Enrollment
509
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 062460008900
Leontine Gracey Elementary — Merced, CA
Federal NCES profile for Leontine Gracey Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 9/100.
👥 Class size 4
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 0
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: Merced 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)
22.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
23.9:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
+11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
80.2%
vs 55.5% California avg
+45% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Leontine Gracey 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
Leontine Gracey Elementary reports 509 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 22.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 23.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 11% above the California state mean of 21.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 50% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 80.2% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 45% above the California average and 55% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 509 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 55.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Merced City Elementary spends $15,875 per pupil district-wide, below the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 11.4% from local sources (property taxes), 74.4% from the state, and 14.2% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 9/100 (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 Leontine Gracey 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 | 23.9:1 | ▲ 11% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 80.2% | ▲ 45% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 509 | top 56% | — | — |
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
80.2%
free-lunch eligible
— 45% above the California average of 55.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold — federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
23.9:1
students per teacher
— 11% above state mean
Top 71% in California — lower ratio than 29% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
55.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$15,875
per pupil, district-wide
— below California avg of $18,039
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 509 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 13 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.6 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 509 Top 56% in California — larger than 44% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 22.0
Students per teacher 23.9:1 +11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 80.2% +45% vs state
NCES ID 062460008900
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 82.3%
Asian 6.1%
White 4.9%
African American 2.8%
Two or More 2.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 82.3% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 509:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 55.0%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 13
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Merced City Elementary, which includes Leontine Gracey Elementary.
$15,875
Per student
-12%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-19%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 11.4%
State 74.4%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 917
- Students per teacher
- 27.1:1
- Enrollment
- 722
- Students per teacher
- 25.9:1
- Enrollment
- 716
- Students per teacher
- 27.1:1
- Enrollment
- 690
- Students per teacher
- 27.7:1
- Enrollment
- 641
- Students per teacher
- 27.3:1
Similar elementary schools in Merced
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Pioneer Elementary
Standard public school
1,055 students 21.2:1 students per teacher
Farmdale Elementary
Standard public school
919 students 21.3:1 students per teacher
Rudolph Rivera Elementary
Standard public school
917 students 27.1:1 students per teacher
Mcswain Elementary
Standard public school
912 students 22.1:1 students per teacher
Donn B. Chenoweth Elementary
Standard public school
722 students 25.9:1 students per teacher
Luther Burbank Elementary
Standard public school
716 students 27.1:1 students per teacher
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 Leontine Gracey Elementary
How many students attend Leontine Gracey Elementary?
Leontine Gracey Elementary has 509 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Merced, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Leontine Gracey Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Leontine Gracey Elementary is 23.9:1, which is 11% higher than the California average of 21.6:1 and 50% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Leontine Gracey Elementary?
80.2% of students at Leontine Gracey Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Leontine Gracey Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Leontine Gracey Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 82.3%. The school serves a diverse student body in Merced, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Leontine Gracey Elementary?
Leontine Gracey Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 9/100 (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.