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School Profile · Sonoma

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

Sonoma Charter posts 45% meeting the standard against 43% statewide — ahead of most, with real headroom above the bar.

17202 Sonoma Highway, 95476 (opens in new tab)·Sonoma Valley Unified·Sonoma·Grades TK-8·226 students·48% low-income·Charter·2024–25 CAASPP·(707) 935-4232·Website
Charter school — publicly funded, independently operated, open enrollment via lottery. Learn more
Scope Score
44
📈 On the Rise · Developing
ranked #2,652 statewide · #2 of 6 in Sonoma Valley Unified

Sonoma Charter scores 44 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 54th 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 “45% proficient” and call it done. Sonoma Charter deserves a closer read. The school sits in Sonoma, where two in five students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

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

The story this school is actually telling

The school, grade by grade

ELA · CAASPP 2024–25

Different students, same year — each bar is one grade's proficiency mix.

20%
28%
52%
Grade 3 · 48% proficient
16%
12%
72%
Grade 4 · 28% proficient
33%
29%
38%
Grade 5 · 62% proficient

The honest read: the share exceeding rises 13.3pp across grades; the floor rises 14.5pp. The state average rises 4.5pp over the same span. Kids here gain ground the longer they stay — the pattern you want to see. A school visit and conversation with teachers will tell you more than this number.

The 5 things our score weighs

Exceeded standard
19.7%
State 21.3%
1.6pp below state avg
Growth (G3→G5)
+4.1pp
State -2.9pp
Scores improve across grades
Met or exceeded
45.4%
State 42.7%
2.7pp above state avg
Chronic absenteeism
22.3%
State 17.9%
4.4pp above state avg
Suspension rate
0.3%
State 1.6%
1.3pp 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.

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

Hispanic45.1%
White48.2%
Asian0.4%
Black0.9%
Other5.3%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 47.8% (16pp below CA avg)
Resources & Access
Enrollment
226
394 below CA avg (~620)
Transitional Kindergarten
19 TK students
8% of a 230-student campus · CDE Census Day 2025-26
Student-Teacher Ratio
25:1
4 more students per teacher than CA avg
Per-Pupil Spending
$18,599
CA avg: $14,815 · District avg · NCES F-33
Teacher Salary Range
$62,020 – $110,107
District schedule · CA median ~$98K
At Sonoma Charter in Sonoma, 37.0% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 25.0% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Sonoma Charter outperforms its district average for low-income students by 12.0 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (20.4% Math proficient); White students (58.1% ELA proficient). Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 54 students tested.
Subgroup Proficiency
Low-Income54 tested
ELA 37.0%·Math 20.4%· +12.0pp vs district
White62 tested
ELA 58.1%·Math 58.1%· -2.3pp vs district
Hispanic24 tested
ELA 41.7%·Math 12.5%· +14.6pp vs district

Weighted average across tested grades. Subgroups with fewer than 15 students excluded. Data: CDE CAASPP 2024-25.

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 58%Support 39%Other 3%

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

Neighborhood Context
Median Income
$105K
$20K above CA median
Median Home Value
$897K
$238K above CA median
Bachelor's+
42%
7pp 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
8.1 years avg experience
13 teachers · 8% first-year · 8% second-year
Teacher Credentials
71% 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 Sonoma Charter a good elementary school?
Sonoma Charter has a Scope Score of 44 out of 100, placing it in the 54th percentile of California elementary schools and ranked #2,652 statewide. 19.7% 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 Sonoma Charter's CAASPP test scores?
On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 45.4% of students at Sonoma Charter met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 19.7% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 25.7% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 19.7% 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. 148 student-subject combinations were assessed.
How does Sonoma Charter rank in California?
Sonoma Charter ranks #2,652 among California elementary schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 54th 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 Sonoma Charter getting better or worse?
Based on 2025 CAASPP data, proficiency at Sonoma Charter increases by 4.1 percentage points from Grade 3 to grade 5 growth. This upward trajectory suggests the school is adding measurable value — students leave with higher proficiency rates than they entered with. 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 Sonoma Charter?
22.3% of students at Sonoma Charter are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), compared to the California average of 17.9%. The suspension rate is 0.3%, 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 Sonoma Charter compare to other schools in Sonoma?
Sonoma Charter scores 44/100 (54th 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 226 students. Use the schools in Sonoma page or the map view to compare all elementary schools nearby.
How does Sonoma Charter serve low-income and underrepresented students?
At Sonoma Charter in Sonoma, 37.0% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 25.0% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Sonoma Charter outperforms its district average for low-income students by 12.0 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (20.4% Math proficient); White students (58.1% ELA proficient). Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 54 students tested. SchoolScope shows disaggregated test scores by demographic subgroup so you can see how a school performs for your child's specific group — not just the school-wide average. Subgroup data is context, not part of the Scope Score: we don't penalize schools for who they serve. See our equity approach.

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%
19.7%
↓ vs CA 21.3% · 48th pctile
Growth (G3→G5) · 27%
+4.1pp
↑ vs CA -2.9pp · 48th pctile
Met or exceeded · 20%
45.4%
↑ vs CA 42.7% · 52th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
22.3%
↓ vs CA 17.9% · 43th pctile
Suspension rate · 5%
0.3%
↑ vs CA 1.6% · 61th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 32520%28%36%16%48%+5
Grade 42516%12%24%48%28%−17
Grade 52433%29%17%21%63%+15
Grade 62413%42%25%21%54%+8
Grade 72421%25%29%25%46%−2
Grade 81619%13%44%25%31%−15
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 32512%36%20%32%48%+2
Grade 42520%24%12%44%44%+2
Grade 52417%25%25%33%42%+6
Grade 6244%25%25%46%29%−6
Grade 72417%13%29%42%29%−5
Grade 81533%7%27%33%40%+8
Science (CAST)TestedEXCMETNEARNOT
Grade 5/8/113913%13%56%18%

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

Subgroup · ELATestedMET+vs districtvs CA
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged5437.0%+12−1
White6258.1%−2−4
Hispanic/Latino2441.7%+15+3
03Peer comparison · nearest elementary schoolssorted by Scope Score
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+GrowthSusp
Sonoma Charter ←4419.7%45.4%+4.10.3%
Prestwood Elementary3.3 mi3413.1%39.0%−7.81.4%
Flowery Elementary0.4 mi328.9%25.3%−7.70.6%
Sassarini Elementary2.5 mi307.6%27.5%−5.80.4%
California average4521.3%42.7%−2.91.6%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Scope Score history
35%44%'19'22'23'24'25
2019 · 2022 · 2023 · 2024 · 2025 · no testing 2020–21 (COVID) · rank #3840 → #1313 → #3649 → #2225 → #2652
What we can't show
  • — 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