Lisa J. Mails Elementary

Lisa J. Mails Elementary, a sprawling elementary-level community in Murrieta, California, part of Murrieta Valley Unified, enrolls 1,006 students, covering grades K through 5. Compared to the state average of about 465 students per school, that is 116% bigger than typical.

Lisa J. Mails Elementary is one of 20 schools operated by Murrieta Valley Unified, a district that instructs 21,621 students overall.

On demographics, Lisa J. Mails Elementary reports that 37% of students identify as White, with the remaining enrollment distributed across several groups. Beyond that, the school logs 34% Hispanic, 14% multiracial, 10% Asian, 4% Black. Compared to Riverside County overall, the school's racial mix sits in roughly the same range.

On the income-and-resources front, Lisa J. Mails Elementary logs 39 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 25.8:1. That figure is higher than the state norm's 22.3:1 average. Roughly 41% of students at Lisa J. Mails Elementary qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. That share is south of Riverside County's rate of about 74%.

After controlling for student poverty, Lisa J. Mails Elementary performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 54.9%, the actual is 51.9%, a residual of -3.0 points.

Around the school, ACS estimates for Riverside County put median household earnings sit near $93,074, roughly 26% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 8%. Across Riverside County's 543 public schools (combined enrollment of about 424,872 students), Lisa J. Mails Elementary is one campus in the mix.

Dorothy McElhinney Middle is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.2 miles from this campus. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Lisa J. Mails Elementary at 4th of 8; the average score across the group is 51.8%.

Lisa J. Mails Elementary operates from a residential location.

Trend over the last 7 years. Over the past 7-year window, the student count increased 4%: 967 students in 2018 compared to 1,006 in 2025. White enrollment moved from 42% to 37% across the same window.

In the discussion threads here, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around fundraisers, lost-and-found posts, and report-card season. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.