Enrollment
332
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Capistrano Beach, CA
Palisades Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Palisades Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 32/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 060744000698
👥 S:T ratio 26
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Palisades Elementary earns 32/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 77% of California schools.
- 32
- Resource Index · Typical
- 18.4:1
- small classes for California
- 38.8%
- free-lunch eligible
- 332
- students enrolled
Palisades Elementary has class sizes smaller than 77% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Capistrano Unified · California
NCES ID 060744000698 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
18.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.4:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
38.8%
vs 55.5% California avg
-30% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Palisades Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Palisades Elementary
Palisades Elementary is a mid-sized elementary school in Capistrano Beach, California, enrolling 332 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 18.4:1 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 38.8% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 332 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 887 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #378.
Its student body is led by White (55%) and Hispanic or Latino (27%) (diversity index 60/100).
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 53.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Capistrano Unified also operates San Clemente High (2,740 students) and San Juan Hills High (2,641 students) alongside Palisades 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 Palisades Elementary compares
Palisades 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 | 18.4:1 | ▼ 14% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 38.8% | ▼ 30% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 332 | top 70% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
18.4:1
Leaner classes than 22% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
332
Bigger than 37% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
38.8%
free-lunch eligible
- 30% below the California average of 55.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
18.4:1
students per teacher
- 14% below state mean
Top 23% in California - lower ratio than 77% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
53.3%
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
$14,421
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
0
in-school suspensions + 11 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.3 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 54.5%
Hispanic or Latino 26.8%
Two or More 16.6%
Asian 1.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.9%
Largest group: White at 54.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 60.3/100
Simpson diversity index - at 60.3, Palisades Elementary is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Capistrano Unified, which includes Palisades Elementary.
$14,421
Per student
-13%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-13%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 61.2%
State 31.0%
Federal 7.7%
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 Palisades Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Clemente High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| San Juan Hills High | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Aliso Niguel High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Tesoro High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Capistrano Valley High | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Palisades Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,740
- Students per teacher
- 21.9:1
- Resource Index
- 28/100
- Enrollment
- 2,641
- Students per teacher
- 21.5:1
- Resource Index
- 33/100
- Enrollment
- 2,563
- Students per teacher
- 22.5:1
- Resource Index
- 35/100
- Enrollment
- 2,030
- Students per teacher
- 22.1:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 1,991
- Students per teacher
- 21.9:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
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.
Similar enrollment (~332 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Palisades Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Palisades Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Capistrano Unified'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 Palisades Elementary
How many students attend Palisades Elementary?
Palisades Elementary has 332 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Capistrano Beach, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Palisades Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Palisades Elementary is 18.4:1, which is 14% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 17% 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 Palisades Elementary?
38.8% of students at Palisades Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Palisades Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Palisades Elementary is White at 54.5% of enrollment, in Capistrano Beach, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 60.3/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Palisades Elementary?
Palisades Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (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).
Is Palisades Elementary a good school?
Palisades Elementary earns 32/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 77% of 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 Capistrano Unified?
Besides Palisades Elementary, Capistrano Unified also operates San Clemente High (2,740 students), San Juan Hills High (2,641 students), and Aliso Niguel High (2,563 students). See the Capistrano Unified 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.