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SCHOOL COMMUNITY·TAHOE-TRUCKEE UNIFIED·NCES 063877006512

Donner Trail Elementary

52755 Donner Pass Rd., Kingvale, CA 96161 · (530) 582-2720 · Nevada County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY42-RURALREGULAR SCHOOL55 STUDENTS
Enrollment
55
Elementary
DISTRICT 343 · STATE 465
Student : Teacher
13.8:1
4 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 20.0:1 · STATE 22.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
5%
3 students
DISTRICT 33% · STATE 65%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.

Enrollment by grade, 2024-25

GradeStudentsShare
Kindergarten916%
Grade 1611%
Grade 259%
Grade 31324%
Grade 4713%
Grade 51527%
Student demographics
10%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 54% · STATE 62% · US 70%
White
5295%
DISTRICT 57% · STATE 20% · US 43%
Hispanic
24%
DISTRICT 35% · STATE 56% · US 30%
Two+
12%
DISTRICT 6% · STATE 6% · US 5%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Male
3564%
Female
2036%

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Test scores

CAASPP 2024-25 . % met or exceeded standard
English Language Arts
83.3%
CA avg 49.1% . +6.3pp since 2014
Math
91.7%
CA avg 37.7% . +44.7pp since 2014

What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 83 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 92 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all California schools, those numbers are about 49 and 38. Reading and writing scores are up about 6 points since 2014, while math scores are up about 45 points.

Performance levels, 2024-25

SubjectStandard ExceededStandard MetStandard Nearly MetStandard Not Met
English Language Arts55.6%27.8%11.1%5.6%
Math63.9%27.8%2.8%5.6%
Share of tested students at each CAASPP level. Each student counts in one level, so a row adds to about 100%.

CAASPP results by year

School yearEnglish Language ArtsMath
2024-2583.3%91.7%
2023-2483.3%88.9%
2022-2369.7%69.7%
2021-2283.8%89.2%
2020-2193.5%87.1%
2018-1996.8%80.7%
2017-1891.4%77.1%
2016-1772.2%62.2%
2015-1674.0%63.0%
2014-1577.0%47.0%
% met or exceeded standard, all students and all tested grades.
Source: CAASPP. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →

BeatsExpectations

Demographically-adjusted score · methodology
Tier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
84.8%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
76.3%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+8.4pp
above demographic expectation

What this means: About 85% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 76% typical for California schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among California's top nor bottom 10%.

BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →

Where Donner Trail Elementary ranks

Among elementary schools
MeasureThis schoolIn CaliforniaIn Nevada County
Enrollment
ranked largest first
55#5,752 of 5,915#18 of 20
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list.

7-year change

SY 2017-18 vs SY 2024-25
Enrollment
55
-11 (-17%) vs 2017
Student : Teacher
13.8:1
was 22.0:1
% White
95%
was 86%
% Hispanic
4%
was 9%
% Asian
0%
was 3%
Source: NCES Common Core of Data

Enrollment and staffing by year

School yearStudentsTeachers (FTE)Students per teacherFree or reduced lunch
2024-2555413.8:15% (3)
2023-2457414.3:17% (4)
2022-2355318.3:15% (3)
2017-1866322.0:111% (7)
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Donner Trail Elementary.

About Donner Trail Elementary

Donner Trail Elementary is a small elementary school with its address in Kingvale, California. School enrollment was 55 students in 2024-25, in kindergarten through 5. The average among elementary schools in California is roughly 465 students; this school is 88% smaller than that.

Tahoe-Truckee Unified enrolls 3,959 students, and its 11 schools include Donner Trail Elementary.

White students make up 95% of enrollment at Donner Trail Elementary. The remaining shares are 4% Hispanic. Census estimates put the White share of Nevada County's population at about 84%. Pick two students at random and there is a 10% chance they belong to different racial or ethnic groups; that figure is the school's diversity index.

A ratio of 13.8:1 comes from the school's 4 full-time-equivalent teachers. That is 8.5 students per teacher below the 22.3:1 average for elementary schools in California. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility was 5% in 2024-25. Among public schools in Nevada County, the average eligibility rate is 43%.

After adjusting for student poverty, Donner Trail Elementary lands between the top and bottom 10% of California schools. Its average proficiency rate on state tests is 84.8%; the prediction is 76.3%.

Census Bureau estimates for Nevada County show that the median household income is $89,882, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 42%, and roughly 7% of residents are in poverty. Donner Trail Elementary is one of 46 public schools in the county.

Nearby, Truckee Elementary is about 12.6 miles away. Local comparison: Donner Trail Elementary ranks 1st of 5 nearby schools, at 84.8% versus a 57.3% average.

On the NCES locale scale, the school is Rural: Distant.

The school enrolled 55 students in 2024-25, 11 fewer than the 66 it had in 2017-18. Meanwhile, the White share grew from 86% to 95% of enrollment. There were fewer students per teacher in 2024-25 (13.8:1) than in 2017-18 (22.0:1).

Threads on this page can be about sports tryouts, band and choir, and theater. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.

Nevada County at a glance

View full county profile
Population
102,481
Census ACS
Median income
$89,882
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
42%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
46
13,561 students

Quick facts

School name
Donner Trail Elementary
District
Tahoe-Truckee Unified
Address
52755 Donner Pass Rd., Kingvale, CA 96161
Phone
(530) 582-2720
County
Nevada County
Level
Elementary
Grade range
KG–05
Total enrollment
55
Teachers (FTE)
4
Student–teacher ratio
13.8:1
Free/Reduced lunch
3 (5%)
Locale
42-Rural: Distant
NCES ID
063877006512
Charter school
No
Virtual school
No

Related schools

Other schools in Tahoe-Truckee Unified
Nearby schools

Frequently asked questions

About Donner Trail Elementary
How large is Donner Trail Elementary?
Donner Trail Elementary enrolls approximately 55 students in grades KG-05.
What age range does Donner Trail Elementary serve?
Donner Trail Elementary serves students from grade KG through grade 05.
How many teachers does Donner Trail Elementary have?
Donner Trail Elementary employs 4 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 13.8:1.
What is the student diversity at Donner Trail Elementary?
Student demographics at Donner Trail Elementary are roughly 95% White, 4% Hispanic, 2% Two or more.
Who oversees Donner Trail Elementary?
Donner Trail Elementary is overseen by Tahoe-Truckee Unified in Nevada County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.
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