Enrollment
350
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Stanford, CA
Lucille M. Nixon Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Lucille M. Nixon Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 44/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 062961004594
👥 S:T ratio 26
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 76
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Lucille M. Nixon Elementary earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 77% of California schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most California schools.
- 44
- Resource Index · Typical
- 18.4:1
- small classes for California
- 5.6%
- free-lunch eligible
- 350
- students enrolled
Lucille M. Nixon Elementary has class sizes smaller than 77% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Palo Alto Unified · California
NCES ID 062961004594 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
19.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.4:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
5.6%
vs 55.5% California avg
-90% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Lucille M. Nixon Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Lucille M. Nixon Elementary
Lucille M. Nixon Elementary is a lower-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Stanford, California, enrolling 350 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 18.4:1 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by student-teacher ratio.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 5.6% free-meal eligibility runs 90% below the California average.
Enrollment of 350 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 397 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #97.
Its student body is led by Asian (37%) and White (34%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 72/100).
Attendance holds up well here: only 9.7% of students were chronically absent, below the typical post-pandemic national figure.
The surrounding Palo Alto Unified spends $27,172 per pupil, 65% above the California average, a better-resourced district than most.
Among Stanford's elementary schools, it stands alongside Escondido Elementary (432 students): Lucille M. Nixon Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (18.4:1 vs 18:1).
Palo Alto Unified also operates Palo Alto High (1,891 students) and Henry M. Gunn High (1,643 students) alongside Lucille M. Nixon 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 Lucille M. Nixon Elementary compares
Lucille M. Nixon 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 | 18.4:1 | ▼ 14% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 5.6% | ▼ 90% | 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
18.4:1
Leaner classes than 22% 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
5.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 90% below the California average of 55.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
18.4:1
students per teacher
- 14% below state mean
Top 23% in California - lower ratio than 77% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
9.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 5-10% range, close to the pre-pandemic national baseline.
Funding equity
$27,172
per pupil, district-wide
- above California avg of $16,509
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially 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 + 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
Asian 36.6%
White 33.7%
Two or More 14.3%
Hispanic or Latino 12.3%
African American 2.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: Asian at 36.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 71.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 71.6, Lucille M. Nixon Elementary is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Palo Alto Unified, which includes Lucille M. Nixon Elementary.
$27,172
Per student
+65%
vs California
Avg $16,509
+64%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 86.1%
State 11.1%
Federal 2.8%
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 Lucille M. Nixon Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palo Alto High | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Henry M. Gunn High | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Frank S. Greene Jr. Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Ellen Fletcher Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Lucille M. Nixon Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,891
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 1,643
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 1,002
- Students per teacher
- 15.9:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
- Enrollment
- 732
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Resource Index
- 51/100
- Enrollment
- 572
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Resource Index
- 53/100
Similar elementary schools in Stanford
1 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.
Similar enrollment (~350 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Lucille M. Nixon Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Lucille M. Nixon Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Palo Alto Unified's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
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 Lucille M. Nixon Elementary
How many students attend Lucille M. Nixon Elementary?
Lucille M. Nixon Elementary has 350 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Stanford, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Lucille M. Nixon Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Lucille M. Nixon Elementary is 18.4:1, which is 14% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 17% higher than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Lucille M. Nixon Elementary?
5.6% of students at Lucille M. Nixon Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Lucille M. Nixon Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Lucille M. Nixon Elementary is Asian at 36.6% of enrollment, in Stanford, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 71.6/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Lucille M. Nixon Elementary?
Lucille M. Nixon Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (typical 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).
Is Lucille M. Nixon Elementary a good school?
Lucille M. Nixon Elementary earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 77% of California schools. It is also more 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 Palo Alto Unified?
Besides Lucille M. Nixon Elementary, Palo Alto Unified also operates Palo Alto High (1,891 students), Henry M. Gunn High (1,643 students), and Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle (1,002 students). See the Palo Alto Unified district page for the complete list.
Related tools
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.