District profile / California

Soquel Union Elementary

Capitola, California · Superintendent: Scott Turnbull · #485 of 554 California districts by enrollment

Compare with peers

1,520

Students

2024-25 school year

Schools

2024-25 school year

$11,728

Spending per student

FY2020-21 · 15% below the California median

22.4

Students per teacher

2024-25 · California median 21.7

Soquel Union Elementary is a public school district based in Capitola, California, serving 1,520 students in 4 schools. By enrollment it ranks #485 of the 554 California districts with 1,000 or more students, larger than about 12% of them. Its schools average 380 students each, fewer than the California median of 533. Its superintendent is Scott Turnbull. It spends about $11,728 per student on day-to-day operations, 15% less than the California median. It has roughly 22.4 students per teacher.

How Soquel Union Elementary compares

Soquel Union ElementaryCalifornia median, districts with 1,000+ students

Spending per student$11,728

California median $13,724 · 15% below · FY2020-21

Instruction spending per student$7,334

California median $8,321 · 12% below · FY2020-21

Students per school380

California median 533 · 29% below · 2024-25

Students per teacher22.4

California median 21.7 · about the same · 2024-25

Students per counselor304

California median 474 · 36% below · 2024-25

Spending and staffing

Where the money comes from$26.1 million in revenue · FY2020-21

Federal 9%State 22%Local 69%

Measure	Soquel Union Elementary	California median	Year
Current spending per student	$11,728	$13,724	FY2020-21
Instruction spending per student	$7,334	$8,321	FY2020-21
Total spending	$22.7 million	n/a	FY2020-21
Total revenue	$26.1 million	n/a	FY2020-21
Teachers (full-time equivalent)	68	n/a	2024-25
Total staff (full-time equivalent)	154	n/a	2024-25
Students per teacher	22.4	21.7	2024-25
Students per counselor	304	474	2024-25

Spending: NCES school district finance survey (F-33), FY2020-21. Staffing and enrollment: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25. Via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal. The California median compares districts with 1,000 or more students.

Leadership

Moves tracker →

Scott Turnbull

Superintendent, Soquel Union Elementary

Source: California Department of Education, School Directory, checked 2026-10-19. Report a change

In the news

0 stories matched

We haven't matched any stories to Soquel Union Elementary yet. Recent California coverage is on the California page.

Peer districts in California

Compare side by side →

District	Students	Schools	Spending per student	Students per teacher	Rank
Willits UnifiedWillits	1,534	6	$13,882	17.8	#484
Soquel Union ElementaryCapitola · this district	1,520	4	$11,728	22.4	#485
Mount Pleasant ElementarySan Jose	1,516	5	$16,506	20.5	#486
Thermalito Union ElementaryOroville	1,515	6	$14,480	21.0	#487
Central Union ElementaryLemoore	1,508	4	$15,946	19.1	#488

Similar-size districts nationally

District	Students	Spending per student	Students per teacher
Ellwood City Area School DistrictEllwood City, PA	1,520	$16,269	12.3
TivertonTiverton, RI	1,520	$18,853	12.5
BourneBourne, MA	1,519	$22,658	10.3
Red Lake Public School DistrictRed Lake, MN	1,519	$24,211	13.6

Peers are the districts closest in enrollment, so they can still differ in many other ways. Enrollment, school counts and phone numbers are from the NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25.

Printed from Superintendent's Corner: https://superintendentscorner.com/district-ca-soquel-union-elementary