Ballico-Cressey Community Charter

Set in Ballico, California, Ballico-Cressey Community Charter is a modestly sized K-5 school, overseen by Ballico-Cressey Elementary. It educates 293 students across grades 1 through 8. Compared to the state average of about 465 students per school, that is 37% smaller than typical.

Ballico-Cressey Elementary runs 2 schools in total, collectively educating 336 students. Ballico-Cressey Community Charter is one of those campuses.

Demographically, Ballico-Cressey Community Charter reports that the largest single group is Hispanic, at 67% of enrollment; the rest consists of 29% White. That composition is broadly in line with Merced County as a whole.

On the income-and-resources front, Staff filings list 18 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 16.5:1 students per teacher. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 22.3:1 average. Roughly 46% of students at Ballico-Cressey Community Charter qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. By comparison, Merced County runs at roughly 81%, so the school's eligibility rate is below the surrounding baseline.

With demographic context factored in, Ballico-Cressey Community Charter is in the bottom 10% of California public schools. The BeatsExpectations model predicts schools with this FRL share to land around 51.9%; Ballico-Cressey Community Charter posts 35.9%, -16.0 points below that line.

In the broader community, ACS estimates for Merced County put the typical household earns roughly $65,510 per year, about 15% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 16%. Ballico-Cressey Community Charter is one of 117 public schools in Merced County (combined enrollment of about 59,456 students).

Nearest neighbor: Cressey Elementary, around 2.9 miles off. Within five miles, there are 5 other public schools. Among the 7 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Ballico-Cressey Community Charter ranks 3rd on composite proficiency, above the local average of 30.4%.

Geographically, the school is in an outlying area. Ballico-Cressey Community Charter is a charter school, which puts it inside the public-school system but outside the standard district-managed model.

Looking at the recent track record. Ballico-Cressey Community Charter's enrollment has increased 12% since 2018, when it stood at 261 (now 293). Hispanic enrollment moved from 54% to 67% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio tightened from 19.9:1 in 2018 to 16.5:1 today.

In the discussion threads here, recent activity here tends to focus on enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. The community welcomes input from current and former families.