Surprise Valley Elementary

Surprise Valley Joint Unified
470 Lincoln St.
Cedarville, CA 96104
51 Students
Elementary School K - 7th
School Overview
Surprise Valley Elementary, located at 790 High St. in Cedarville, CA, serves as the primary educational hub for the remote and scenic Surprise Valley region of Modoc County. As a small, rural school, it functions as a cornerstone of the local community, providing a personalized learning environment that fosters close relationships between students, teachers, and families. The school is part of the Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District, which is known for its intimate class sizes and a curriculum designed to support students living in a unique, high-desert agricultural setting.

The school benefits from its geographic isolation, utilizing the surrounding landscape as an extended classroom to instill a sense of place and community pride in its students. Because the school serves a tight-knit population, it emphasizes a supportive and inclusive atmosphere where students of various grade levels often engage with one another. For families in Cedarville, Surprise Valley Elementary represents not just an academic institution, but a vital social center that maintains the traditions and values of this historic Northern California valley.
51
Total Students
4.2
Full-Time Teachers
12.1
Student/Teacher Ratio
68.6%
Free/Reduced Lunch
Student Demographics
  • White
    27 (52.9%)
  • Hispanic
    12 (23.5%)
  • American Indian
    7 (13.7%)
  • Two or More
    5 (9.8%)
School Location
School Details
Status: Open
School Level: Elementary School
School Type: Regular School
Charter Status:* Public Non-Charter
Virtual Instruction: No virtual instruction
Shared Time Status: N/A
District: Surprise Valley Joint Unified
Phone: (530)279-6141
Grade Range: K - 7th
Total Students: 51
Full-Time Teachers (FTE): 4.2
Pupil/Teacher Ratio: 12.1
NSLP Participation:1 N/A
Qualified Free Lunch: 30
Qualified Reduced Lunch: 5

* Charter Schools: A public charter school is a publicly funded school that operates independently under a legislative contract (or "charter") with a state, school district, or designated authorizing entity. Charters grant these schools greater operational flexibility over curriculum, staffing, and budgeting in exchange for strict accountability to achieve performance standards established in their charter agreement.

1 National School Lunch Program (NSLP): The National School Lunch Program is a federally assisted meal program operating in public and nonprofit private schools. It provides nutritionally balanced, low-cost or free lunches to eligible children each school day based on household income thresholds or community eligibility options (CEO).

Title I Program Overview: Title I, Part A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) allocates federal financial assistance to local educational agencies and public schools with high percentages of children from low-income families to help ensure that all children meet challenging state academic standards.

Grades Taught
Kindergarten 6
Grade 1 3
Grade 2 6
Grade 3 9
Grade 4 9
Grade 5 6
Grade 6 5
Grade 7 7
Gender Ratio