Teaching & learning
District profile / California
Downey Unified
22,462
Students
2024-25 school year
21
Schools
2024-25 school year
$14,339
Spending per student
FY2020-21 · about the same as the California median
23.7
Students per teacher
2024-25 · California median 21.7
Downey Unified is a public school district based in Downey, California, serving 22,462 students in 21 schools. By enrollment it ranks #45 of the 554 California districts with 1,000 or more students, larger than about 92% of them. Its schools average 1,070 students each, more than the California median of 533. Its superintendent is Roger Brossmer. It spends about $14,339 per student on day-to-day operations, about the state median. It has roughly 23.7 students per teacher. We've matched 1 news story to the district.
How Downey compares
DowneyCalifornia median, districts with 1,000+ students
Spending and staffing
Where the money comes from$421.0 million in revenue · FY2020-21
Federal 12%State 67%Local 21%
| Measure | Downey | California median | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current spending per student | $14,339 | $13,724 | FY2020-21 |
| Instruction spending per student | $9,620 | $8,321 | FY2020-21 |
| Total spending | $433.0 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Total revenue | $421.0 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Teachers (full-time equivalent) | 949 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Total staff (full-time equivalent) | 2,200 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Students per teacher | 23.7 | 21.7 | 2024-25 |
| Students per counselor | 681 | 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 →Roger Brossmer
Source: California Department of Education, School Directory, checked 2026-10-19. Report a change
In the news
1 story matchedPeer districts in California
Compare side by side →| District | Students | Schools | Spending per student | Students per teacher | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Placentia-Yorba Linda UnifiedPlacentia | 22,698 | 34 | $12,415 | 22.8 | #43 |
| Saddleback Valley UnifiedMission Viejo | 22,691 | 34 | $12,689 | 22.7 | #44 |
| Downey UnifiedDowney · this district | 22,462 | 21 | $14,339 | 23.7 | #45 |
| Chula Vista ElementaryChula Vista | 22,245 | 44 | $13,624 | 22.0 | #46 |
| Chaffey Joint Union HighOntario | 22,116 | 11 | $13,126 | 24.2 | #47 |
Similar-size districts nationally
| District | Students | Spending per student | Students per teacher |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alamance-Burlington SchoolsBurlington, NC | 22,661 | $10,280 | 16.4 |
| Buncombe County SchoolsAsheville, NC | 22,452 | $11,425 | 15.1 |
| Birdville ISDHaltom City, TX | 22,267 | $9,939 | 15.3 |
| Blue ValleyOverland Park, KS | 22,252 | $11,417 | 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-downey-unified