Enrollment
126
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Stevinson, CA
Merquin Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Merquin Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 17/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 061722002178
👥 S:T ratio 28
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 11
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Merquin Elementary earns 17/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 79% of California schools.
- 17
- Resource Index · Lower
- 18:1
- small classes for California
- 68.3%
- free-lunch eligible
- 126
- students enrolled
Merquin Elementary has class sizes smaller than 79% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Hilmar Unified · California
NCES ID 061722002178 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
7.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-16% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
68.3%
vs 55.5% California avg
+23% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Merquin Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Merquin Elementary
Merquin Elementary is a higher-need, small elementary school in Stevinson, California, enrolling 126 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 18:1 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 68.3% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 126 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 9,998 scored California schools.
Among 337 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need California schools statewide, it ranks #298, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (87% of enrollment) (diversity index 23/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 630 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 35.7% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Hilmar Unified also operates Hilmar High (696 students) and Hilmar Middle (542 students) alongside Merquin 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 Merquin Elementary compares
Merquin 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 | 18:1 | ▼ 16% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 68.3% | ▲ 23% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 126 | top 88% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
18:1
Leaner classes than 24% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
126
Bigger than 12% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
68.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 23% 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
18:1
students per teacher
- 16% below state mean
Top 21% in California - lower ratio than 79% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
35.7%
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
$13,861
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
Counselors0.2 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
Hispanic or Latino 87.3%
White 11.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.8%
Two or More 0.8%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 87.3% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 22.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 22.5, Merquin Elementary is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Hilmar Unified, which includes Merquin Elementary.
$13,861
Per student
-16%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-16%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 27.5%
State 61.3%
Federal 11.3%
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 Merquin Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hilmar High | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Hilmar Middle | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Elim Elementary | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Irwin High (Continuation) | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Merquin Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 696
- Students per teacher
- 19.3:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 542
- Students per teacher
- 21.7:1
- Resource Index
- 19/100
- Enrollment
- 437
- Students per teacher
- 10.7:1
- Resource Index
- 22/100
- Enrollment
- 16
- Students per teacher
- 8:1
- Resource Index
- 55/100
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 (~126 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~18:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Merquin Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Merquin Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Hilmar 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 Merquin Elementary
How many students attend Merquin Elementary?
Merquin Elementary has 126 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Stevinson, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Merquin Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Merquin Elementary is 18:1, which is 16% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 15% 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 Merquin Elementary?
68.3% of students at Merquin Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Merquin Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Merquin Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 87.3% of enrollment, in Stevinson, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Merquin Elementary?
Merquin Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 17/100 (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).
Is Merquin Elementary a good school?
Merquin Elementary earns 17/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 79% of 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 Hilmar Unified?
Besides Merquin Elementary, Hilmar Unified also operates Hilmar High (696 students), Hilmar Middle (542 students), and Elim Elementary (437 students). See the Hilmar 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.