Enrollment
353
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Santa Barbara, CA
Montecito Union
Federal NCES profile for Montecito Union, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 41/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 062550003815
👥 S:T ratio 51
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 13
📋 Attendance 69
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Montecito Union earns 41/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 93% of California schools.
- #12 of 20
- elementary schools in Santa Barbara · Resource Index
- 41
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.2:1
- small classes for California
- 5.4%
- free-lunch eligible
Montecito Union has class sizes smaller than 93% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Montecito Union ranks #12 of 20 elementary schools in Santa Barbara, CA.
School address
District: Montecito Union Elementary · California
NCES ID 062550003815 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
29.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.2:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-43% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
5.4%
vs 55.5% California avg
-90% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Montecito Union compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Montecito Union
Montecito Union is a lower-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Santa Barbara, California, enrolling 353 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 12.2:1, Montecito Union is leaner than roughly 93% of California schools and 43% under the state's 21.5:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 5.4% free-meal eligibility runs 90% below the California average.
Enrollment of 353 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 400 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #137.
Its student body is led by White (75%) and Two or More (13%) (diversity index 41/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 436 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
12.5% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.
The surrounding Montecito Union Elementary spends $35,296 per pupil, 114% above the California average, a better-resourced district than most.
Among Santa Barbara's elementary schools, it stands alongside Peabody Charter (780 students): Montecito Union is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (12.2:1 vs 24.4:1).
Montecito Union Elementary operates only this one school, so Montecito Union has no district-mates to compare against locally.
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 Montecito Union compares
Montecito Union on the metrics families compare, against California and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.2:1 | ▼ 43% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 5.4% | ▼ 90% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 353 | top 67% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.2:1
Leaner classes than 74% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
353
Bigger than 40% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
5.4%
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
12.2:1
students per teacher
- 43% below state mean
Top 7% in California - lower ratio than 93% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
12.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$35,296
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
Counselors0.8 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.6 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
White 74.5%
Two or More 12.7%
Hispanic or Latino 12.5%
African American 0.3%
Largest group: White at 74.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 41.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 41.3, Montecito Union is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Montecito Union Elementary, which includes Montecito Union.
$35,296
Per student
+114%
vs California
Avg $16,509
+113%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 91.1%
State 8.3%
Federal 0.6%
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 Santa Barbara
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Peabody Charter
Standard public school
780 students 24.4:1 students per teacher
Washington Elementary
Standard public school
477 students 17:1 students per teacher
Adams Elementary
Standard public school
469 students 17.4:1 students per teacher
Roosevelt Elementary
Standard public school
463 students 19.3:1 students per teacher
Franklin Elementary
Standard public school
424 students 18.4:1 students per teacher
Foothill Elementary
Standard public school
413 students 24.3:1 students per teacher
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 (~353 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Montecito Union's federal record.
- Compare Montecito Union against another school. Compare schools
- Montecito Union Elementary'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 Montecito Union
How many students attend Montecito Union?
Montecito Union has 353 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Santa Barbara, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Montecito Union?
The student-teacher ratio at Montecito Union is 12.2:1, which is 43% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 22% lower 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 Montecito Union?
5.4% of students at Montecito Union are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Montecito Union?
The largest demographic group at Montecito Union is White at 74.5% of enrollment, in Santa Barbara, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Montecito Union?
Montecito Union has a Resource Investment Index of 41/100 (typical 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 Montecito Union rank among elementary schools in Santa Barbara?
By Resource Investment Index, Montecito Union ranks #12 of 20 elementary schools in Santa Barbara, CA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Santa Barbara on the city page.
Is Montecito Union a good school?
Montecito Union earns 41/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 93% 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 Montecito Union Elementary?
None reported; Montecito Union Elementary operates only Montecito Union as a public school district in NCES's records.
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.