Happy Valley Elementary School

Happy Valley Elementary School operates as a medium-sized primary school in Bellingham, Washington, part of Bellingham School District. Current enrollment sits at 455 students spanning grades pre-K through 5.

Across the 25 schools in Bellingham School District (11,337 students total), Happy Valley Elementary School accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

Looking at the student body, Happy Valley Elementary School shows that 67% of the student body identifies as White; the rest comes out to 16% Hispanic, 11% multiracial, 4% Asian. By comparison, Whatcom County as a whole is about 78% White, so the school skews noticeably less White than its surroundings.

Looking at school resources, Happy Valley Elementary School lists 26 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 17.6:1. That tracks the state average closely. Roughly 45% of students at Happy Valley Elementary School qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment.

After controlling for student poverty, Happy Valley Elementary School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 49.7%, the actual is 50.3%, a residual of +0.6 points.

In the broader community, ACS estimates for Whatcom County put median household earnings sit near $81,784, 39% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and roughly 7% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Happy Valley Elementary School is one of 78 public schools in Whatcom County (combined enrollment of about 27,779 students).

Sehome High School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.4 miles from this campus. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Happy Valley Elementary School at 5th of 7; the average score across the group is 52.3%.

The school occupies a downtown site.

Over the past 7-year window. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Happy Valley Elementary School has expanded 4%, going from 439 students in 2018 to 455 in 2025. Hispanic enrollment moved from 11% to 16% across the same window.

On this page, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around school events, parent volunteer needs, and clubs. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.