Merquin Elementary

Merquin Elementary operates as a micro-enrollment K-5 school in Stevinson, California, run under Hilmar Unified. Current enrollment sits at 126 students spanning grades K through 5. Compared to the state average of about 465 students per school, that is 73% below typical.

Merquin Elementary is one of 6 schools operated by Hilmar Unified, a district that teaches 2,284 students overall.

In terms of who attends, Merquin Elementary shows that 87% of students identify as Hispanic, making the school strongly Hispanic-majority. Other groups include 11% White. The wider county runs roughly 63% Hispanic, putting the school's mix visibly more Hispanic than the area baseline.

Looking at the economic backdrop, On paper, Merquin Elementary has 7 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 18.0:1. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 22.3:1, putting Merquin Elementary tighter than the state norm the norm. Roughly 75% of students at Merquin Elementary qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), On a poverty-adjusted basis, Merquin Elementary sits in the bottom 10% statewide. Predicted proficiency from the FRL regression is roughly 35.0%; actual is 18.1%, a gap of -16.9 points.

In the broader community, ACS estimates for Merced County put the typical household earns roughly $65,510 per year, roughly 15% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and the poverty rate sits near 16%. Across Merced County's 117 public schools (combined enrollment of about 59,456 students), Merquin Elementary is one campus in the mix.

Hilmar Elementary is the nearest neighboring public school, about 4.8 miles from this campus. Counting just inside five miles, 3 other public schools cluster around Merquin Elementary. On composite proficiency, Merquin Elementary comes 7th of 7 in the immediate cluster, below the nearby-schools average of 29.3%.

Geographically, the school is in a low-density area.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count increased 6%: 119 students in 2018 compared to 126 in 2025. Hispanic enrollment moved from 82% to 87% across the same window. Class-load math has rose: from 15.9:1 in 2018 to 18.0:1 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.