Enrollment
436
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 062805008676
Life Academy — Oakland, CA
Federal NCES profile for Life Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 32/100.
👥 Class size 35
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 13
📋 Attendance 11
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: Oakland Unified · 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)
26.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.3:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
-25% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
86.1%
vs 55.5% California avg
+55% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Life Academy 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
Life Academy reports 436 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 26.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.3:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 25% 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: 86.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 55% above the California average and 66% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 436 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 35.8% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Oakland Unified spends $24,180 per pupil district-wide, above the California average of $18,039 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 42.8% from local sources (property taxes), 42.5% from the state, and 14.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (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 Life Academy 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 | 16.3:1 | ▼ 25% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 86.1% | ▲ 55% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 436 | top 45% | — | — |
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
86.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 55% 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
16.3:1
students per teacher
— 25% below state mean
Top 11% in California — lower ratio than 89% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
35.8%
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
$24,180
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 436 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 436 Top 45% in California — larger than 55% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 26.0
Students per teacher 16.3:1 -25% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 86.1% +55% vs state
NCES ID 062805008676
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 92.0%
African American 3.7%
Asian 2.3%
Two or More 1.6%
White 0.5%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 92.0% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 436:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 35.8%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 0
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Oakland Unified, which includes Life Academy.
$24,180
Per student
+34%
vs California
Avg $18,039
+24%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 42.8%
State 42.5%
Federal 14.7%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,812
- Students per teacher
- 18.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,579
- Students per teacher
- 17.6:1
- Enrollment
- 1,250
- Students per teacher
- 17.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,166
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
- Enrollment
- 861
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
Similar other schools in Oakland
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Coliseum College Prep Academy
Standard public school
861 students 14:1 students per teacher
Oakland School for the Arts
Standard public school
828 students 21.6:1 students per teacher
Lodestar: a Lighthouse Community Charter Public
Standard public school
723 students 18.7:1 students per teacher
Madison Park Academy 6-12
Standard public school
676 students 14:1 students per teacher
Independent Study Sojourner Truth
Alternative education program
481 students 13.3:1 students per teacher
Oakland Military Institute College Preparatory Academy
Standard public school
480 students 15.7:1 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 Life Academy
How many students attend Life Academy?
Life Academy has 436 students enrolled. It is a other school in Oakland, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Life Academy?
The student-teacher ratio at Life Academy is 16.3:1, which is 25% 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 Life Academy?
86.1% of students at Life Academy are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Life Academy?
The largest demographic group at Life Academy is Hispanic or Latino at 92.0%. The school serves a diverse student body in Oakland, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Life Academy?
Life Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (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.