Enrollment
612
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Mendota, CA
Mendota Junior High
Federal NCES profile for Mendota Junior High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 11/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 060002209293
👥 S:T ratio 9
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 3
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Mendota Junior High earns 11/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most California schools.
- #5 of 7
- public schools in Mendota · Resource Index
- 11
- Resource Index · Lower
- 22.7:1
- students per teacher
- 96.4%
- free-lunch eligible
Mendota Junior High has class sizes near the California median. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Mendota Junior High ranks #5 of 7 public schools in Mendota, CA.
School address
District: Mendota Unified · California
NCES ID 060002209293 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
27.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
22.7:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
+6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
96.4%
vs 55.5% California avg
+74% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Mendota Junior High compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Mendota Junior High
Mendota Junior High is a high-poverty, mid-sized middle school in Mendota, California, enrolling 612 students.
At 22.7:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the California median, within a few percentage points of the 21.5:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need is high: 96.4% of students qualify for free meals, 74% above the California average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
Enrollment of 612 puts it in the larger third of California schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index trails 96% of the 9,998 California schools with a score on record, one of the lower results on this measure.
Among 899 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need California schools statewide, it ranks #825, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (100% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 0/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 612 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 38.7% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Mendota Unified also operates Mendota High (1,065 students) and Mccabe Elementary (986 students) alongside Mendota Junior High.
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 Mendota Junior High compares
Mendota Junior High on the metrics families compare, against California and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 22.7:1 | ▲ 6% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 96.4% | ▲ 74% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 612 | top 31% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
22.7:1
Leaner classes than 9% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
612
Bigger than 74% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
96.4%
free-lunch eligible
- 74% above the California average of 55.5%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
22.7:1
students per teacher
- 6% above state mean
Top 59% in California - lower ratio than 41% of state schools
Above 20:1, running heavier than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is comparatively stretched.
Engagement
38.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$14,236
per pupil, district-wide
- below California avg of $16,509
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 612 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 57 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 9.3 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
Hispanic or Latino 99.8%
White 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 99.8% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 0.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 0.4, Mendota Junior High is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mendota Unified, which includes Mendota Junior High.
$14,236
Per student
-14%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-14%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 14.4%
State 72.5%
Federal 13.2%
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.
How Mendota Junior High Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mendota High | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Mccabe Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Mendota Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Washington Elementary | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Mendota Continuation High | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Mendota Junior High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,065
- Students per teacher
- 22.2:1
- Resource Index
- 18/100
- Enrollment
- 986
- Students per teacher
- 26.6:1
- Resource Index
- 10/100
- Enrollment
- 857
- Students per teacher
- 25.2:1
- Resource Index
- 10/100
- Enrollment
- 423
- Students per teacher
- 21.1:1
- Resource Index
- 15/100
- Enrollment
- 24
- Students per teacher
- 12:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
Similar middle 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 (~612 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~22.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Mendota Junior High's federal record.
- Compare Mendota Junior High against another school. Compare schools
- Mendota 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 Mendota Junior High
How many students attend Mendota Junior High?
Mendota Junior High has 612 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Mendota, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Mendota Junior High?
The student-teacher ratio at Mendota Junior High is 22.7:1, which is 6% higher than the California average of 21.5:1 and 45% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Mendota Junior High?
96.4% of students at Mendota Junior High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Mendota Junior High?
The largest demographic group at Mendota Junior High is Hispanic or Latino at 99.8% of enrollment, in Mendota, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Mendota Junior High?
Mendota Junior High has a Resource Investment Index of 11/100 (lower reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Mendota Junior High rank among public schools in Mendota?
By Resource Investment Index, Mendota Junior High ranks #5 of 7 public schools in Mendota, CA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Mendota on the city page.
Is Mendota Junior High a good school?
Mendota Junior High earns 11/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median. It is also less 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 Mendota Unified?
Besides Mendota Junior High, Mendota Unified also operates Mendota High (1,065 students), Mccabe Elementary (986 students), and Mendota Elementary (857 students). See the Mendota 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.