Enrollment
261
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 060285014525
Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy — Antioch, CA
Federal NCES profile for Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 38/100.
👥 Class size 34
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 48
📋 Attendance 0
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: Antioch Unified · 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)
26.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.6:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
-23% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
66.6%
vs 55.5% California avg
+20% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy 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
Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy reports 261 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 26.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 16.6:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 23% below the California state mean of 21.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 4% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 66.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 20% above the California average and 29% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 261 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 100.0% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Antioch Unified spends $16,158 per pupil district-wide, below the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 28.6% from local sources (property taxes), 60.0% from the state, and 11.4% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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 Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy 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 | 16.6:1 | ▼ 23% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 66.6% | ▲ 20% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 261 | top 22% | — | — |
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
66.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 20% 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
16.6:1
students per teacher
— 23% below state mean
Top 12% in California — lower ratio than 88% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
100.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$16,158
per pupil, district-wide
— below California avg of $18,039
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 261 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
20
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 7.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 8.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 261 Top 22% in California — larger than 78% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 26.0
Students per teacher 16.6:1 -23% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 66.6% +20% vs state
NCES ID 060285014525
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 35.6%
African American 29.1%
White 10.3%
Asian 10.0%
Two or More 7.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 5.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.9%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 35.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 1.0
Students per counselor 261:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 100.0%
In-school suspensions 20
Out-of-school suspensions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Antioch Unified, which includes Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy.
$16,158
Per student
-10%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-17%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 28.6%
State 60.0%
Federal 11.4%
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.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,812
- Students per teacher
- 22.3:1
- Enrollment
- 1,776
- Students per teacher
- 23.1:1
- Enrollment
- 1,055
- Students per teacher
- 24.3:1
- Enrollment
- 795
- Students per teacher
- 22.9:1
- Enrollment
- 751
- Students per teacher
- 23.1:1
Similar elementary schools in Antioch
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Muir (John) Elementary
Standard public school
660 students 22.4:1 students per teacher
Rocketship Delta Prep
Standard public school
540 students 33.7:1 students per teacher
Marsh Elementary
Standard public school
522 students 21.2:1 students per teacher
Lone Tree Elementary
Standard public school
518 students 20.5:1 students per teacher
Mission Elementary
Standard public school
512 students 20:1 students per teacher
Diablo Vista Elementary
Standard public school
496 students 20.4:1 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 Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy
How many students attend Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy?
Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy has 261 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Antioch, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy?
The student-teacher ratio at Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy is 16.6:1, which is 23% lower than the California average of 21.6:1 and 4% higher than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy?
66.6% of students at Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy?
The largest demographic group at Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy is Hispanic or Latino at 35.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in Antioch, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy?
Thomas Gaines Virtual Academy has a Resource Investment Index of 38/100 (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.