John F. Kennedy Elementary

John F. Kennedy Elementary, a close-knit K-5 school in Indio, California, operated by Desert Sands Unified, caters to 390 students, covering grades K through 5.

John F. Kennedy Elementary is one of 34 schools operated by Desert Sands Unified, a district that serves 25,613 students overall.

On demographics, John F. Kennedy Elementary reports that nearly all students (96%) are Hispanic. Other groups include 2% multiracial. The wider county runs roughly 51% Hispanic, putting the school's mix considerably more Hispanic than the area baseline.

Looking at school resources, On paper, John F. Kennedy Elementary has 18 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 21.6:1. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 22.3:1, putting John F. Kennedy Elementary tighter than the state norm the norm. About 91% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. By comparison, Riverside County runs at roughly 74%, so the school's eligibility rate is above the surrounding baseline.

With demographic context factored in, John F. Kennedy Elementary sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 25.1%; this one delivers 11.2%.

Zooming out to the county, ACS estimates for Riverside County put median household earnings sit near $93,074, roughly 26% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and the poverty rate sits near 8%. Across Riverside County's 543 public schools (combined enrollment of about 424,872 students), John F. Kennedy Elementary is one campus in the mix.

Lyndon B. Johnson Elementary is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.3 miles from this campus. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. On composite proficiency, John F. Kennedy Elementary comes 9th of 9 in the immediate cluster, beneath the nearby-schools average of 20.0%.

The campus sits in a residential setting.

Five-year trend. Over the past 7-year window, the student count edged down 22%: 497 students in 2018 compared to 390 in 2025. Over the same period, the Hispanic share edged up from 91% to 96%. Class-load math has pulled in: from 24.9:1 in 2018 to 21.6:1 in 2025.

On this page, members of the John F. Kennedy Elementary community share and discuss classroom updates, athletics, and weather closures. The community welcomes input from current and former families.