
Per student
+48%
vs California
Avg $18,039
+37%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 86.3%
State 11.5%
Federal 2.3%
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
- 846
- Students per teacher
- 15.5:1
- Enrollment
- 604
- Students per teacher
- 15.8:1
- Enrollment
- 574
- Students per teacher
- 16.1:1
Similar elementary schools in Atherton
3 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
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 Laurel Elementary
How many students attend Laurel Elementary?
Laurel Elementary has 658 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Atherton, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Laurel Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Laurel Elementary is 16.4:1, which is 24% lower than the California average of 21.6:1 and 3% higher than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Laurel Elementary?
10.3% of students at Laurel Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Laurel Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Laurel Elementary is White at 39.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in Atherton, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Laurel Elementary?
Laurel Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (F) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.