Enrollment
3,143
California · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Santa Maria, CA
Santa Maria High
Federal NCES profile for Santa Maria High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 36/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 063567006084
👥 S:T ratio 10
📚 AP courses 50
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 37
📋 Attendance 53
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Santa Maria High earns 36/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median. It is also one of the largest schools in California.
- #1 of 4
- high schools in Santa Maria · Resource Index
- 36
- Resource Index · Typical
- 22.4:1
- students per teacher
- 75.3%
- free-lunch eligible
Santa Maria High has class sizes near the California median. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Santa Maria High ranks #1 of 4 high schools in Santa Maria, CA.
School address
District: Santa Maria Joint Union High · California
NCES ID 063567006084 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
140.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
22.4:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
+4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
75.3%
vs 55.5% California avg
+36% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Santa Maria High compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Santa Maria High
Santa Maria High is a high-poverty, large high school in Santa Maria, California, enrolling 3,143 students.
At 22.4:1, 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 75.3% of students eligible for free meals.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in California, bigger than 99% of state schools at 3,143 students.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 110 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #40.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (97% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 5/100).
On the academic-pipeline side it reports 10 Advanced Placement courses.
Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 314 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 18.6% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 5 expulsions at this campus for 2021-22.
Among Santa Maria's high schools, it stands alongside Pioneer Valley High (3,080 students): Santa Maria High is larger than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (22.4:1 vs 23.3:1).
Santa Maria Joint Union High also operates Pioneer Valley High (3,080 students) and Ernest Righetti High (2,416 students) alongside Santa Maria 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
How Santa Maria High compares
Santa Maria 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 | 22.4:1 | ▲ 4% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 75.3% | ▲ 36% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 3,143 | top 1% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
22.4:1
Leaner classes than 9% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
3,143
Bigger than 99% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
75.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 36% 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
22.4:1
students per teacher
- 4% above state mean
Top 57% in California - lower ratio than 43% of state schools
Above 20:1, running heavier than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is comparatively stretched.
Engagement
18.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$15,167
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
Counselors10.0 FTE
Per 314 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 137 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 4.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 5 expulsions.
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 97.4%
White 1.2%
Asian 0.9%
African American 0.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Two or More 0.1%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 97.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 5.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 5.1, Santa Maria High is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
AP courses offered 10
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Santa Maria Joint Union High, which includes Santa Maria High.
$15,167
Per student
-8%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-9%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 32.8%
State 59.5%
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 Santa Maria High Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pioneer Valley High | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Ernest Righetti High | Similar size | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Delta High | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Santa Maria High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 3,080
- Students per teacher
- 23.3:1
- Resource Index
- 30/100
- Enrollment
- 2,416
- Students per teacher
- 21.6:1
- Resource Index
- 29/100
- Enrollment
- 291
- Students per teacher
- 19.4:1
- Resource Index
- 26/100
Similar high schools in Santa Maria
3 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.
Similar high 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 (~3,143 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~22.4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Santa Maria High's federal record.
- Compare Santa Maria High against another school. Compare schools
- Santa Maria Joint Union High'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 Santa Maria High
How many students attend Santa Maria High?
Santa Maria High has 3,143 students enrolled. It is a high school in Santa Maria, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Santa Maria High?
The student-teacher ratio at Santa Maria High is 22.4:1, which is 4% higher than the California average of 21.5:1 and 43% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Santa Maria High?
75.3% of students at Santa Maria High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Santa Maria High?
The largest demographic group at Santa Maria High is Hispanic or Latino at 97.4% of enrollment, in Santa Maria, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Santa Maria High?
Santa Maria 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).
How does Santa Maria High rank among high schools in Santa Maria?
By Resource Investment Index, Santa Maria High ranks #1 of 4 high schools in Santa Maria, 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 Santa Maria on the city page.
Is Santa Maria High a good school?
Santa Maria High earns 36/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the California median. It is also one of the largest schools in California. 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 Santa Maria Joint Union High?
Besides Santa Maria High, Santa Maria Joint Union High also operates Pioneer Valley High (3,080 students), Ernest Righetti High (2,416 students), and Delta High (291 students). See the Santa Maria Joint Union High 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.