Elementary school (grades K-5) · Walnut Creek, CA

Murwood Elementary

Federal NCES profile for Murwood Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 33/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 064125006829
0/100100/10033/100
👥 S:T ratio
0
🌟 Gifted program
30
📋 Attendance
70
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Murwood Elementary earns 33/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 87% of California schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most California schools.

#5 of 10
elementary schools in Walnut Creek · Resource Index
33
Resource Index · Typical
26.5:1
large classes for California
17.8%
free-lunch eligible

Murwood Elementary has class sizes larger than 87% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Murwood Elementary ranks #5 of 10 elementary schools in Walnut Creek, CA.

Enrollment

451

California · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

17.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

26.5:1

vs 21.5:1 California avg

+23% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

17.8%

vs 55.5% California avg

-68% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Murwood Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians

Larger classes than state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Murwood Elementary

Murwood Elementary is a lower-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Walnut Creek, California, enrolling 451 students.

Class loads run heavy: 26.5:1 is larger than about 87% of California schools and 23% above the 21.5:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.

Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 17.8% free-meal eligibility runs 68% below the California average.

With 451 students, its enrollment sits close to the California median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 9,998 scored California schools.

Against 1,103 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #641.

Its student body is led by White (50%) and Hispanic or Latino (18%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 68/100).

12.0% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.

Among Walnut Creek's elementary schools, it stands alongside Walnut Acres Elementary (689 students): Murwood Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (26.5:1 vs 32.8:1).

Walnut Creek Elementary also operates Walnut Creek Intermediate (940 students) and Buena Vista Elementary (495 students) alongside Murwood 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 Murwood Elementary compares

Murwood 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 26.5:1 ▲ 23% 21.5:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 17.8% ▼ 68% 55.5% 51.7%
Enrollment 451 top 53% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

26.5:1
Leaner classes than 4% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
451
Bigger than 55% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
17.8%
free-lunch eligible - 68% 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
26.5:1
students per teacher - 23% above state mean
Top 87% in California - lower ratio than 13% of state schools
Well above 20:1, one of the more stretched staffing loads nationally relative to enrollment.
Engagement
12.0%
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
$13,428
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
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.4 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 49.9%
Hispanic or Latino 17.7%
Two or More 15.3%
Asian 14.4%
African American 2.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.4%

Largest group: White at 49.9% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 67.5/100

Simpson diversity index - at 67.5, Murwood Elementary is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.

Programs

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Walnut Creek Elementary, which includes Murwood Elementary.

$13,428
Per student
-19%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-19%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 74.2%
State 17.4%
Federal 8.3%

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 Murwood Elementary Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Walnut Creek Intermediate Larger Similar economic need Lower S:T ratio
Buena Vista Elementary Similar size Similar economic need Lower S:T ratio
Parkmead Elementary Similar size Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio
Tice Creek Similar size Lower economic need Lower S:T ratio
Walnut Heights Elementary Similar size Similar economic need Similar S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Murwood Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Walnut Creek Elementary · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools in Walnut Creek

6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.

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.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Murwood Elementary's federal record.

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 Murwood Elementary

How many students attend Murwood Elementary?

Murwood Elementary has 451 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Walnut Creek, CA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Murwood Elementary?

The student-teacher ratio at Murwood Elementary is 26.5:1, which is 23% higher than the California average of 21.5:1 and 69% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Murwood Elementary?

17.8% of students at Murwood Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Murwood Elementary?

The largest demographic group at Murwood Elementary is White at 49.9% of enrollment, in Walnut Creek, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 67.5/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Murwood Elementary?

Murwood Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 33/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).

How does Murwood Elementary rank among elementary schools in Walnut Creek?

By Resource Investment Index, Murwood Elementary ranks #5 of 10 elementary schools in Walnut Creek, 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 Walnut Creek on the city page.

Is Murwood Elementary a good school?

Murwood Elementary earns 33/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 87% of California schools. It is also more 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 Walnut Creek Elementary?

Besides Murwood Elementary, Walnut Creek Elementary also operates Walnut Creek Intermediate (940 students), Buena Vista Elementary (495 students), and Parkmead Elementary (478 students). See the Walnut Creek Elementary district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.