Enrollment
662
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 062871004466
Patterson Road Elementary — Santa Maria, CA
Federal NCES profile for Patterson Road Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 16/100.
👥 Class size 0
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 32
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: Orcutt Union Elementary · 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
27.8:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
+29% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
36.9%
vs 55.5% California avg
-34% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Patterson Road 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
Patterson Road Elementary reports 662 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 22.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 27.8:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 29% 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 75% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 36.9% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 34% below the California average and 29% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 1324 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 27.2% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Orcutt Union Elementary spends $14,843 per pupil district-wide, below the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 37.2% from local sources (property taxes), 55.5% from the state, and 7.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 16/100 (F), calculated from 4 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 Patterson Road 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 | 27.8:1 | ▲ 29% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 36.9% | ▼ 34% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 662 | top 74% | — | — |
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
36.9%
free-lunch eligible
— 34% 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
27.8:1
students per teacher
— 29% above state mean
Top 95% in California — lower ratio than 5% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
27.2%
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
$14,843
per pupil, district-wide
— below California avg of $18,039
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.5 FTE
Per 1324 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 28 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 662 Top 74% in California — larger than 26% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 22.0
Students per teacher 27.8:1 +29% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 36.9% -34% vs state
NCES ID 062871004466
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 57.1%
White 28.4%
Two or More 11.9%
Asian 1.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.9%
African American 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 57.1% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 0.5
Students per counselor 1324:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 27.2%
In-school suspensions 3
Out-of-school suspensions 28
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Orcutt Union Elementary, which includes Patterson Road Elementary.
$14,843
Per student
-18%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-24%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 37.2%
State 55.5%
Federal 7.4%
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
- 812
- Students per teacher
- 22.6:1
- Enrollment
- 695
- Students per teacher
- 27.7:1
- Enrollment
- 569
- Students per teacher
- 25.5:1
- Enrollment
- 530
- Students per teacher
- 25.6:1
- Enrollment
- 502
- Students per teacher
- 26.2:1
Similar elementary schools in Santa Maria
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Jimenez Roberto and Dr. Francisco Elementary
Standard public school
1,177 students 23.5:1 students per teacher
Bruce (Robert) Elementary
Standard public school
1,050 students 22.1:1 students per teacher
Alvin Elementary
Standard public school
998 students 23.4:1 students per teacher
Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary
Standard public school
917 students 22.3:1 students per teacher
Rice (William) Elementary
Standard public school
887 students 24.7:1 students per teacher
Miller (Isaac) Elementary
Standard public school
883 students 24.5:1 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 Patterson Road Elementary
How many students attend Patterson Road Elementary?
Patterson Road Elementary has 662 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Santa Maria, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Patterson Road Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Patterson Road Elementary is 27.8:1, which is 29% higher than the California average of 21.6:1 and 75% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Patterson Road Elementary?
36.9% of students at Patterson Road Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Patterson Road Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Patterson Road Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 57.1%. The school serves a diverse student body in Santa Maria, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Patterson Road Elementary?
Patterson Road Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 16/100 (F) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.