Enrollment
523
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 063509005940
Sun Valley Elementary — San Rafael, CA
Federal NCES profile for Sun Valley Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 28/100.
👥 Class size 10
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 71
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: San Rafael City Elementary · California
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
21.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
22.5:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
+4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
23.7%
vs 55.5% California avg
-57% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sun Valley Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Sun Valley Elementary reports 523 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 21.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 22.5:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 4% above the California state mean of 21.6:1, signalling larger average class loads than peers in the same state. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 42% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 23.7% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 57% below the California average and 54% below the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 523 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 11.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding San Rafael City Elementary spends $19,777 per pupil district-wide, above the California average of $18,039 and above the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 45.6% from local sources (property taxes), 43.9% from the state, and 10.5% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 28/100 (F), calculated from 4 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Sun Valley Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against California state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 22.5:1 | ▲ 4% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 23.7% | ▼ 57% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 523 | top 58% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
23.7%
free-lunch eligible
— 57% below the California average of 55.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
22.5:1
students per teacher
— 4% above state mean
Top 55% in California — lower ratio than 45% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
11.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Between 10–20% — above the pre-pandemic baseline of ~15% nationally but within the current U.S. range.
Funding equity
$19,777
per pupil, district-wide
— above California avg of $18,039
Above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 523 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 5 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 523 Top 58% in California — larger than 42% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 21.0
Students per teacher 22.5:1 +4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 23.7% -57% vs state
NCES ID 063509005940
Student demographics
White 55.4%
Hispanic or Latino 27.9%
Two or More 11.5%
Asian 4.0%
African American 1.0%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 55.4% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 523:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 11.7%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 5
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for San Rafael City Elementary, which includes Sun Valley Elementary.
$19,777
Per student
+10%
vs California
Avg $18,039
+1%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 45.6%
State 43.9%
Federal 10.5%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,052
- Students per teacher
- 20.1:1
- Enrollment
- 748
- Students per teacher
- 20.2:1
- Enrollment
- 552
- Students per teacher
- 23.8:1
- Enrollment
- 469
- Students per teacher
- 20.6:1
- Enrollment
- 378
- Students per teacher
- 26.2:1
Similar elementary schools in San Rafael
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Venetia Valley K-8
Standard public school
748 students 20.2:1 students per teacher
Bahia Vista Elementary
Standard public school
552 students 23.8:1 students per teacher
San Pedro Elementary
Standard public school
469 students 20.6:1 students per teacher
Mary E. Silveira Elementary
Standard public school
412 students 24.1:1 students per teacher
Vallecito Elementary
Standard public school
408 students 26.3:1 students per teacher
Coleman Elementary
Standard public school
378 students 26.2:1 students per teacher
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Sun Valley Elementary
How many students attend Sun Valley Elementary?
Sun Valley Elementary has 523 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in San Rafael, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sun Valley Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Sun Valley Elementary is 22.5:1, which is 4% higher than the California average of 21.6:1 and 42% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Sun Valley Elementary?
23.7% of students at Sun Valley Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sun Valley Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Sun Valley Elementary is White at 55.4%. The school serves a diverse student body in San Rafael, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sun Valley Elementary?
Sun Valley Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 28/100 (F) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.