Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary

As an expansive elementary campus in Santa Maria, California, Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary serves 917 students from grades K through 6, part of Santa Maria-Bonita. That puts it 97% larger than the typical public school in California, which averages around 465 students.

Across the 21 schools in Santa Maria-Bonita (17,408 students total), Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

For racial and ethnic makeup, Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary shows that the student body is overwhelmingly Hispanic (89%); the rest is composed of 6% White. The wider county runs roughly 48% Hispanic, putting the school's mix considerably more Hispanic than the area baseline.

In terms of school funding signals, The school employs 42 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 21.7:1. The state averages about 22.3:1, putting this campus right in line with peers. Around 84% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. Set against Santa Barbara County (around 68%), the school's rate is noticeably above typical.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 29.3%; this one delivers 23.8%.

In the surrounding community, community-level numbers for Santa Barbara County indicate median household income runs about $98,161, about 37% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 9%. Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary is one of 129 public schools in Santa Barbara County (combined enrollment of about 66,191 students).

Fesler (Isaac) Junior High is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.6 miles from this campus. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary. Among the 9 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary ranks 2nd on composite proficiency, above the local average of 19.9%.

Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary operates from a metropolitan location.

Trend over the last 7 years. Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary's enrollment has climbed 15% since 2018, when it stood at 794 (now 917).

On the community side, members of the Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary community share and discuss open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.