Enrollment
540
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 061146007107
Old River Elementary — Downey, CA
Federal NCES profile for Old River Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 10/100.
👥 Class size 0
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 0
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: Downey 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)
22.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
29.9:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
+38% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
58.3%
vs 55.5% California avg
+5% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Old River Elementary 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
Old River Elementary reports 540 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 22.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 29.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 38% above the California state mean of 21.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 88% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 58.3% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 5% above the California average and 13% above the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 45.2% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Downey Unified spends $19,100 per pupil district-wide, above the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 20.5% from local sources (property taxes), 67.1% from the state, and 12.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 10/100 (F), calculated from 3 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 Old River Elementary 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 | 29.9:1 | ▲ 38% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 58.3% | ▲ 5% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 540 | top 60% | — | — |
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
58.3%
free-lunch eligible
— 5% 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
29.9:1
students per teacher
— 38% above state mean
Top 98% in California — lower ratio than 2% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
45.2%
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
$19,100
per pupil, district-wide
— above California avg of $18,039
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
0
in-school suspensions + 7 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.3 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 540 Top 60% in California — larger than 40% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 22.0
Students per teacher 29.9:1 +38% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 58.3% +5% vs state
NCES ID 061146007107
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 89.6%
White 6.1%
African American 2.2%
Asian 1.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 89.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 45.2%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 7
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Downey Unified, which includes Old River Elementary.
$19,100
Per student
+6%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-2%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 20.5%
State 67.1%
Federal 12.4%
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
- 4,051
- Students per teacher
- 23.4:1
- Enrollment
- 3,609
- Students per teacher
- 23.7:1
- Enrollment
- 1,329
- Students per teacher
- 24.2:1
- Enrollment
- 1,304
- Students per teacher
- 26.5:1
- Enrollment
- 1,264
- Students per teacher
- 25.9:1
Similar elementary schools in Downey
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Rio Hondo Elementary
Standard public school
838 students 24.6:1 students per teacher
Lewis (Ed C.) Elementary
Standard public school
810 students 25.7:1 students per teacher
Carpenter (C. C.) Elementary
Standard public school
796 students 26.1:1 students per teacher
Gallatin Elementary
Standard public school
788 students 26.5:1 students per teacher
Price (Maude) Elementary
Standard public school
757 students 26:1 students per teacher
Rio San Gabriel Elementary
Standard public school
747 students 24.4:1 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 Old River Elementary
How many students attend Old River Elementary?
Old River Elementary has 540 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Downey, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Old River Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Old River Elementary is 29.9:1, which is 38% higher than the California average of 21.6:1 and 88% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Old River Elementary?
58.3% of students at Old River Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Old River Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Old River Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 89.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in Downey, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Old River Elementary?
Old River Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 10/100 (F) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.