Petaluma City Elementary

Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. District totals are aggregated directly from the schools reporting under this district in the source records. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.

Petaluma, California - 7 schools

2,158
Total Enrollment
7
Schools
-
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, Combined
School Types

District-Level NCES Analysis

Petaluma City Elementary operates 7 public schools serving 2,158 students, placing it among the smallest districts in California. The school portfolio breaks down into 6 elementary, 1 combined schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Sonoma County.

a 484:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 32.8% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 48.5% White, 37.8% Hispanic or Latino, 3.6% Asian across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Mckinley Elementary, with a diversity index of 65.0/100.

Its largest campus is Penngrove Elementary, enrolling 472 students (22% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is South County Consortium, at 129 students, a 4x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.

Penngrove Elementary accounts for 21.6% of all Petaluma City Elementary student enrollment

That concentration means Petaluma City Elementary-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: elementary. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data NCES Common Core of Data

Petaluma City Elementary school enrollment varies 3.7× across entities

Petaluma City Elementary school enrollment ranges from 129 students (lowest) to 472 students (highest), a spread of 343 students. That relatively narrow ratio reflects an unusually homogeneous campus portfolio, most districts have a wider mix of school sizes. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data NCES Common Core of Data

Petaluma City Elementary student-counselor ratio is 484:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)

student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.

Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection NCES Civil Rights Data Collection

Petaluma City Elementary chronic absenteeism rate is 32.8% — high (typically associated with higher-than-average disruption; recent CRDC data showed elevated rates persisting after pandemic-era schooling changes)

chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.

Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22 NCES Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22

Student Demographics

Average demographic composition across 7 schools in Petaluma City Elementary.

White 48.5%
Hispanic or Latino 37.8%
African American 1.0%
Asian 3.6%
Multiracial 7.0%
Other 2.2%

Source: NCES CCD School Membership 2024-25.

Student-body diversity

Average diversity index 51.0/100

Average Simpson diversity index across Petaluma City Elementary's schools, above the California average of 46.0.

Most mixed schools

  1. 1 Mckinley Elementary 65.0
  2. 2 Valley Vista Elementary 60.0
  3. 3 South County Consortium 58.6
  4. 4 Penngrove Elementary 52.3
  5. 5 Mcnear Elementary 47.5

Programs & Resources

484:1
Student-Counselor Ratio
32.8%
Chronically Absent

Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22.

Schools in Petaluma City Elementary

School Enrollment
Penngrove Elementary
Charter
472
Grant Elementary
386
Mckinley Elementary
368
Mcnear Elementary
343
Mcdowell Elementary
329
Valley Vista Elementary
155
South County Consortium
129

How Petaluma City Elementary Compares to Similar-Size Districts

The California districts closest to this one in total enrollment.

District Enrollment Spending Funding Mix
Hughson Unified Similar size No spending data No revenue-mix data
Chowchilla Elementary Similar size No spending data No revenue-mix data
Nuview Union Similar size No spending data No revenue-mix data
Bonsall Unified Similar size No spending data No revenue-mix data
Scotts Valley Unified Similar size No spending data No revenue-mix data

Comparisons are relative to Petaluma City Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data and the F-33 Finance Survey.

Nearby Districts in California

Top districts in the same state, compare side-by-side for enrollment, spending, and demographics.

Los Angeles Unified
427,795 students · 785 schools · $21,940/pupil
Compare vs Petaluma City Elementary →
San Diego Unified
93,893 students · 175 schools · $18,665/pupil
Compare vs Petaluma City Elementary →
Fresno Unified
69,668 students · 101 schools · $18,783/pupil
Compare vs Petaluma City Elementary →
Long Beach Unified
65,554 students · 84 schools · $16,028/pupil
Compare vs Petaluma City Elementary →
Elk Grove Unified
62,061 students · 67 schools · $14,134/pupil
Compare vs Petaluma City Elementary →

Compare Petaluma City Elementary

See how this district compares to others in enrollment, spending, demographics, and academic resources.

Compare vs Los Angeles Unified →

Frequently Asked Questions

How many schools are in Petaluma City Elementary?

Petaluma City Elementary has 7 schools, including 6 elementary, 1 combined. Total enrollment is 2,158 students.

What is the demographic composition of Petaluma City Elementary?

Petaluma City Elementary students are 48.5% White, 37.8% Hispanic or Latino, 3.6% Asian, 1.0% African American, averaged across 7 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.