Enrollment
169
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Other / mixed grade configuration NCES 069104007225
Sonoma County Special Education — Santa Rosa, CA
Federal NCES profile for Sonoma County Special Education, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 31/100.
👥 Class size 64
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 0
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: Sonoma County Office of Education · California
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
24.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
8.9:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
-59% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
35.0%
vs 55.5% California avg
-37% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sonoma County Special Education compares with California and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Sonoma County Special Education reports 169 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 24.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 8.9:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 59% below the California state mean of 21.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 44% lower, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 35.0% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 37% below the California average and 32% below the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 97.6% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (F), calculated from 3 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Sonoma County Special Education compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against California state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 8.9:1 | ▼ 59% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 35.0% | ▼ 37% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 169 | top 15% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
35.0%
free-lunch eligible
— 37% below the California average of 55.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
8.9:1
students per teacher
— 59% below state mean
Top 3% in California — lower ratio than 97% of state schools
Below the 15:1 benchmark — typical of schools with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention.
Engagement
97.6%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 16 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 9.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 169 Top 15% in California — larger than 85% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 24.0
Students per teacher 8.9:1 -59% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 35.0% -37% vs state
NCES ID 069104007225
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 53.8%
White 35.5%
Two or More 4.1%
African American 3.6%
Asian 1.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 53.8% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 97.6%
In-school suspensions 0
Out-of-school suspensions 16
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 55
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
- Enrollment
- 42
- Students per teacher
- 21:1
Similar other schools in Santa Rosa
6 comparable other schools (grades Mixed) serving the same city.
Roseland Charter
Standard public school
1,254 students 20.2:1 students per teacher
Pivot Charter School - North Bay
Standard public school
437 students 17.1:1 students per teacher
Northwest Prep Charter
Standard public school
138 students 17.7:1 students per teacher
Sonoma County Alternative Education Programs
Alternative education program
55 students 14.5:1 students per teacher
Sonoma County Court
Alternative education program
42 students 21:1 students per teacher
Learning House
Standard public school
25 students 25:1 students per teacher
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Sonoma County Special Education
How many students attend Sonoma County Special Education?
Sonoma County Special Education has 169 students enrolled. It is a other school in Santa Rosa, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sonoma County Special Education?
The student-teacher ratio at Sonoma County Special Education is 8.9:1, which is 59% lower than the California average of 21.6:1 and 44% lower than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Sonoma County Special Education?
35.0% of students at Sonoma County Special Education are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sonoma County Special Education?
The largest demographic group at Sonoma County Special Education is Hispanic or Latino at 53.8%. The school serves a diverse student body in Santa Rosa, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sonoma County Special Education?
Sonoma County Special Education has a Resource Investment Index of 31/100 (F) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.