Enrollment
1,600
California · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Salinas, CA
Federal NCES profile for Rancho San Juan High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 36/100.
The verdict
Rancho San Juan High earns 36/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most California schools.
Rancho San Juan High has class sizes near the California median. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Rancho San Juan High ranks #6 of 8 high schools in Salinas, CA.
NCES ID 063398014401 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Enrollment
1,600
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Teachers (FTE)
77.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.8:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-3% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
67.3%
vs 55.5% California avg
+21% vs state
How Rancho San Juan High compares with California and U.S. medians
At or below state median
20.8:1 - 0.7 below the California state median of 21.5:1, indicating smaller average class loads than typical schools in the state.
Rancho San Juan High is a higher-need, large high school in Salinas, California, enrolling 1,600 students.
At 20.8:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the California median, within a few percentage points of the 21.5:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 67.3% of students eligible for free meals.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in California, bigger than 94% of state schools at 1,600 students.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 379 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #194.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (91% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 18/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 13 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 267 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 31.0% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The federal civil-rights collection also records 2 expulsions at this campus for 2021-22.
Among Salinas's high schools, it stands alongside Alisal High (2,742 students): Rancho San Juan High is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (20.8:1 vs 22.7:1).
Salinas Union High also operates Alisal High (2,742 students) and Salinas High (2,380 students) alongside Rancho San Juan High.
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
Rancho San Juan High on the metrics families compare, against California and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.8:1 | ▼ 3% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 67.3% | ▲ 21% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 1,600 | top 6% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
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.
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 90.6% of enrollment.
Simpson diversity index - at 17.6, Rancho San Juan High is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Salinas Union High, which includes Rancho San Juan High.
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.
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alisal High | Larger | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Salinas High | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| North Salinas High | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Everett Alvarez High | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Harden Middle | Smaller | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Rancho San Juan High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
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.
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Rancho San Juan High's federal record.
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.
Rancho San Juan High has 1,600 students enrolled. It is a high school in Salinas, CA.
The student-teacher ratio at Rancho San Juan High is 20.8:1, which is 3% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 32% higher than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
67.3% of students at Rancho San Juan High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
The largest demographic group at Rancho San Juan High is Hispanic or Latino at 90.6% of enrollment, in Salinas, CA.
Rancho San Juan High has a Resource Investment Index of 36/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
By Resource Investment Index, Rancho San Juan High ranks #6 of 8 high schools in Salinas, CA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all high schools in Salinas on the city page.
Rancho San Juan High earns 36/100 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.
Besides Rancho San Juan High, Salinas Union High also operates Alisal High (2,742 students), Salinas High (2,380 students), and North Salinas High (2,106 students). See the Salinas Union High district page for the complete list.
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.
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PlainSchools, “Rancho San Juan High, Salinas CA.” Compiled from NCES Common Core of Data, Civil Rights Data Collection, and the NCES F-33 finance survey; data as of June 2026. https://plainschools.com/schools/rancho-san-juan-high-ca
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