Enrollment
14
California · 2024-25 NCES data
High school (grades 9-12) · Waterford, CA
Sentinel High
Federal NCES profile for Sentinel High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 50/100.
2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 060006312193
👥 S:T ratio 72
📚 AP courses 10
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 86
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Sentinel High earns 50/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 98% of California schools. It is also one of the smallest schools in California.
- #1 of 8
- public schools in Waterford · Resource Index
- 50
- Resource Index · Higher
- 7:1
- small classes for California
- 81.0%
- free-lunch eligible
Sentinel High has class sizes smaller than 98% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Sentinel High ranks #1 of 8 public schools in Waterford, CA.
School address
District: Waterford Unified · California
NCES ID 060006312193 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
2.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
7:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-67% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
81.0%
vs 55.5% California avg
+46% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sentinel High compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Sentinel High
Sentinel High is a high-poverty, small high school in Waterford, California, enrolling 14 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 7:1, Sentinel High is leaner than roughly 98% of California schools and 67% under the state's 21.5:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 81.0% of students eligible for free meals.
This is a small campus: fewer students than 98% of California schools, with 14 enrolled.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 98% of the 9,998 California schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Against 73 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #18.
Its student body is led by White (50%) and Hispanic or Latino (43%) (diversity index 56/100).
No Advanced Placement courses are reported for this campus in the federal data.
Counselor coverage is strong, about 70 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Discipline events run high: 3 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 14 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
Among Waterford's high schools, it stands alongside Waterford High (582 students): Sentinel High is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (7:1 vs 20.8:1).
Waterford Unified also operates Waterford High (582 students) and Richard M. Moon Primary (510 students) alongside Sentinel 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 Sentinel High compares
Sentinel 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 | 7:1 | ▼ 67% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 81.0% | ▲ 46% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 14 | top 98% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
7:1
Leaner classes than 97% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
14
Bigger than 2% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
81.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 46% 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
7:1
students per teacher
- 67% below state mean
Top 2% in California - lower ratio than 98% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Funding equity
$17,234
per pupil, district-wide
- above California avg of $16,509
Close to the U.S. public-school average per-pupil spend.
Support staff
Counselors0.2 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 21.4 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 50.0%
Hispanic or Latino 42.9%
Two or More 7.1%
Largest group: White at 50.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 56.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 56.1, Sentinel High is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
AP program Not offered
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Waterford Unified, which includes Sentinel High.
$17,234
Per student
+4%
vs California
Avg $16,509
+4%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 24.1%
State 63.3%
Federal 12.6%
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 Sentinel High Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waterford High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Richard M. Moon Primary | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Lucille Whitehead Intermediate | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Waterford Junior | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Sentinel High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 582
- Students per teacher
- 20.8:1
- Resource Index
- 12/100
- Enrollment
- 510
- Students per teacher
- 23.2:1
- Resource Index
- 15/100
- Enrollment
- 355
- Students per teacher
- 22.2:1
- Resource Index
- 10/100
- Enrollment
- 260
- Students per teacher
- 21.7:1
- Resource Index
- 16/100
Similar high schools in Waterford
1 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 (~14 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Sentinel High's federal record.
- Compare Sentinel High against another school. Compare schools
- Waterford Unified'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 Sentinel High
How many students attend Sentinel High?
Sentinel High has 14 students enrolled. It is a high school in Waterford, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sentinel High?
The student-teacher ratio at Sentinel High is 7:1, which is 67% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 55% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Sentinel High?
81.0% of students at Sentinel High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sentinel High?
The largest demographic group at Sentinel High is White at 50.0% of enrollment, in Waterford, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 56.1/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sentinel High?
Sentinel High has a Resource Investment Index of 50/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Sentinel High rank among public schools in Waterford?
By Resource Investment Index, Sentinel High ranks #1 of 8 public schools in Waterford, CA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Waterford on the city page.
Is Sentinel High a good school?
Sentinel High earns 50/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 98% of California schools. It is also one of the smallest 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 Waterford Unified?
Besides Sentinel High, Waterford Unified also operates Waterford High (582 students), Richard M. Moon Primary (510 students), and Lucille Whitehead Intermediate (355 students). See the Waterford Unified 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.