Enrollment
357
California · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Oak View, CA
Sunset Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Sunset Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 27/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 064098008669
👥 S:T ratio 0
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 29
📋 Attendance 10
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Sunset Elementary earns 27/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 91% of California schools.
- 27
- Resource Index · Lower
- 27.5:1
- large classes for California
- 46.4%
- free-lunch eligible
- 357
- students enrolled
Sunset Elementary has class sizes larger than 91% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Ventura Unified · California
NCES ID 064098008669 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
13.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
27.5:1
vs 21.5:1 California avg
+28% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
46.4%
vs 55.5% California avg
-16% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sunset Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
What stands out at Sunset Elementary
Sunset Elementary is a mid-sized elementary school in Oak View, California, enrolling 357 students.
Class loads run heavy: 27.5:1 is larger than about 91% of California schools and 28% above the 21.5:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Economic need runs somewhat below the state's typical profile, with 46.4% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 357 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 9,998 scored California schools.
Against 1,066 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #576.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (49%) and White (46%) (diversity index 55/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 357 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 36.1% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Ventura Unified also operates Ventura High (1,939 students) and Buena High (1,585 students) alongside Sunset 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 Sunset Elementary compares
Sunset 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 | 27.5:1 | ▲ 28% | 21.5:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 46.4% | ▼ 16% | 55.5% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 357 | top 67% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
27.5:1
Leaner classes than 3% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
357
Bigger than 41% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
46.4%
free-lunch eligible
- 16% below the California average of 55.5%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
27.5:1
students per teacher
- 28% 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
36.1%
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.
Funding equity
$14,481
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
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 357 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 7 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.0 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 49.0%
White 46.2%
Asian 2.2%
Two or More 2.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 49.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 54.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 54.5, Sunset Elementary is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Ventura Unified, which includes Sunset Elementary.
$14,481
Per student
-12%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-13%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 40.6%
State 48.9%
Federal 10.4%
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 Sunset Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ventura High | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Buena High | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Foothill Technology High | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Cabrillo Middle | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Balboa Middle | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Sunset Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,939
- Students per teacher
- 21.8:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 1,585
- Students per teacher
- 21.1:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 951
- Students per teacher
- 25.7:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
- Enrollment
- 936
- Students per teacher
- 33.4:1
- Resource Index
- 35/100
- Enrollment
- 845
- Students per teacher
- 20.6:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
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.
Similar enrollment (~357 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~27.5:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Sunset Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Sunset Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Ventura 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 Sunset Elementary
How many students attend Sunset Elementary?
Sunset Elementary has 357 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Oak View, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sunset Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Sunset Elementary is 27.5:1, which is 28% 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 Sunset Elementary?
46.4% of students at Sunset Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sunset Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Sunset Elementary is Hispanic or Latino at 49.0% of enrollment, in Oak View, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 54.5/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sunset Elementary?
Sunset Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 27/100 (lower 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).
Is Sunset Elementary a good school?
Sunset Elementary earns 27/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 91% 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 Ventura Unified?
Besides Sunset Elementary, Ventura Unified also operates Ventura High (1,939 students), Buena High (1,585 students), and Foothill Technology High (951 students). See the Ventura 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.