Enrollment
352
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 062439003655
Meadows Elementary — El Centro, CA
Federal NCES profile for Meadows Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 38/100.
👥 Class size 23
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 65
📋 Attendance 35
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: Meadows Union 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)
20.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
19.2:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
-11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
77.1%
vs 55.5% California avg
+39% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Meadows 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
Meadows Elementary reports 352 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 20.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 19.2:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 11% 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 21% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 77.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 39% above the California average and 49% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 176 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 26.1% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Meadows Union Elementary spends $21,252 per pupil district-wide, above the California average of $18,039 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 14.6% from local sources (property taxes), 66.6% from the state, and 18.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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 Meadows 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 | 19.2:1 | ▼ 11% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 77.1% | ▲ 39% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 352 | top 33% | — | — |
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
77.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 39% 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
19.2:1
students per teacher
— 11% below state mean
Top 23% in California — lower ratio than 77% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
26.1%
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
$21,252
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
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 176 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 352 Top 33% in California — larger than 67% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 20.0
Students per teacher 19.2:1 -11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 77.1% +39% vs state
NCES ID 062439003655
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 91.5%
White 6.3%
African American 0.9%
Two or More 0.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 91.5% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 2.0
Students per counselor 176:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 26.1%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 4
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Meadows Union Elementary, which includes Meadows Elementary.
$21,252
Per student
+18%
vs California
Avg $18,039
+9%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 14.6%
State 66.6%
Federal 18.9%
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.
Similar elementary schools in El Centro
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Mccabe Elementary
Standard public school
1,109 students 25.2:1 students per teacher
Harding Elementary
Standard public school
601 students 24:1 students per teacher
De Anza Magnet
Standard public school
504 students 25.5:1 students per teacher
Mckinley Elementary
Standard public school
456 students 25.5:1 students per teacher
Margaret Hedrick Elementary
Standard public school
446 students 22.9:1 students per teacher
Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary
Standard public school
445 students 25.5:1 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 Meadows Elementary
How many students attend Meadows Elementary?
Meadows Elementary has 352 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in El Centro, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Meadows Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Meadows Elementary is 19.2:1, which is 11% lower than the California average of 21.6:1 and 21% 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 Meadows Elementary?
77.1% of students at Meadows Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Meadows Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Meadows Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 91.5%. The school serves a diverse student body in El Centro, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Meadows Elementary?
Meadows Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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.