Summary:
The Cinnabar Elementary district in Petaluma serves 176 students across two schools: Cinnabar Charter (grades K-8) and Cinnabar Elementary (Kindergarten only), with the district ranking in the bottom 7th percentile academically in the state.
Cinnabar Charter enrolls the vast majority of district students and provides a full K-8 education, but its students test significantly below state averages in English, math, and science, with performance tending to decline in the middle school grades. In contrast, the smaller Cinnabar Elementary school stands out for its very low chronic absenteeism rate of just 5%, far better than both the charter school and state average.
Key challenges for the district include low academic proficiency overall, particularly in mathematics, and high rates of economic disadvantage. While Cinnabar Charter spends more per student, it has not translated to stronger academic results. The notable difference in attendance between the two schools suggests potential strategies from the kindergarten program could help improve engagement and outcomes for older students.
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