High school (grades 9-12) · San Francisco, CA

Wells (Ida B.) High

Federal NCES profile for Wells (Ida B.) High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 31/100.

2024-25 NCES dataHigh school (grades 9-12)NCES 063441005653
0/100100/10031/100
👥 S:T ratio
44
📚 AP courses
10
🌟 Gifted program
70
📋 Attendance
0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Wells (Ida B.) High earns 31/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller than 91% of California schools.

#9 of 21
high schools in San Francisco · Resource Index
31
Resource Index · Lower
14.1:1
small classes for California
67.8%
free-lunch eligible

Wells (Ida B.) High has class sizes smaller than 91% of California schools. Computed live against every California school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Wells (Ida B.) High ranks #9 of 21 high schools in San Francisco, CA.

Enrollment

198

California · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

14.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

14.1:1

vs 21.5:1 California avg

-34% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

67.8%

vs 55.5% California avg

+22% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Wells (Ida B.) High compares with California and U.S. medians

Smaller classes than state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Wells (Ida B.) High

Wells (Ida B.) High is a higher-need, mid-sized high school in San Francisco, California, enrolling 198 students.

Classes run notably small here: at 14.1:1, Wells (Ida B.) High is leaner than roughly 91% of California schools and 34% under the state's 21.5:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.

Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 67.8% of students eligible for free meals.

Enrollment of 198 puts it in the smaller third of California schools by headcount.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 9,998 scored California schools.

Against 553 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #186.

Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (61%) and African American (17%) (diversity index 59/100).

No Advanced Placement courses are reported for this campus in the federal data.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 77.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

The surrounding San Francisco Unified spends $23,654 per pupil, 43% above the California average, a better-resourced district than most.

Among San Francisco's high schools, it stands alongside Five Keys Independence Hs (Sf Sheriff's) (3,447 students): Wells (Ida B.) High is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (14.1:1 vs 61.6:1).

San Francisco Unified also operates Lowell High (2,571 students) and Lincoln (Abraham) High (2,074 students) alongside Wells (Ida B.) High.

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 Wells (Ida B.) High compares

Wells (Ida B.) High on the metrics families compare, against California and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs California California avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 14.1:1 ▼ 34% 21.5:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 67.8% ▲ 22% 55.5% 51.7%
Enrollment 198 top 83% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

14.1:1
Leaner classes than 56% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
198
Bigger than 19% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
67.8%
free-lunch eligible - 22% 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
14.1:1
students per teacher - 34% below state mean
Top 9% in California - lower ratio than 91% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
77.3%
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
$23,654
per pupil, district-wide - above California avg of $16,509
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
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: 2.5 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 60.6%
African American 17.2%
Asian 8.6%
White 7.1%
Two or More 5.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.0%

Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 60.6% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 58.8/100

Simpson diversity index - at 58.8, Wells (Ida B.) High is more mixed than the California school average of 46.0.

Programs

AP program Not offered
Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for San Francisco Unified, which includes Wells (Ida B.) High.

$23,654
Per student
+43%
vs California
Avg $16,509
+43%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 56.8%
State 31.2%
Federal 12.0%

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 Wells (Ida B.) High Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
Lowell High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Lincoln (Abraham) High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Washington (George) High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Galileo High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Balboa High Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Wells (Ida B.) High's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

San Francisco Unified · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar high schools in San Francisco

6 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) serving the same city.

Similar high 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.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Wells (Ida B.) High's federal record.

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 Wells (Ida B.) High

How many students attend Wells (Ida B.) High?

Wells (Ida B.) High has 198 students enrolled. It is a high school in San Francisco, CA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Wells (Ida B.) High?

The student-teacher ratio at Wells (Ida B.) High is 14.1:1, which is 34% lower than the California average of 21.5:1 and 10% 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 Wells (Ida B.) High?

67.8% of students at Wells (Ida B.) High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Wells (Ida B.) High?

The largest demographic group at Wells (Ida B.) High is Hispanic or Latino at 60.6% of enrollment, in San Francisco, CA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 58.8/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Wells (Ida B.) High?

Wells (Ida B.) High has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (lower reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).

How does Wells (Ida B.) High rank among high schools in San Francisco?

By Resource Investment Index, Wells (Ida B.) High ranks #9 of 21 high schools in San Francisco, CA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all high schools in San Francisco on the city page.

Is Wells (Ida B.) High a good school?

Wells (Ida B.) High earns 31/100 on the Resource Investment Index, even as it posts class sizes smaller 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 San Francisco Unified?

Besides Wells (Ida B.) High, San Francisco Unified also operates Lowell High (2,571 students), Lincoln (Abraham) High (2,074 students), and Washington (George) High (2,068 students). See the San Francisco Unified district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.