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Alumni: what's one memory from KATHERINE DUNN ELEMENTARY that still sticks with you?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
462
Elementary
DISTRICT 398 · STATE 480
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·WASHOE COUNTY·NCES 320048000319
Katherine Dunn Elementary
1135 O CALLAGHAN DR, SPARKS, NV 89434 · (775) 353-5520 · Washoe County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL462 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
17.8:1
26 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 18.1:1 · STATE 18.1:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
100%
461 students
DISTRICT 66% · STATE 85%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 35 | 8% |
| Kindergarten | 75 | 16% |
| Grade 1 | 60 | 13% |
| Grade 2 | 73 | 16% |
| Grade 3 | 69 | 15% |
| Grade 4 | 70 | 15% |
| Grade 5 | 80 | 17% |
Student demographics
59%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 64% · STATE 70% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
Nevada SBAC 2024-25 . % ProficientEnglish Language Arts
41.0%
NV avg 45.8% . +0.6pp since 2023
Math
31.5%
NV avg 35.6% . -2.1pp since 2023
What this means: On the Nevada SBAC, Nevada's statewide test, about 41 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 32 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Nevada schools, those numbers are about 46 and 36. Reading and writing scores have held steady since 2023, while math scores are down about 2 points.
Nevada SBAC results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 41.0% | 31.5% |
| 2023-24 | 40.4% | 33.6% |
% Proficient, all students and all tested grades.
Source: Nevada SBAC. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
33.9%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
32.6%
based on NV schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+1.3pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 34% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 33% typical for Nevada schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Nevada's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Where Katherine Dunn Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Nevada | In Washoe County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 33.9% | #185 of 367 | #35 of 64 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 31.5% | #237 of 388 | #46 of 75 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 41.0% | #207 of 390 | #42 of 76 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 462 | #251 of 442 | #30 of 77 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 17.8:1 | #253 of 379 | #40 of 73 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 59.2% | #210 of 381 | #30 of 74 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 99.8% | #317 of 386 | #39 of 67 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -16.0% | #201 of 304 | #46 of 64 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
462
-31 (-6%) vs 2020
-32% since 1990-91, when it was 681
Student : Teacher
17.8:1
was 15.4:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 462 | 26 | 17.8:1 | 100% (461) |
| 2023-24 | 460 | 26 | 17.7:1 | 100% (460) |
| 2022-23 | 446 | 26.2 | 17.0:1 | 100% (446) |
| 2020-21 | 493 | 32 | 15.4:1 | 48% (235) |
| 2017-18 | 550 | 30 | 18.3:1 | 53% (294) |
| 2015-16 | 522 | 29 | 18.0:1 | 61% (316) |
| 2010-11 | 535 | 27 | 19.8:1 | 52% (280) |
| 2000-01 | 635 | 32 | 19.8:1 | 21% (133) |
| 1990-91 | 681 | 29 | 23.5:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Katherine Dunn Elementary.
About Katherine Dunn Elementary
As a medium-sized elementary school, Katherine Dunn Elementary serves students in SPARKS, Nevada. The school serves 462 students in pre-K through 5 in 2024-25.
Katherine Dunn Elementary is one of the 113 schools that make up Washoe County (63,412 students in total).
A majority of students at Katherine Dunn Elementary, 56%, are Hispanic. Next come 31% White, 5% multiracial, 3% Pacific Islander, and 3% Asian. The county population is about 26% Hispanic. Katherine Dunn Elementary has a diversity index of 59%, compared with 70% for all US public school students.
Teacher staffing is 26 full-time equivalents, or about 17.8 students per teacher. Elementary schools in Nevada average about 18.1:1, a similar figure. Eligibility for subsidized school meals is 100%. It compares with 56% for public schools in Washoe County.
The school's average proficiency rate on state tests is 33.9%. For its free or reduced-price lunch share, the predicted value is 32.6%.
Among Washoe County residents, median household income is about $88,096, 34% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 7% of people live in poverty. Federal data list 127 public schools in Washoe County, with a combined enrollment of about 68,279.
The closest public school, Alpine Academy High School, is about 0.6 miles from Katherine Dunn Elementary. Within five miles are at least 8 other public schools. The average proficiency across nearby scored schools is 29.9%; Katherine Dunn Elementary's is 33.9%, ranking 2nd of 5.
The school is in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population of 250,000 or more, according to its NCES locale (Suburb: Large).
From 2020-21 to 2024-25, Katherine Dunn Elementary went from 493 students to 462. The student-to-teacher ratio went up from 15.4:1 to 17.8:1.
Topics for discussion here include school safety, transportation, and start times. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Washoe County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
497,200
Census ACS
Median income
$88,096
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
34%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
127
68,279 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Washoe County
- North Valleys High SchoolHigh · 2,307 students
- Spanish Springs High SchoolHigh · 2,131 students
- Edward C. Reed High SchoolHigh · 2,092 students
- Procter R. Hug High SchoolHigh · 2,008 students
- Reno High SchoolHigh · 1,741 students
- Damonte Ranch High SchoolHigh · 1,738 students
Other schools in SPARKS
- Spanish Springs High SchoolHigh · 2,131 students
- Edward C. Reed High SchoolHigh · 2,092 students
- Procter R. Hug High SchoolHigh · 2,008 students
- Sparks High SchoolHigh · 1,211 students
- Sky Ranch Middle SchoolMiddle · 1,206 students
- Pinecrest Academy of Northern NevadaElementary · 1,033 students
Nearby schools
- Alpine Academy High School0.6 mi · 224
- Edward C. Reed High School0.8 mi · 2,092
- Lloyd Diedrichsen Elementary0.8 mi · 312
- Lou Mendive Middle School1.0 mi · 964
- George L. Dilworth S.t.e.m Academy1.2 mi · 613
- Greenbrae Elementary1.2 mi · 323
Frequently asked questions
About Katherine Dunn ElementaryHow large is Katherine Dunn Elementary?
Katherine Dunn Elementary enrolls approximately 462 students in grades PK-05.
Is Katherine Dunn Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Katherine Dunn Elementary is an elementary school covering grades PK-05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Katherine Dunn Elementary?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Katherine Dunn Elementary is approximately 17.8:1 (26 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at Katherine Dunn Elementary?
At Katherine Dunn Elementary, the student body is approximately 31% White, 56% Hispanic, 1% Black, 3% Asian, 5% Two or more.
Is Katherine Dunn Elementary public or private?
Katherine Dunn Elementary is a public K-12 school, overseen by Washoe County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.