Enrollment
458
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Middle school (grades 6-8) · Palermo, CA
Palermo
Federal NCES profile for Palermo, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 15/100.
2024-25 NCES dataMiddle school (grades 6-8)NCES 062954004558
👥 S:T ratio 24
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 8
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Palermo earns 15/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 72% of California schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most California schools.
- 15
- Resource Index · Lower
- 19.1:1
- small classes for California
- 65.1%
- free-lunch eligible
- 458
- students enrolled
Palermo has class sizes smaller than 72% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Palermo Union Elementary · California
NCES ID 062954004558 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
24.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
19.1:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-11% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
65.1%
vs 55.5% California avg
+17% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Palermo compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Palermo
Palermo is a higher-need, mid-sized middle school in Palermo, California, enrolling 458 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 19.1:1 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 65.1% lands close to the California typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 458 students, its enrollment sits close to the California median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index trails 91% of the 9,998 California schools with a score on record, one of the lower results on this measure.
Among 1,959 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need California schools statewide, it ranks #1,614, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by White (42%) and Hispanic or Latino (35%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 68/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 458 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 53.1% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 15.1% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 1 expulsion at this campus for 2021-22.
Palermo Union Elementary also operates Helen M. Wilcox Elementary (592 students) and Golden Hills Elementary (274 students) alongside Palermo.
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 Palermo compares
Palermo on the metrics families compare, against California and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 19.1:1 | ▼ 11% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 65.1% | ▲ 17% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 458 | top 51% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
19.1:1
Leaner classes than 19% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
458
Bigger than 56% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
65.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 17% 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
19.1:1
students per teacher
- 11% below state mean
Top 28% in California - lower ratio than 72% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
53.1%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$15,548
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
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 458 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
27
in-school suspensions + 19 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 10.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
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 42.1%
Hispanic or Latino 34.5%
Two or More 14.4%
Asian 4.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native 3.1%
African American 1.1%
Largest group: White at 42.1% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 68.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 68.0, Palermo is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Palermo Union Elementary, which includes Palermo.
$15,548
Per student
-6%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 13.1%
State 71.8%
Federal 15.1%
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 Palermo Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Helen M. Wilcox Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Golden Hills Elementary | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Honcut | Smaller | Higher economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Palermo Union Community Day (K-8) | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Palermo's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 592
- Students per teacher
- 24.7:1
- Resource Index
- 8/100
- Enrollment
- 274
- Students per teacher
- 27.4:1
- Resource Index
- 15/100
- Enrollment
- 14
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Resource Index
- 25/100
- Enrollment
- 5
- Students per teacher
- 5:1
- Resource Index
- 55/100
Similar middle 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 (~458 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~19.1:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Palermo's federal record.
- Compare Palermo against another school. Compare schools
- Palermo 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 Palermo
How many students attend Palermo?
Palermo has 458 students enrolled. It is a middle school in Palermo, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Palermo?
The student-teacher ratio at Palermo is 19.1:1, which is 11% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 22% higher 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 Palermo?
65.1% of students at Palermo are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Palermo?
The largest demographic group at Palermo is White at 42.1% of enrollment, in Palermo, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 68.0/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Palermo?
Palermo has a Resource Investment Index of 15/100 (lower 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).
Is Palermo a good school?
Palermo earns 15/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 72% 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 Palermo Union Elementary?
Besides Palermo, Palermo Union Elementary also operates Helen M. Wilcox Elementary (592 students), Golden Hills Elementary (274 students), and Honcut (14 students). See the Palermo Union Elementary district page for the complete list.
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.