Coachella Valley Unified
Coachella Valley Unified is a public school district based in Thermal, California, serving 15,817 students in 22 schools. By enrollment it ranks #82 of the 554 California districts with 1,000 or more students, larger than about 85% of them. Its schools average 719 students each, more than the California median of 533. Its superintendent is Frances Esparza. It spends about $16,179 per student on day-to-day operations, 18% more than the California median. It has roughly 21.3 students per teacher.
How Coachella Valley compares
Spending and staffing
| Measure | Coachella Valley | California median | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current spending per student | $16,179 | $13,724 | FY2020-21 |
| Instruction spending per student | $10,438 | $8,321 | FY2020-21 |
| Total spending | $321.5 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Total revenue | $336.8 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Teachers (full-time equivalent) | 744 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Total staff (full-time equivalent) | 1,996 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Students per teacher | 21.3 | 21.7 | 2024-25 |
| Students per counselor | 832 | 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 →Frances Esparza
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cajon Valley UnionEl Cajon | 15,992 | 26 | $14,459 | 23.8 | #80 |
| Central UnifiedFresno | 15,962 | 25 | $12,844 | 23.2 | #81 |
| Coachella Valley UnifiedThermal · this district | 15,817 | 22 | $16,179 | 21.3 | #82 |
| Salinas Union HighSalinas | 15,813 | 12 | $13,447 | 21.1 | #83 |
| Conejo Valley UnifiedThousand Oaks | 15,724 | 27 | $11,901 | 20.9 | #84 |
Similar-size districts nationally
| District | Students | Spending per student | Students per teacher |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trenton Public School DistrictTrenton, NJ | 15,964 | $16,859 | 16.1 |
| Eugene School District 4JEugene, OR | 15,943 | $12,802 | 17.2 |
| Florence 01Florence, SC | 15,861 | $12,396 | 13.4 |
| Racine Unified School DistrictRacine, WI | 15,781 | $15,320 | 13.3 |
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-coachella-valley-unified