San Marcos Unified
San Marcos Unified is a public school district based in San Marcos, California, serving 18,860 students in 19 schools. By enrollment it ranks #64 of the 554 California districts with 1,000 or more students, larger than about 89% of them. Its schools average 993 students each, more than the California median of 533. Its superintendent is Andrew Johnsen. It spends about $13,048 per student on day-to-day operations, about the state median. It has roughly 23.5 students per teacher.
How San Marcos compares
Spending and staffing
| Measure | San Marcos | California median | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current spending per student | $13,048 | $13,724 | FY2020-21 |
| Instruction spending per student | $8,463 | $8,321 | FY2020-21 |
| Total spending | $289.3 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Total revenue | $353.0 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Teachers (full-time equivalent) | 803 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Total staff (full-time equivalent) | 1,616 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Students per teacher | 23.5 | 21.7 | 2024-25 |
| Students per counselor | 539 | 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 →Andrew Johnsen
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Redlands UnifiedRedlands | 19,310 | 25 | $13,906 | 21.9 | #61 |
| Montebello UnifiedMontebello | 19,195 | 29 | $17,377 | 20.2 | #62 |
| Val Verde UnifiedPerris | 19,080 | 23 | $13,995 | 21.8 | #63 |
| San Marcos UnifiedSan Marcos · this district | 18,860 | 19 | $13,048 | 23.5 | #64 |
| Colton Joint UnifiedColton | 18,414 | 28 | $14,285 | 20.9 | #65 |
Similar-size districts nationally
| District | Students | Spending per student | Students per teacher |
|---|---|---|---|
| Putnam City Public SchoolsWarr Acres, OK | 18,836 | $10,260 | 16.0 |
| Kennewick School DistrictKennewick, WA | 18,826 | $14,239 | 18.0 |
| New Haven School DistrictNew Haven, CT | 18,817 | $19,132 | 12.0 |
| Washington Elementary School District (4260)Glendale, AZ | 18,816 | $9,947 | 17.0 |
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-san-marcos-unified