Sonora Elementary

Sonora Elementary, a mid-sized elementary school in Sonora, California, operated by Sonora Elementary, enrolls 643 students, covering grades K through 8. Enrollment runs roughly 38% larger than the state mean of about 465.

Sonora Elementary is the operating authority for Sonora Elementary, handling staffing, calendars, and reporting to the state department of education.

Demographically, Sonora Elementary records that White students make up the majority at 72%. Beyond that, the school reports 18% Hispanic, 5% multiracial, 3% Native American, 2% Asian. By comparison, Tuolumne County as a whole is about 81% White, so the school skews noticeably less White than its surroundings.

On the resource side, On paper, Sonora Elementary has 32 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 20.1:1. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 22.3:1, putting Sonora Elementary tighter than the state norm the norm. About 48% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, Sonora Elementary performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 50.8%, the actual is 37.0%, a residual of -13.8 points.

In the area at large, community-level numbers for Tuolumne County indicate the typical household earns roughly $77,404 per year, 25% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 8%. Sonora Elementary is one of 30 public schools in Tuolumne County (combined enrollment of about 5,724 students).

Theodore Bird High is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.5 miles from this campus. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Sonora Elementary at 2nd of 4; the average score across the group is 33.4%.

The campus sits in a town-based setting.

Trend over the last 7 years. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Sonora Elementary has shrank 14%, going from 748 students in 2018 to 643 in 2025.

On the community side, the feed for Sonora Elementary typically covers sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.