Enrollment
2,349
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data High school (grades 9-12) NCES 060282011346
William J. (Pete) Knight High — Palmdale, CA
Federal NCES profile for William J. (Pete) Knight High, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 45/100.
👥 Class size 5
📚 AP courses 100
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 41
📋 Attendance 10
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: Antelope Valley Union High · 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)
118.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
23.7:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
+10% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
52.8%
vs 55.5% California avg
-5% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How William J. (Pete) Knight High 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
William J. (Pete) Knight High reports 2,349 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 118.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 23.7:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 10% 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 49% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 52.8% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 5% below the California average and 2% above the national baseline. The school offers 20 Advanced Placement courses, a stronger academic pipeline indicator than enrollment alone. Counselor coverage works out to roughly 294 students per counselor, above the ASCA-recommended ceiling of 250:1. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 35.9% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Antelope Valley Union High spends $17,004 per pupil district-wide, below the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 20.3% from local sources (property taxes), 64.5% from the state, and 15.3% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (D), calculated from 5 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 William J. (Pete) Knight High 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 | 23.7:1 | ▲ 10% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 52.8% | ▼ 5% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 2,349 | top 98% | — | — |
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
52.8%
free-lunch eligible
— 5% 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
23.7:1
students per teacher
— 10% above state mean
Top 69% in California — lower ratio than 31% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
35.9%
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
$17,004
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
Counselors8.0 FTE
Per 294 students — the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
125
in-school suspensions + 168 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 12.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 2,349 Top 98% in California — larger than 2% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 118.0
Students per teacher 23.7:1 +10% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 52.8% -5% vs state
NCES ID 060282011346
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 78.9%
African American 13.2%
White 3.2%
Two or More 2.8%
Asian 1.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.1%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 78.9% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
AP courses offered 20
Gifted & talented Yes
Counselors (FTE) 8.0
Students per counselor 294:1
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 35.9%
In-school suspensions 125
Out-of-school suspensions 168
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Antelope Valley Union High, which includes William J. (Pete) Knight High.
$17,004
Per student
-6%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-13%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 20.3%
State 64.5%
Federal 15.3%
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
- 3,175
- Students per teacher
- 26.9:1
- Enrollment
- 2,706
- Students per teacher
- 25.6:1
- Enrollment
- 2,688
- Students per teacher
- 24.5:1
- Enrollment
- 2,631
- Students per teacher
- 25.5:1
- Enrollment
- 2,208
- Students per teacher
- 23.3:1
Similar high schools in Palmdale
3 comparable high schools (grades 9-12) 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 William J. (Pete) Knight High
How many students attend William J. (Pete) Knight High?
William J. (Pete) Knight High has 2,349 students enrolled. It is a high school in Palmdale, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at William J. (Pete) Knight High?
The student-teacher ratio at William J. (Pete) Knight High is 23.7:1, which is 10% higher than the California average of 21.6:1 and 49% higher than the national average of 15.9:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at William J. (Pete) Knight High?
52.8% of students at William J. (Pete) Knight High are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of William J. (Pete) Knight High?
The largest demographic group at William J. (Pete) Knight High is Hispanic or Latino at 78.9%. The school serves a diverse student body in Palmdale, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for William J. (Pete) Knight High?
William J. (Pete) Knight High has a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (D) based on 5 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.