Sunset Elementary School

Located at 300 E Catherine Ave, in Hermiston, Oregon, Sunset Elementary School is a reasonably sized K-5 school that educates 378 students (grades K through 5), one of the schools within Hermiston SD 8.

Hermiston SD 8 runs 9 schools in total, collectively educating 5,320 students. Sunset Elementary School is one of those campuses.

On the student-mix side, Sunset Elementary School lists that 81% of students identify as Hispanic, making the school strongly Hispanic-majority; the rest is composed of 17% White. By comparison, Umatilla County as a whole is about 30% Hispanic, so the school skews visibly more Hispanic than its surroundings.

In terms of school funding signals, Staff filings list 27 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 14.0:1 students per teacher. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 16.5:1 average. An estimated 92% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator.

With demographic context factored in, Sunset Elementary School tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 26.9% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 25.1%.

In the broader community, census data for Umatilla County shows median household earnings sit near $67,728, about 18% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 10%. In all, Umatilla County runs 35 public schools (combined enrollment of about 13,143 students), of which Sunset Elementary School is one.

The closest other public school is Rocky Heights Elementary School, roughly 0.5 miles away. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Sunset Elementary School at 9th of 9; the average score across the group is 35.1%.

Geographically, the school is in a small-town area.

Looking at the recent track record. Sunset Elementary School's enrollment has declined 35% since 2018, when it stood at 586 (now 378). The Hispanic share of enrollment edged up from 69% to 81% over that span. The student-to-teacher ratio tightened from 18.6:1 in 2018 to 14.0:1 today.

On this page, posts here usually surface around enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. The community welcomes input from current and former families.