Enrollment
161
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 063972006602
Trinidad Union — Trinidad, CA
Federal NCES profile for Trinidad Union, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 40/100.
👥 Class size 25
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 72
📋 Attendance 33
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 →
The verdict
Trinidad Union earns a D Resource Investment Index (40/100), even as it posts class sizes smaller than 79% of California schools.
- D
- Resource Index · 40/100
- 18.8:1
- small classes for California
- 55.6%
- free-lunch eligible
- 161
- students enrolled
School address
District: Trinidad Union 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)
9.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
18.8:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
-13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
55.6%
vs 55.5% California avg
+0% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Trinidad Union 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
Trinidad Union reports 161 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 9.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 18.8:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 13% 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 15.7:1, it is 20% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 55.6% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 0% above the California average and 7% above the national baseline. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 143 students per counselor, meeting the American School Counselor Association recommendation of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 26.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Trinidad Union Elementary spends $13,969 per pupil district-wide, below the California average of $16,509 and below the national average of $16,593. Revenue comes 32.7% from local sources (property taxes), 54.4% from the state, and 12.9% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (D), 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 Trinidad Union 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 | 18.8:1 | ▼ 13% | 21.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 55.6% | ▲ 0% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 161 | top 15% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
Class size vs. every US school
Students per teacher (lower means more individual attention)
19 smaller classes than 21% of 92,598 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 2024-25
School size vs. every US school
Total enrollment — where this school sits by size (neither large nor small is 'better')
161 larger than 16% of 95,891 US schools
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US schools. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education — NCES Common Core of Data · 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
55.6%
free-lunch eligible
— 0% 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
18.8:1
students per teacher
— 13% below state mean
Top 21% in California — lower ratio than 79% of state schools
Between 15:1 and 20:1 — in line with the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
26.7%
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
$13,969
per pupil, district-wide
— below California avg of $16,509
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.1 FTE
Per 142 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 161 Top 15% in California — larger than 85% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 9.0
Students per teacher 18.8:1 -13% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 55.6% +0% vs state
NCES ID 063972006602
Student demographics
White 65.6%
Hispanic or Latino 11.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 10.0%
Two or More 10.0%
African American 1.9%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.6%
Largest group: White at 65.6% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 1.1
Students per counselor 143:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 26.7%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 4
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Trinidad Union Elementary, which includes Trinidad Union.
$13,969
Per student
-15%
vs California
Avg $16,509
-16%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 32.7%
State 54.4%
Federal 12.9%
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.
Similar elementary schools in Trinidad
1 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
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 Trinidad Union
How many students attend Trinidad Union?
Trinidad Union has 161 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Trinidad, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Trinidad Union?
The student-teacher ratio at Trinidad Union is 18.8:1, which is 13% lower than the California average of 21.6:1 and 20% higher 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 Trinidad Union?
55.6% of students at Trinidad Union are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Trinidad Union?
The largest demographic group at Trinidad Union is White at 65.6%. The school serves a diverse student body in Trinidad, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Trinidad Union?
Trinidad Union has a Resource Investment Index of 40/100 (D) 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.
Is Trinidad Union a good school?
Trinidad Union earns a D Resource Investment Index (40/100), even as it posts class sizes smaller than 79% of California schools. The Resource Investment Index reflects staffing, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance reported to NCES, not test scores or academic outcomes, so treat it as a resource snapshot rather than an overall rating.