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.
Sonoma, California - 9 schools
An equity score of 52/100 ranks Sonoma Valley Unified #700 of 1517 districts in California (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $21,339 per pupil, Sonoma Valley Unified ranks #187 of 1862 California districts by per-pupil spending (California districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
3,195
Total Enrollment
9
Schools
$21,339
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Sonoma Valley Unified operates 9 public schools serving 3,195 students, placing it among the smaller districts in California. The school portfolio breaks down into 5 elementary, 2 high, 2 middle schools, a compact enough portfolio that families can compare every campus directly before they move, rent, or enrol. 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.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $21,339 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, among the top 187 of 1862 California districts by per-pupil spending. See how California compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 74.2% local, 14.7% state, and 11.2% federal, a local-revenue-heavy mix that leaves the district more exposed to property-tax swings and local ballot measures than state-funded peers. The district's equity score is 52/100, ranked #700 of 1517 in California against a state average of 50, in line with the typical spread seen across the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 9 schools offering Advanced Placement (16 AP courses district-wide), a 557.6:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 46.4% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 68.8% Hispanic or Latino, 26.4% White, 1.7% Asian across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Prestwood Elementary, with a diversity index of 58.1/100.
Its largest campus is Sonoma Valley High, enrolling 1,071 students (34% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Creekside High, at 48 students, a 22x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Sonoma Valley High accounts for 33.5% of all Sonoma Valley Unified student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Sonoma Valley Unified-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: high. 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.
Sonoma Valley Unified school enrollment varies 22× across entities
Sonoma Valley Unified school enrollment ranges from 48 students (lowest) to 1,071 students (highest), a spread of 1,023 students. That spread is wider than typical and predicts noticeable gaps in service quality between the highest and lowest areas. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Sonoma Valley Unified student-counselor ratio is 558:1 — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
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 Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
Sonoma Valley Unified chronic absenteeism rate is 46.4% — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
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 Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
Sonoma Valley Unified has 9 schools, including 2 high, 5 elementary, 2 middle. Total enrollment is 3,195 students.
How much does Sonoma Valley Unified spend per student?
Sonoma Valley Unified spends $21,339 per student. The district has an equity score of 52/100, ranking #700 in California.
What is the demographic composition of Sonoma Valley Unified?
Sonoma Valley Unified students are 68.8% Hispanic or Latino, 26.4% White, 1.7% Asian, 1.1% African American, averaged across 9 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Sonoma Valley Unified?
Sonoma Valley Unified has an equity score of 52/100, ranking #700 out of 1517 districts in California.