Enrollment
1,293
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 062949011462
Pajaro Valley High — Watsonville, CA
Federal NCES profile for Pajaro Valley High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 25/100.
👥 Class size 8
📚 AP courses 35
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 14
📋 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: Pajaro Valley 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)
65.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
22.9:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
+6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
78.5%
vs 55.5% California avg
+41% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Pajaro Valley 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
Pajaro Valley High reports 1,293 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 65.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 22.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 6% 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 44% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 78.5% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 41% above the California average and 52% above the national baseline. The school offers 7 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 431 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 49.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Pajaro Valley Unified spends $18,239 per pupil district-wide, above the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 30.6% from local sources (property taxes), 56.5% 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 25/100 (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 Pajaro Valley 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 | 22.9:1 | ▲ 6% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 78.5% | ▲ 41% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 1,293 | top 92% | — | — |
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
78.5%
free-lunch eligible
— 41% 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
22.9:1
students per teacher
— 6% above state mean
Top 60% in California — lower ratio than 40% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
49.0%
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
$18,239
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
Counselors3.0 FTE
Per 431 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
2
in-school suspensions + 104 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 8.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
Overview
Enrollment 1,293 Top 92% in California — larger than 8% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 65.0
Students per teacher 22.9:1 +6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 78.5% +41% vs state
NCES ID 062949011462
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 96.9%
White 1.8%
Asian 0.9%
Two or More 0.3%
African American 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 96.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 7
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 3.0
Students per counselor 431:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 49.0%
In-school suspensions 2
Out-of-school suspensions 104
Expulsions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Pajaro Valley Unified, which includes Pajaro Valley High.
$18,239
Per student
+1%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 30.6%
State 56.5%
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
- 2,215
- Students per teacher
- 22:1
- Enrollment
- 1,274
- Students per teacher
- 20.9:1
- Enrollment
- 626
- Students per teacher
- 22.9:1
- Enrollment
- 588
- Students per teacher
- 22.1:1
- Enrollment
- 587
- Students per teacher
- 22.8:1
Similar high schools in Watsonville
3 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
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 Pajaro Valley High
How many students attend Pajaro Valley High?
Pajaro Valley High has 1,293 students enrolled. It is a high school in Watsonville, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Pajaro Valley High?
The student-teacher ratio at Pajaro Valley High is 22.9:1, which is 6% higher than the California average of 21.6:1 and 44% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Pajaro Valley High?
78.5% of students at Pajaro Valley High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Pajaro Valley High?
The largest demographic group at Pajaro Valley High is Hispanic or Latino at 96.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in Watsonville, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Pajaro Valley High?
Pajaro Valley High has a Resource Investment Index of 25/100 (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.