Elementary school (grades K-5) · Torrance, CA

Seaside Elementary

Federal NCES profile for Seaside Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 34/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 063942006571
0/100100/10034/100
👥 S:T ratio
0
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
0
📋 Attendance
64
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Seaside Elementary earns 34/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 91% of California schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most California schools.

#13 of 20
elementary schools in Torrance · Resource Index
34
Resource Index · Typical
27.4:1
large classes for California
12.1%
free-lunch eligible

Seaside Elementary has class sizes larger than 91% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Seaside Elementary ranks #13 of 20 elementary schools in Torrance, CA.

School address

Enrollment

548

California · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

20.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

27.4:1

vs 21.5:1 California avg

+27% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

12.1%

vs 55.5% California avg

-78% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Seaside Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians

Larger classes than state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Seaside Elementary

Seaside Elementary is a lower-poverty, mid-sized elementary school in Torrance, California, enrolling 548 students.

Class loads run heavy: 27.4:1 is larger than about 91% of California schools and 27% above the 21.5:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.

Comparatively few students face economic hardship here, 12.1% free-meal eligibility runs 78% below the California average.

With 548 students, its enrollment sits close to the California median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 9,998 scored California schools.

Against 1,014 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #593.

Its student body is led by White (39%) and Asian (27%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 71/100).

Counselor access is stretched at roughly 913 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.

14.4% of students were chronically absent in the 2021-22 collection, in line with the post-pandemic national range.

The surrounding Torrance Unified spends $13,194 per pupil, 20% below the California average, a leaner-resourced district than most.

Among Torrance's elementary schools, it stands alongside Victor Elementary (965 students): Seaside Elementary is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (27.4:1 vs 24.7:1).

Torrance Unified also operates Torrance High (1,879 students) and North High (1,812 students) alongside Seaside 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 Seaside Elementary compares

Seaside 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 27.4:1 ▲ 27% 21.5:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 12.1% ▼ 78% 55.5% 51.7%
Enrollment 548 top 39% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

27.4:1
Leaner classes than 3% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
548
Bigger than 67% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
12.1%
free-lunch eligible - 78% below the California average of 55.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold, among the lower-need profiles in the state; federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
27.4:1
students per teacher - 27% above state mean
Top 91% in California - lower ratio than 9% of state schools
Well above 20:1, one of the more stretched staffing loads nationally relative to enrollment.
Engagement
14.4%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 10-15% range, above the pre-pandemic national baseline but within the broader post-pandemic picture.
Funding equity
$13,194
per pupil, district-wide - below California avg of $16,509
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.6 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.2 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 39.4%
Asian 26.5%
Hispanic or Latino 22.4%
Two or More 9.9%
African American 0.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%

Largest group: White at 39.4% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 71.4/100

Simpson diversity index - at 71.4, Seaside Elementary is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Torrance Unified, which includes Seaside Elementary.

$13,194
Per student
-20%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-20%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 38.0%
State 52.3%
Federal 9.8%

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 Seaside Elementary Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Torrance High Larger Higher economic need Lower S:T ratio
North High Larger Higher economic need Lower S:T ratio
West High Larger Similar economic need Lower S:T ratio
South High Larger Similar economic need Lower S:T ratio
Victor Elementary Larger Higher economic need Lower S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Seaside Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Torrance Unified · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools in Torrance

6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.

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.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Seaside Elementary'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.

Frequently asked questions about Seaside Elementary

How many students attend Seaside Elementary?

Seaside Elementary has 548 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Torrance, CA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Seaside Elementary?

The student-teacher ratio at Seaside Elementary is 27.4:1, which is 27% higher than the California average of 21.5:1 and 75% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.

What percentage of students receive free lunch at Seaside Elementary?

12.1% of students at Seaside Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Seaside Elementary?

The largest demographic group at Seaside Elementary is White at 39.4% of enrollment, in Torrance, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 71.4/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Seaside Elementary?

Seaside Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).

How does Seaside Elementary rank among elementary schools in Torrance?

By Resource Investment Index, Seaside Elementary ranks #13 of 20 elementary schools in Torrance, 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 Torrance on the city page.

Is Seaside Elementary a good school?

Seaside Elementary earns 34/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 91% of California schools. It is also more 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 Torrance Unified?

Besides Seaside Elementary, Torrance Unified also operates Torrance High (1,879 students), North High (1,812 students), and West High (1,775 students). See the Torrance Unified district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

View saved

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.