Enrollment
1,637
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 064116006801
Mt. Whitney High — Visalia, CA
Federal NCES profile for Mt. Whitney High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 27/100.
👥 Class size 16
📚 AP courses 55
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 35
📋 Attendance 1
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: Visalia Unified · 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)
78.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
21:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
-3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
66.7%
vs 55.5% California avg
+20% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Mt. Whitney High 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
Mt. Whitney High reports 1,637 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 78.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 21:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 3% 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 32% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 66.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 20% above the California average and 29% above the national baseline. The school offers 11 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 327 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 39.5% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Visalia Unified spends $15,937 per pupil district-wide, below the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 18.1% from local sources (property taxes), 69.0% from the state, and 12.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 27/100 (F), calculated from 5 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 Mt. Whitney High 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 | 21:1 | ▼ 3% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 66.7% | ▲ 20% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,637 | top 95% | — | — |
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
66.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 20% 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
21:1
students per teacher
— 3% below state mean
Top 39% in California — lower ratio than 61% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
39.5%
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
$15,937
per pupil, district-wide
— below California avg of $18,039
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors5.0 FTE
Per 327 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
15
in-school suspensions + 108 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 7.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 8 expulsions.
Overview
Enrollment 1,637 Top 95% in California — larger than 5% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 78.0
Students per teacher 21:1 -3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 66.7% +20% vs state
NCES ID 064116006801
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 75.1%
White 13.2%
Two or More 5.2%
Asian 5.1%
African American 1.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 75.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 11
Counselors (FTE) 5.0
Students per counselor 327:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 39.5%
In-school suspensions 15
Out-of-school suspensions 108
Expulsions 8
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Visalia Unified, which includes Mt. Whitney High.
$15,937
Per student
-12%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-18%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 18.1%
State 69.0%
Federal 12.9%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,490
- Students per teacher
- 24.1:1
- Enrollment
- 2,059
- Students per teacher
- 21.8:1
- Enrollment
- 1,890
- Students per teacher
- 22.3:1
- Enrollment
- 975
- Students per teacher
- 25.4:1
- Enrollment
- 952
- Students per teacher
- 23.7:1
Similar high schools in Visalia
6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Redwood High
Standard public school
2,490 students 24.1:1 students per teacher
Golden West High
Standard public school
2,059 students 21.8:1 students per teacher
El Diamante High
Standard public school
1,890 students 22.3:1 students per teacher
Sequoia High
Alternative education program
280 students 18.9:1 students per teacher
University Preparatory High
Standard public school
253 students 26.7:1 students per teacher
Visalia Technical Early College
Standard public school
216 students 16.8:1 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 Mt. Whitney High
How many students attend Mt. Whitney High?
Mt. Whitney High has 1,637 students enrolled. It is a high school in Visalia, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Mt. Whitney High?
The student-teacher ratio at Mt. Whitney High is 21:1, which is 3% lower than the California average of 21.6:1 and 32% 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 Mt. Whitney High?
66.7% of students at Mt. Whitney High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Mt. Whitney High?
The largest demographic group at Mt. Whitney High is Hispanic or Latino at 75.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in Visalia, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Mt. Whitney High?
Mt. Whitney High has a Resource Investment Index of 27/100 (F) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.