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Donner Trail Elementary

Public Grades K-5

227^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 96% of California elementary schools

Summary

Donner Trail Elementary is a small, high-performing public school serving approximately 55 students in grades K-5 within the Tahoe-Truckee Unified School District in Truckee, CA.

Academically, the school is a consistent top performer, ranking in the 96th percentile statewide with exceptional test scores that significantly outpace both district and state averages; for example, 91.67% of students are proficient in math, compared to 40.99% at nearby Truckee Elementary. Key advantages include an exceptionally low student-teacher ratio of 13.7:1, which allows for highly personalized attention, and a very low chronic absenteeism rate of 8.8%, indicating strong student engagement. The school's small size of just 55 students fosters a tight-knit community environment that appears to support its success.

When compared to other local schools, Donner Trail's model involves higher per-student spending, which supports its small class sizes. For an interesting contrast, Creekside Charter achieves similarly high academic rankings with a different operational approach and lower per-student costs. Donner Trail has maintained this level of excellence for over a decade, demonstrating a stable and effective educational program for its community.

Students ?

13.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$49,569

Per pupil spending ?

5.5%

Free/discounted lunch ?

52755 Donner Pass Rd.
Truckee, CA 96161-4951

(530) 582-2720

District: Tahoe-Truckee Unified

Students who attend Donner Trail Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Alder Creek Middle
High:	Tahoe Truckee High

Racial breakdown:

White:

94.5%

Hispanic:

3.6%

Two or more races:

1.8%

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At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 86th percentile in 2010 → 96th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the California average (86% vs 41% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 4% of California elementary schools

✓Ranking is trending up — up 10 percentile points since 2010

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school86%

District avg55%

California avg41%

227^th of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Top 4%▲ up 8 pts since 2016

From top 12% (2016) to top 4% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 5Elementary Schools in the Tahoe-Truckee Unified

253^rd of 1,543Tahoe-Truckee Unified among California districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	96.2	227 of 5857	96.1%	★★★★★
2024	95.7	289 of 5869	95.1%	★★★★★
2022	98.3	76 of 5883	98.7%	★★★★★
2019	93.2	428 of 5789	92.6%	★★★★★
2018	93.8	388 of 5662	93.1%	★★★★★
2017	87.2	805 of 5692	85.9%	★★★★☆
2016	89.4	656 of 5614	88.3%	★★★★☆
2012	90.4	403 of 5390	92.5%	★★★★★
2011	67.5	1608 of 5377	70.1%	★★★★☆
2010	85.2	720 of 5314	86.5%	★★★★☆
2009	46.7	2678 of 5193	48.4%	★★☆☆☆
2008	52.5	2241 of 5113	56.2%	★★★☆☆
2007	89.5	541 of 5113	89.4%	★★★★☆
2006	83.2	823 of 4818	82.9%	★★★★☆
2005	92.9	331 of 4822	93.1%	★★★★★

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	95.4	237 of 5643	95.8%	★★★★★

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	87.3	160 of 2598	93.8%	★★★★★
2024	92.4	40 of 2651	98.5%	★★★★★
2022	92.3	51 of 2726	98.1%	★★★★★
2019	81.3	427 of 2834	84.9%	★★★★☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Male (2024)96th percentile~ school

White (2025)94th percentile~ school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

Mathematics92%+54 vs state

English Language Arts/Literacy83%+35 vs state

Science80%+47 vs state

★

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Schools Near Donner Trail Elementary

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Immunizations Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				CAST Science (2025)			Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2025)							Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2025)							% Completely Immunized (2022)	% Polio (2022)	% Hepatitis B (2022)	% Varicella (2022)	% DTP (2022)	% MMR (2022)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CAST Science 5th Grade	CAST Science 8th Grade	CAST Science All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 3rd Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 3rd Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics All Grades	% Completely Immunized KG	% Polio KG	% Hepatitis B KG	% Varicella KG	% DTP KG	% MMR KG	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Donner Trail Elementary	Public	K-5	52755 Donner Pass Rd.	Truckee	96161	Nevada County	Tahoe-Truckee Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 582-2720	55	4	13.7	5.5%	52 (94.5%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (3.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.8%)	96.2	227^th of 5857 public elementary schools	96.1%		95.7	289^th of 5869 public elementary schools	95.1%	62	80.0		80.0	69.2		86.7				83.3	76.9		100.0				91.7							$49,569	$49,264	$305
Truckee Elementary	Public	K-5	11911 Donner Pass Rd.	Truckee	96161	Nevada County	Tahoe-Truckee Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 582-2650	515	24	21.3	49.3%	213 (41.4%)	2 (0.4%)	271 (52.6%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (4.9%)	49.1	2641^st of 5857 public elementary schools	54.9%		55.8	2247^th of 5869 public elementary schools	61.7%	394	33.8		33.8	46.0	38.7	44.8				43.1	46.7	33.3	43.5				41.0	95.9						$25,127	$24,574	$553
Sierra Expeditionary Learning	Public, Charter	K-8	11603 Donner Pass Rd.	Truckee	96161	Nevada County	Sierra Expeditionary Learning District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 582-3701	216	10	21.6	20.4%	129 (59.7%)	0 (0.0%)	68 (31.5%)	3 (1.4%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (6.9%)	85.1	918^th of 5857 public elementary schools	84.3%		79.6	1167^th of 5869 public elementary schools	80.1%	249	54.2	66.7	60.4	66.7	73.9	66.7	61.5	43.5	66.7	63.2	75.0	47.8	62.5	65.4	39.1	58.3	58.3
Creekside Charter	Public, Charter	K-8	1916 Chamonix Pl.	Olympic Valley	96146	Placer County	Creekside Charter District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 581-1036	233	11	21.1	6.9%	181 (77.7%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (4.7%)	4 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (15.9%)	98.2	50^th of 5857 public elementary schools	99.1%		97.5	124^th of 5869 public elementary schools	97.9%	74	79.2	78.3	78.7	91.3	88.0	95.8	85.7	91.7	87.0	90.0	95.7	80.0	83.3	71.4	83.3	78.3	82.1	91.4	94.3	91.4	94.3	94.3
Glenshire Elementary	Public	K-5	10990 Dorchester Dr.	Truckee	96161	Nevada County	Tahoe-Truckee Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 582-3720	499	21	23.9	15.2%	371 (74.3%)	2 (0.4%)	64 (12.8%)	3 (0.6%)	4 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	55 (11.0%)	92.8	487^th of 5857 public elementary schools	91.7%		88.9	757^th of 5869 public elementary schools	87.1%	270	57.5		57.5	78.4	79.8	73.4				77.0	75.7	82.1	62.8				73.0							$26,038	$25,732	$306
Tahoe Lake Elementary	Public	K-5	375 Grove St.	Tahoe City	96145	Placer County	Tahoe-Truckee Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 582-2700	282	14	20.8	28.0%	183 (64.9%)	0 (0.0%)	72 (25.5%)	3 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (8.5%)	75.8	1345^th of 5857 public elementary schools	77.0%		61.3	2018^th of 5869 public elementary schools	65.6%	673	56.8		56.8	51.2	45.7	63.6				53.4	63.6	56.5	61.4				60.5	95.2	96.8	96.8	95.2	95.2	96.8	$32,466	$32,160	$306

Frequently Asked Questions about Donner Trail Elementary

Is Donner Trail Elementary a good school?

Yes! Donner Trail Elementary is one of the best elementary schools in the state. It ranks 227^th of 5857 California elementary schools.

What is the racial makeup of Donner Trail Elementary?

Students at Donner Trail Elementary are 95% White, 4% Hispanic, 2% Two or more races.

How many students attend Donner Trail Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 55 students attended Donner Trail Elementary.

What schools do graduates of Donner Trail Elementary attend?

Students who attend Donner Trail Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Alder Creek Middle
High : Tahoe Truckee High

What district is Donner Trail Elementary in?

Tahoe-Truckee Unified

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the California Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.