Helen M. Lehman Elementary

As a modestly sized primary school in Santa Rosa, California, Helen M. Lehman Elementary educates 373 students from grades K through 6, run under Santa Rosa Elementary.

Santa Rosa Elementary comprises 12 schools with combined enrollment of 4,800 students; Helen M. Lehman Elementary is among them.

On demographics, Helen M. Lehman Elementary reports that the largest single group is Hispanic, at 80% of enrollment; the rest consists of 5% Asian, 5% White, 5% Black, 3% multiracial. That is noticeably more Hispanic than the county at large, where the share is closer to 30%.

In terms of school funding signals, Staff filings list 15 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 24.9:1 students per teacher. That figure is higher than the state norm's 22.3:1 average. An estimated 90% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. Set against Sonoma County (around 51%), the school's rate is noticeably above typical.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), Helen M. Lehman Elementary performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 25.7%, the actual is 16.3%, a residual of -9.4 points.

In the broader community, the surrounding county (Sonoma County) reports that the typical household earns roughly $104,674 per year, about 39% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 5%. In all, Sonoma County runs 184 public schools (combined enrollment of about 63,389 students), of which Helen M. Lehman Elementary is one.

The closest other public school is Hilliard Comstock Middle, roughly 0.6 miles away. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Helen M. Lehman Elementary at 4th of 7; the average score across the group is 22.1%.

Geographically, the school is in an inner-city area.

Trend over the last 7 years. Helen M. Lehman Elementary's enrollment has fell 30% since 2018, when it stood at 534 (now 373). Class-load math has widened: from 22.3:1 in 2018 to 24.9:1 in 2025.

In the discussion threads here, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. The community welcomes input from current and former families.