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School Profile · Catheys Valley

Sierra Foothill Charter: This school runs ahead of the state average. The bar itself is the harder conversation.

Sierra Foothill Charter posts 47% meeting the standard against 43% statewide — ahead of most, with real headroom above the bar.

4952 School House Road, 95306 (opens in new tab)·Mariposa County Unified·Catheys Valley·Grades TK-8·140 students·38% low-income·Charter·2024–25 CAASPP·(209) 742-6222·Website
Charter school — publicly funded, independently operated, open enrollment via lottery. Learn more
Scope Score
45
🌱 Building Momentum · Developing
ranked #2,484 statewide · #1 of 5 in Mariposa County Unified

Sierra Foothill Charter scores 45 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 57th percentile of 5,744 California elementary schools (CDE CAASPP 2025).

Measures test performance, attendance, and climate — not arts, community, or your kid. How we score →

Most rating sites would stop at “47% proficient” and call it done. Sierra Foothill Charter deserves a closer read. The school sits in Catheys Valley, where one in three students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

As a charter, Sierra Foothill Charter enrolls by application, not address — the score reads the same, the enrollment path doesn't.

The 5 things our score weighs

Exceeded standard
22.2%
State 21.3%
0.9pp above state avg
Growth (G3→G5)
-9.5pp
State -2.9pp
Scores decline across grades
Met or exceeded
47.4%
State 42.7%
4.7pp above state avg
Chronic absenteeism
15.4%
State 17.9%
2.5pp below state avg
Suspension rate
0.4%
State 1.6%
1.2pp below state avg
Worth a school visit

Ask how the school challenges kids who clear the standard early. The gap between meeting and exceeding is where pacing shows.

Where the path goes

The path below follows attendance boundaries — scores shown for each next step.

Estimated K-12 Path
Elementary
Sierra Foothill Charter
45
This school

Estimated K-12 path based on district and proximity. Actual attendance zones may differ. Contact your school district for official feeder information.

Your other options

Private alternatives nearby

Private schools within ~10 miles. These schools do not participate in state testing and cannot be scored or ranked.

The community around it

Community Profile
Context — not part of the Scope Score

Student demographics

Hispanic33.6%
White56.4%
Asian1.4%
Other8.6%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 37.9% (26pp below CA avg)
Resources & Access
Enrollment
140
480 below CA avg (~620)
Transitional Kindergarten
9 TK students
7% of a 130-student campus · CDE Census Day 2025-26
Student-Teacher Ratio
23:1
2 more students per teacher than CA avg
Per-Pupil Spending
$14,934
CA avg: $14,815 · District avg · NCES F-33
Teacher Salary Range
$54,568 – $99,865
District schedule · CA median ~$98K
Subgroup Growth by Grade
Change in proficiency from lowest tested grade. Shows which groups are gaining ground.

Subgroups with fewer than 10 tested students per grade are not shown.

Funding Breakdown
Instruction 55%Support 42%Other 4%

Source: NCES F-33 (2019–2020) · Full district breakdown →

Neighborhood Context
Median Income
$81K
$4K below CA median
Median Home Value
$400K
$259K below CA median
Bachelor's+
39%
4pp above CA avg
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024) · ZIP-level
Whole Child
Teacher experience, college/career readiness, and more. Context only — never part of the Scope Score.
Teacher Experience
18.3 years avg experience
7 teachers · 14% first-year
Teacher Credentials
75% fully credentialed

Source: CDE SARC, 2024-25

Community Profile provides context about who attends this school and the resources available. These factors are never part of the Scope Score. Learn why →

Frequently asked questions

Is Sierra Foothill Charter a good elementary school?
Sierra Foothill Charter has a Scope Score of 45 out of 100, placing it in the 57th percentile of California elementary schools and ranked #2,484 statewide. 22.2% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is near the California average of 21.3%. The Scope Score weights six dimensions for elementary schools: exceeded standard (43%), met or exceeded (22%), grade 3-to-5 growth (15%), chronic absenteeism (10%), ELPAC English Learner proficiency (5%), and suspension rate (5%). Data source: California Department of Education CAASPP 2025, analyzed by SchoolScope.
What are Sierra Foothill Charter's CAASPP test scores?
On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 47.4% of students at Sierra Foothill Charter met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 22.2% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 25.2% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 22.2% pushed past it. Most rating sites report only the combined "proficient" number. SchoolScope surfaces the exceeded-vs-met split because it reveals whether a school's curriculum challenges students beyond minimum proficiency or paces toward it. 84 student-subject combinations were assessed.
How does Sierra Foothill Charter rank in California?
Sierra Foothill Charter ranks #2,484 among California elementary schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 57th percentile. This ranking is based on a weighted composite of 2025 CAASPP test performance (exceeded and met rates), grade-level growth (Grade 3 to grade 5 growth), chronic absenteeism, and suspension rate. Unlike single-number ratings, the Scope Score shows what drives the ranking so parents can decide what matters most to their family. See full methodology.
Is Sierra Foothill Charter getting better or worse?
Based on 2025 CAASPP data, proficiency at Sierra Foothill Charter decreases by 9.5 percentage points from Grade 3 to grade 5 growth. This downward pattern doesn't necessarily mean the school is failing — it can reflect cohort differences, demographic shifts, or curriculum changes. A campus visit and conversation with teachers can reveal what the numbers can't. Growth trajectory is weighted at 15% in the elementary Scope Score because it measures what the school does, not just who walks in the door.
What is the attendance and school culture like at Sierra Foothill Charter?
15.4% of students at Sierra Foothill Charter are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), which is better than the California average of 17.9%. The suspension rate is 0.4%, indicating a low-discipline-incident environment. SchoolScope includes these culture metrics in the Scope Score because they reflect day-to-day school experience in ways test scores alone cannot.
How does Sierra Foothill Charter compare to other schools in Catheys Valley?
Sierra Foothill Charter scores 45/100 (57th percentile) among California elementary schools. To compare with nearby schools, SchoolScope shows the same metrics side by side: exceeded rate, proficiency, growth trajectory, and school culture indicators. The school serves 140 students. Use the schools in Catheys Valley page or the map view to compare all elementary schools nearby.

For the data nerds

Every number on this page

Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and peer comparisons.

01Score factorsWeighted composite · 2024–25
Exceeded standard · 38%
22.2%
↑ vs CA 21.3% · 51th pctile
Growth (G3→G5) · 27%
-9.5pp
↓ vs CA -2.9pp · 44th pctile
Met or exceeded · 20%
47.4%
↑ vs CA 42.7% · 54th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
15.4%
↑ vs CA 17.9% · 54th pctile
Suspension rate · 5%
0.4%
↑ vs CA 1.6% · 60th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 3157%60%33%0%67%+23
Grade 41414%14%50%21%29%−16
Grade 51346%23%0%31%69%+21
Grade 61421%21%36%21%43%−4
Grade 79
Grade 88
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 31513%47%40%0%60%+14
Grade 41414%7%50%29%21%−20
Grade 51338%0%23%38%38%+3
Grade 61421%21%29%29%43%+8
Grade 79
Grade 87
Science (CAST)TestedEXCMETNEARNOT
Grade 5/8/112030%10%60%0%

CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually. Not part of the Scope Score.

03Peer comparison · nearest elementary schoolssorted by Scope Score
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+GrowthSusp
Sierra Foothill Charter ←4522.2%47.4%−9.50.4%
California average4521.3%42.7%−2.91.6%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Scope Score history
40%45%'19'22'23'24'25
2019 · 2022 · 2023 · 2024 · 2025 · no testing 2020–21 (COVID) · rank #3121 → #3108 → #3005 → #5117 → #2484
What we can't show
  • — Subgroup results are suppressed for small student counts (fewer than 15 tested), following CDE privacy rules.
  • — Scored here as an elementary school — other grade spans appear in the data appendix.
Source: CA Dept. of Education · CAASPP 2024–25 · n=5,744 elementary schools · Data updated 2026-07-03methodology · data updates · CSV · report issue