Alice Shaw Elementary

Alice Shaw Elementary is a middle-of-the-pack primary school in Santa Maria, California, part of Orcutt Union Elementary. The school serves 530 students in grades K through 6.

Across the 10 schools in Orcutt Union Elementary (4,911 students total), Alice Shaw Elementary accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

For racial and ethnic makeup, Alice Shaw Elementary records that the largest single group is Hispanic, at 68% of enrollment; the rest consists of 23% White, 6% multiracial. By comparison, Santa Barbara County as a whole is about 48% Hispanic, so the school skews meaningfully more Hispanic than its surroundings.

Looking at school resources, Alice Shaw Elementary logs 21 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 24.7:1. That figure is higher than the state norm's 22.3:1 average. Around 76% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator.

With demographic context factored in, Alice Shaw Elementary sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 34.0%; this one delivers 31.6%.

In the surrounding community, the surrounding county (Santa Barbara County) reports that the typical household earns roughly $98,161 per year, about 37% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 9%. Alice Shaw Elementary is one of 129 public schools in Santa Barbara County (combined enrollment of about 66,191 students).

The closest other public school is Ernest Righetti High, roughly 0.5 miles away. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Among the 6 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Alice Shaw Elementary ranks 6th on composite proficiency, below the local average of 41.7%.

The school occupies a commuter-belt site.

Five-year trend. Alice Shaw Elementary's enrollment has declined 13% since 2018, when it stood at 610 (now 530). Over the same period, the Hispanic share climbed from 56% to 68%. The student-to-teacher ratio fell from 26.1:1 in 2018 to 24.7:1 today.

Within the allk12 community for this school, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around classroom updates, athletics, and weather closures. The community welcomes input from current and former families.