Enrollment
511
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Tulare, CA
Palo Verde Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Palo Verde Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 16/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 062967004605
👥 S:T ratio 7
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 11
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Palo Verde Elementary earns 16/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most California schools.
- #17 of 20
- elementary schools in Tulare · Resource Index
- 16
- Resource Index · Lower
- 23.2:1
- students per teacher
- 53.9%
- free-lunch eligible
Palo Verde Elementary has class sizes near the California median. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Palo Verde Elementary ranks #17 of 20 elementary schools in Tulare, CA.
School address
District: Palo Verde Union Elementary · California
NCES ID 062967004605 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
22.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
23.2:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
+8% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
53.9%
vs 55.5% California avg
-3% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Palo Verde Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Palo Verde Elementary
Palo Verde Elementary is a higher-need, mid-sized elementary school in Tulare, California, enrolling 511 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 23.2:1 puts it in the larger third of California schools by student-teacher ratio.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 53.9% lands close to the California typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
With 511 students, its enrollment sits close to the California median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 9,998 scored California schools.
Among 1,622 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need California schools statewide, it ranks #1,306, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (92% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 15/100).
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 35.6% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Among Tulare's elementary schools, it stands alongside Liberty Elementary (861 students): Palo Verde Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (23.2:1 vs 26.1:1).
Palo Verde Union Elementary operates only this one school, so Palo Verde Elementary has no district-mates to compare against locally.
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 Palo Verde Elementary compares
Palo Verde 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 | 23.2:1 | ▲ 8% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 53.9% | ▼ 3% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 511 | top 44% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
23.2:1
Leaner classes than 8% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
511
Bigger than 63% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
53.9%
free-lunch eligible
- 3% below the California average of 55.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
23.2:1
students per teacher
- 8% above state mean
Top 64% in California - lower ratio than 36% of state schools
Above 20:1, running heavier than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is comparatively stretched.
Engagement
35.6%
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
$15,541
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
7
in-school suspensions + 7 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.4 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.7 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
Hispanic or Latino 92.0%
White 5.7%
African American 1.0%
Two or More 0.8%
Asian 0.6%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 92.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 15.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 15.0, Palo Verde Elementary is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Palo Verde Union Elementary, which includes Palo Verde Elementary.
$15,541
Per student
-6%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-6%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 9.0%
State 78.9%
Federal 12.1%
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.
Similar elementary schools in Tulare
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Liberty Elementary
Standard public school
861 students 26.1:1 students per teacher
Sundale Elementary
Standard public school
840 students 26.3:1 students per teacher
Mulcahy Middle
Standard public school
745 students 22.6:1 students per teacher
Garden Elementary
Standard public school
689 students 23.8:1 students per teacher
Mission Valley Elementary
Standard public school
671 students 23.1:1 students per teacher
Pleasant Elementary
Standard public school
668 students 23.9:1 students per teacher
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 (~511 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~23.2:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Palo Verde Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Palo Verde Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Palo Verde 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 Palo Verde Elementary
How many students attend Palo Verde Elementary?
Palo Verde Elementary has 511 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Tulare, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Palo Verde Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Palo Verde Elementary is 23.2:1, which is 8% higher than the California average of 21.5:1 and 48% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Palo Verde Elementary?
53.9% of students at Palo Verde Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Palo Verde Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Palo Verde Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 92.0% of enrollment, in Tulare, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Palo Verde Elementary?
Palo Verde Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 16/100 (lower 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 Palo Verde Elementary rank among elementary schools in Tulare?
By Resource Investment Index, Palo Verde Elementary ranks #17 of 20 elementary schools in Tulare, 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 Tulare on the city page.
Is Palo Verde Elementary a good school?
Palo Verde Elementary earns 16/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median. It is also less 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 Palo Verde Union Elementary?
None reported; Palo Verde Union Elementary operates only Palo Verde Elementary as a public school district in NCES's records.
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.