Saint Helena Unified vs Tuckahoe Union Free School District
CA · 1,105 students • NY · 1,050 students • fiscal year 2024 • swap sides
In one line
- Saint Helena Unified spends 16% more per student than Tuckahoe Union Free School District after adjusting for local price levels.
- Tuckahoe Union Free School District directs 3 more cents of every operating dollar to instruction than Saint Helena Unified.
- Tuckahoe Union Free School District reports fewer students per teacher (9.8 vs 13.5). This is a staffing ratio, not an average class size.
Are these even comparable?
Establish the shape of each district before reading a single dollar figure.
| Saint Helena Unified | Tuckahoe Union Free School District | |
|---|---|---|
| Students enrolled | 1,105 | 1,050 |
| Schools | 5 | 3 |
| Grades served | K–12 | PK–12 |
| Setting | Town | Suburb |
| County | Napa County | Westchester County |
| State | CA | NY |
| Local price level (US = 100) Above 100 means a dollar buys less here than the national average. | 112.6 | 112.6 |
The headline dollar
Current operating spending per student, shown three ways. The first is what each district reports. The second and third are the honest ones for comparison.
| Saint Helena Unified | Tuckahoe Union Free School District | |
|---|---|---|
| Per student, as reported | $40,260 | $34,654 |
| Per student, price-adjusted Divided by the local price level, so both figures are in the same money. | $35,770 | $30,787 |
| Per student, price-adjusted, excluding transport Transportation provision varies enormously between districts and states. Removing it compares the parts both districts actually do. | $35,249 | $28,713 |
| Capital spending per student Buildings and land, never folded into the operating figures above. It is lumpy: a district mid-build looks expensive for two years. | Locked | Locked |
Saint Helena Unified
Tuckahoe Union Free School District
Where the money comes from
The funding mix determines how exposed a district is to local property values, to state politics, and to federal programmes ending.
Saint Helena Unified
- Local 85.4% Locked
- State 9.5% Locked
- Federal 5.1% Locked
Tuckahoe Union Free School District
- Local 80.6% Locked
- State 17.7% Locked
- Federal 1.7% Locked
| Saint Helena Unified | Tuckahoe Union Free School District | |
|---|---|---|
| Local share of revenue Mostly property tax. A high share means school budgets track local property values, up and down. | 85.4% | 80.6% |
| State share of revenue | 9.5% | 17.7% |
| Federal share of revenue | 5.1% | 1.7% |
| Total revenue | Locked | Locked |
How CA funds its districts
LCFF — Local Control Funding Formula: a base grant per pupil plus supplemental and concentration grants driven by low-income, English-learner and foster-youth counts.
How NY funds its districts
Foundation Aid: a per-pupil formula weighted for regional cost and student need, layered over a heavily local property-tax base.
Where the money goes
The same slices in the same order for both districts, plus the differences by function — because two pie charts side by side hide exactly the thing you want to see.
Saint Helena Unified
- Instruction 62.9% Locked
- Instructional staff support 4.1% Locked
- Student support 4.6% Locked
- Operations & maintenance 10.9% Locked
- Transportation 1.5% Locked
- Food service 2.1% Locked
- School administration 5.8% Locked
- District administration 2.8% Locked
- Other support 4.6% Locked
- Other current 2.1% Locked
Tuckahoe Union Free School District
- Instruction 64.7% Locked
- Instructional staff support 5.5% Locked
- Student support 4.4% Locked
- Operations & maintenance 6.8% Locked
- Transportation 6.7% Locked
- Food service 1.2% Locked
- School administration 4.1% Locked
- District administration 3.3% Locked
- Other support 3.3% Locked
- Other current 1.2% Locked
What is actually different
Share of each district's operating dollar, Saint Helena Unified minus Tuckahoe Union Free School District. Two pie charts side by side are almost impossible to read against each other; this is the same data as one chart.
| Saint Helena Unified | Tuckahoe Union Free School District | |
|---|---|---|
| Cents of each operating dollar reaching classrooms Instruction plus instructional staff support, as a share of current spending. | 67.0% | 70.2% |
| Administration share District office plus school administration. | 8.6% | 7.4% |
| Transportation share | 1.5% | 6.7% |
What the money buys
Staffing levels are the most direct thing a budget converts into.
| Saint Helena Unified | Tuckahoe Union Free School District | |
|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher This is a staffing ratio: total enrollment divided by teaching staff. It is NOT average class size. Actual classes are larger than this number in every district. | 13.5 | 9.8 |
| Students per counselor | Locked | Locked |
| Students per administrator | Locked | Locked |
| Total salaries All staff, not teachers alone. | Locked | Locked |
Who they serve
The answer to "but they serve different kids" — which is usually a fair objection.
| Saint Helena Unified | Tuckahoe Union Free School District | |
|---|---|---|
| Child poverty rate Children aged 5 to 17 in poverty within the district boundary. Used instead of free-lunch eligibility, which community eligibility has made unusable for comparison. | 5.2% | 3.3% |
| English learners | — | — |
| Students with disabilities | — | — |
| Enrollment change, 5 years | -11.1% | -10.1% |
Results, and results for the money
Stability and risk
The homebuyer’s real question: what is likely to change after I move in?
Saint Helena Unified
- Declining enrollment Enrollment fell more than 5% over five years. Enrollment decline is the single best predictor of school closures and programme cuts.
Tuckahoe Union Free School District
- Declining enrollment Enrollment fell more than 5% over five years. Enrollment decline is the single best predictor of school closures and programme cuts.
| Saint Helena Unified | Tuckahoe Union Free School District | |
|---|---|---|
| Enrollment change, 5 years | -11.1% | -10.1% |
| Long-term debt per student | Locked | Locked |
| Debt service share of spending | Locked | Locked |
Enrolling a child
The same checklist for both districts. Every "required" below links to the sentence it came from.
Saint Helena Unified
We have not been able to find an enrollment page for this district, so every row in its column below says so rather than guessing at it. Ask the district's registration office directly.
Tuckahoe Union Free School District
Student Registration Procedure – Parent Resources – Tuckahoe Union Free School District
Read August 25, 2026.
Is a seat at your zoned school guaranteed?
Saint Helena Unified
We have no such statement from this district — which is not the same as a promise that your zoned school has room. Most districts never publish the policy in either direction. Ask the school office directly whether your address’s school is enrolling at your child’s grade level before you sign anything.
Tuckahoe Union Free School District
We have no such statement from this district — which is not the same as a promise that your zoned school has room. Most districts never publish the policy in either direction. Ask the school office directly whether your address’s school is enrolling at your child’s grade level before you sign anything.
- This is the district’s own published wording, not our summary of it. Policies are rewritten between enrollment seasons and a page can be out of date the day after we read it — the school office is the only authority on whether a particular grade at a particular school is full right now.
- A warning here is about capacity, not about your address. It does not mean your child will be moved; it means the district has told you in writing that it may move them.
- Required the page says so, and the sentence is quoted.
- Mentioned only it comes up, but not as a requirement — often a sentence saying the district cannot demand it.
- Not mentioned we read the page and it was not on it. That is not the same as "not required".
- Page not read we have no enrollment page for this district.
Documents to bring
| Saint Helena Unified | Tuckahoe Union Free School District | |
|---|---|---|
| Proof of residency | Page not read | Required “Property Tax Bill, Mortgage Statement, or Deed” |
| Proof of age (usually a birth certificate) | Page not read | Required “Child's Proof of Age (i.e., Birth Certificate, Passport, Baptismal or Bris Certificate, Hospital Record, Government ID Card), photo of your child's face.” |
| Immunisation records | Page not read | Not mentioned |
| Physical examination | Page not read | Not mentioned |
| Dental, vision or hearing screening | Page not read | Not mentioned |
| Tuberculosis test | Page not read | Not mentioned |
| Records from the previous school | Page not read | Not mentioned |
| IEP or 504 plan | Page not read | Not mentioned |
| Custody or guardianship paperwork | Page not read | Required “If you are divorced or separated, please bring a copy of your Custody Agreement.” |
| Parent or guardian photo ID | Page not read | Required “Proof of Parental Relation (Photo ID, i.e., New York State Driver's License or Non-Driver's ID with your current address or another photo form of identificatio…” |
| Home language survey | Page not read | Not mentioned |
| Emergency contact information | Page not read | Not mentioned |
| Proof of income | Page not read | Not mentioned |
| Social security number Asked for by some districts. It is not required to enrol, and a school may not refuse a child who does not provide one. We list it because districts ask, not because you must answer. | Page not read | Not mentioned |
How enrolling works
Locked 11 steps of the enrollment process — deadlines, appointments, proof of residency — are not shown. What to bring is above, and stays free.
- A blank row means the requirement did not appear on the district’s page. It does not mean the district will not ask for it — published lists are routinely incomplete, and the registrar has the final word.
- Requirements change every enrollment season. Check the district’s own page, linked above, before you gather anything.
- A district cannot condition enrollment on your child’s immigration status: under Plyler v. Doe (1982) every child resident in the district is entitled to a free public education. If a district asks for something that would reveal status, you are not obliged to provide it.
- If your family is in temporary or shared housing, the McKinney-Vento Act lets a child enrol immediately without the residency and records documents listed here. Ask for the district’s homeless liaison by name.
Comparability notes
- Cross-state comparison. Dollars below are shown both as reported and adjusted to a common price level, because a dollar buys different amounts of teacher in CA and NY.
What these numbers are, exactly
Who decides, and what it costs you
Every band above this one asks what a district spends. This one asks who chose to.
Saint Helena Unified
The district levies its own school tax
This district raises property tax in its own name. Who sets the rate varies by state — an elected board in some, a public vote in others — but the levy is the school system’s own, and it is the part of a tax bill that school politics moves most directly.
Tuckahoe Union Free School District
The district levies its own school tax
This district raises property tax in its own name. Who sets the rate varies by state — an elected board in some, a public vote in others — but the levy is the school system’s own, and it is the part of a tax bill that school politics moves most directly.
| Saint Helena Unified | Tuckahoe Union Free School District | |
|---|---|---|
| School property tax levied, per student Only for districts that levy in their own name. Blank where the county or town levies instead — see the cards above, and read the next row. | $38,863 | $27,792 |
| Appropriated by the county or town, per student What the parent government handed the schools, for dependent systems. This is a general appropriation, not solely property tax. | — | — |
| Property tax as a share of all revenue How much of the budget rides on local property values, and therefore on local votes. | 79.5% | 69.0% |
| Long-term debt already owed, per student The balance at the end of the year, for scale. Repaid over decades, so it is a commitment made by earlier boards rather than a bill arriving now. | Locked | Locked |
| Debt service as a share of spending Interest plus principal repaid this year, against total spending. This is the part of the debt that is being paid now, out of money that would otherwise reach a classroom. | Locked | Locked |
| New long-term debt issued, per student Money borrowed during fiscal year 2024. What this figure does and does not tell you is set out under the table. | $1,808 | $0 |
- Tuckahoe Union Free School District: issued no new long-term debt in fiscal year 2024. That is a reported zero, not a gap in the data.
- A figure in the borrowing row is not a bond voters approved. It records debt issued, and that includes refinancing existing debt at a new rate — which changes nothing about what a district owes — as well as certificates of participation and lease-revenue debt, which in many states a board can issue with no referendum at all. To find out what was actually on a ballot, check the county election office.
- Debt is repaid over decades. A large balance per student is a commitment made by earlier boards and earlier voters, not a bill arriving this year. The debt service row above it is the part being paid now.
Who sits on the board
Tuckahoe Union Free School District board of education
- Allison Halloran — President term ends 2027
- Louis Campana — Trustee term ends 2028
- Joel Abrams — Trustee term ends 2028
- Seth Miran — Trustee term ends 2029
- Amber Kasses — Trustee term ends 2029
- How long a term runs: “Tuckahoe's Board of Education is comprised of five school district residents who voters elect to three-year terms at the annual election.”
- Members are elected: “Terms are staggered so that one or two members are elected each year.”
Read from the district’s own board page on 2026-08-24. Boards change; the district’s page is the current record, not ours.
These seats are elected, and what this board decides — the budget, the attendance boundaries, the calendar — is decided at a meeting the public may attend. The district’s own board page, linked above, is where it publishes the schedule and the agenda. We do not hold meeting dates or contact details for these people.
Funding measures on the ballot
Saint Helena Unified
We hold every school funding measure the state of CA published for 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025, and this district appears in none of them.
What this state publishes: School district bonds and parcel taxes as the California Elections Data Archive compiles them for the Secretary of State. Bonds carry the principal; parcel taxes are quoted per parcel and carry no comparable dollar figure. Recalls and advisory questions are not included.
CA published no results for 2010, so a measure put to voters in that year would not appear here. That is a gap in the state’s own publishing.
Tuckahoe Union Free School District
We hold every school funding measure the state of NY published for 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026, and this district appears in none of them.
What this state publishes: New York districts vote on their whole operating budget every May, and this is the state's own results file for every one of those votes back to 2000, plus the June revotes that follow a defeat. No row carries a dollar amount: the state publishes what a district asked for in a separate workbook whose district names are cut to fourteen characters, and joining through that would be a guess. Capital-project bond referenda held outside the May calendar are not in this source at all. At most one additional proposition per district per year is recorded even where a district ran several, and before 2025 the state gave those propositions a vote count and no subject, so what they asked for is shown as unstated.
The detailed figures for Saint Helena Unified and Tuckahoe Union Free School District
The verdict, the headline dollar, the funding shares, who is served and every comparability caveat are free above, and stay free. What is behind the lock is the detail you would want before acting on any of it:
- capital spending per student
- total revenue and total current spending, and the funding mix in dollars (the percentage shares stay free)
- the ten-line per-student breakdown of where the money goes
- counselor and administrator ratios, and the total salary bill
- the debt behind the risk flags — per student, and as a share of spending
- the enrollment process — deadlines, appointments and proof of residency
$1.79 for both, for three months, 21 cents less than buying them one at a time.
The 3-month unlock is a single payment and does not renew; it simply ends. A subscription renews, monthly or yearly as chosen, until you cancel. No account to create: this purchase is held in this browser, so clearing site data or moving to another browser loses it, and the phone apps sell their own unlock through their own store. What to do if you lose it.
Compare something else
Saint Helena Unified on its own · Tuckahoe Union Free School District on its own