Enrollment
1,141
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Visalia, CA
Special Education
Federal NCES profile for Special Education, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 28/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 069104509257
👥 S:T ratio 53
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Special Education earns 28/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 94% of California schools.
- #6 of 9
- schools in Visalia · Resource Index
- 28
- Resource Index · Lower
- 11.8:1
- small classes for California
- 64.3%
- free-lunch eligible
Special Education has class sizes smaller than 94% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Special Education ranks #6 of 9 schools in Visalia, CA.
School address
District: Tulare County Office of Education · California
NCES ID 069104509257 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
97.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.8:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
-45% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
64.3%
vs 55.5% California avg
+16% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Special Education compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Special Education
Special Education is a higher-need, large combined-grade school in Visalia, California, enrolling 1,141 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 11.8:1, Special Education is leaner than roughly 94% of California schools and 45% under the state's 21.5:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 64.3% lands close to the California typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in California, bigger than 91% of state schools at 1,141 students.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 703 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #279.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (80% of enrollment) (diversity index 34/100).
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 53.8% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 27.4% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Among Visalia's public schools, it stands alongside Crescent Valley Public Charter Ii (852 students): Special Education is larger than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (11.8:1 vs 40.6:1).
Tulare County Office of Education also operates University Preparatory High (253 students) and La Sierra High (191 students) alongside Special Education.
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 Special Education compares
Special Education on the metrics families compare, against California and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 11.8:1 | ▼ 45% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 64.3% | ▲ 16% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 1,141 | top 9% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.8:1
Leaner classes than 77% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
1,141
Bigger than 93% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
64.3%
free-lunch eligible
- 16% 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
11.8:1
students per teacher
- 45% below state mean
Top 6% in California - lower ratio than 94% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
53.8%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.1 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
Hispanic or Latino 80.3%
White 13.8%
Asian 2.7%
African American 1.2%
Two or More 1.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 80.3% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 33.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 33.5, Special Education is less mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
How Special Education Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| University Preparatory High | Smaller | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| La Sierra High | Smaller | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Tulare County Court | Smaller | Higher economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Tulare County Community | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Special Education's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 253
- Students per teacher
- 28.1:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 191
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
- Enrollment
- 66
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Resource Index
- 63/100
- Enrollment
- 5
- Students per teacher
- 1.7:1
- Resource Index
- 74/100
Similar other schools in Visalia
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Crescent Valley Public Charter Ii
Standard public school
852 students 40.6:1 students per teacher
Valley Life Charter
Standard public school
688 students 17.2:1 students per teacher
Visalia Charter Independent Study
Standard public school
515 students 10.5:1 students per teacher
Eleanor Roosevelt Community Learning Center
Standard public school
467 students 33.4:1 students per teacher
La Sierra High
Standard public school
191 students 13.6:1 students per teacher
Tulare County Court
Alternative education program
66 students 13.2:1 students per teacher
Similar other 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 (~1,141 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11.8:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Special Education's federal record.
- Compare Special Education against another school. Compare schools
- Tulare County Office of Education'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 Special Education
How many students attend Special Education?
Special Education has 1,141 students enrolled. It is a special-education school in Visalia, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Special Education?
The student-teacher ratio at Special Education is 11.8:1, which is 45% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 25% 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 Special Education?
64.3% of students at Special Education are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Special Education?
The largest demographic group at Special Education is Hispanic or Latino at 80.3% of enrollment, in Visalia, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Special Education?
Special Education has a Resource Investment Index of 28/100 (lower reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Special Education rank among schools in Visalia?
By Resource Investment Index, Special Education ranks #6 of 9 schools in Visalia, CA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Visalia on the city page.
Is Special Education a good school?
Special Education earns 28/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 94% of 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 Tulare County Office of Education?
Besides Special Education, Tulare County Office of Education also operates University Preparatory High (253 students), La Sierra High (191 students), and Tulare County Court (66 students). See the Tulare County Office of Education 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.