Atascadero Unified
Atascadero Unified is a public school district based in Atascadero, California, serving 4,357 students in 12 schools. By enrollment it ranks #281 of the 554 California districts with 1,000 or more students, larger than about 49% of them. Its schools average 363 students each, fewer than the California median of 533. Its superintendent is Tom Bennett. It spends about $11,955 per student on day-to-day operations, 13% less than the California median. It has roughly 21.8 students per teacher.
How Atascadero compares
Spending and staffing
| Measure | Atascadero | California median | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current spending per student | $11,955 | $13,724 | FY2020-21 |
| Instruction spending per student | $7,214 | $8,321 | FY2020-21 |
| Total spending | $67.0 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Total revenue | $79.2 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Teachers (full-time equivalent) | 200 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Total staff (full-time equivalent) | 540 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Students per teacher | 21.8 | 21.7 | 2024-25 |
| Students per counselor | 363 | 474 | 2024-25 |
Spending: NCES school district finance survey (F-33), FY2020-21. Staffing and enrollment: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25. Via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal. The California median compares districts with 1,000 or more students.
Leadership
Moves tracker →Tom Bennett
Source: California Department of Education, School Directory, checked 2026-10-19. Report a change
In the news
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Peer districts in California
Compare side by side →| District | Students | Schools | Spending per student | Students per teacher | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atascadero UnifiedAtascadero · this district | 4,357 | 12 | $11,955 | 21.8 | #281 |
| Benicia UnifiedBenicia | 4,346 | 7 | $10,895 | 22.8 | #282 |
| Lawndale ElementaryLawndale | 4,324 | 9 | $15,782 | 22.5 | #283 |
| Central ElementaryRancho Cucamonga | 4,320 | 7 | $12,256 | 23.4 | #284 |
| Charter Oak UnifiedCovina | 4,314 | 10 | $12,861 | 22.2 | #285 |
Similar-size districts nationally
| District | Students | Spending per student | Students per teacher |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville North Pulaski School DistrictJacksonville, AR | 4,360 | $10,271 | 13.1 |
| Muscatine Community School DistrictMuscatine, IA | 4,358 | $11,736 | 13.3 |
| Nutley Public School DistrictNutley, NJ | 4,356 | $19,488 | 14.1 |
| Kaufman ISDKaufman, TX | 4,356 | $10,200 | 15.2 |
Peers are the districts closest in enrollment, so they can still differ in many other ways. Enrollment, school counts and phone numbers are from the NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25.
Printed from Superintendent's Corner: https://superintendentscorner.com/district-ca-atascadero-unified