Morrice Schaefer Charter, Santa Rosa CA

Original Research by School Decision on Morrice Schaefer Charter

Morrice Schaefer Charter is a small elementary charter school serving kindergarten through sixth grade in Santa Rosa, with about three hundred students. The school sits in a residential area of the city and operates under the Morrice Schaefer Charter District, which approved a school facilities bond in November 2024 to support classroom renovation and upgrades.

The school's defining feature is its STEAM-focused curriculum, which integrates technology and engineering across all grade levels. Students have access to weekly coding and robotics instruction and a dedicated STEAM lab. This subject-centered identity shapes what daily instruction looks like and appeals to families drawn to hands-on, technology-embedded learning from the earliest grades.

Academically, the school is working through a period of significant challenge. On California's state assessment in English language arts, students across grades three through six score below the state proficiency target overall, with rates ranging from about a quarter to just under a third of students meeting the standard. In mathematics, proficiency is considerably lower across all tested grades, with scores clustering in the low to high teens and low twenties. Science testing, administered in fifth grade, shows a similarly low proficiency rate. When these results are viewed in the context of other districts in Sonoma County, the school's overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile among schools tested in that group.

The student body reflects Santa Rosa's demographics. A large majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which speaks to the economic circumstances of enrolled families. The enrollment is predominantly Hispanic, with meaningful shares of white and Asian students and small numbers of other groups. The school does not report data on the share of students receiving special education or English learner services, so a parent may want to look into further detail about how these populations are served.

The school is a charter, which means it operates under a performance contract and offers families choice within the public system. Santa Rosa overall is a mixed-character city, the county seat of Sonoma County, with a walkable downtown and more car-dependent neighborhoods. The school's location on San Miguel Avenue places it in one of the more car-oriented parts of the city. Housing values in the area are substantial, and rents have remained relatively stable year over year, though they sit somewhat above state benchmark. The cost of living and home costs mean that families prioritizing affordability may find the broader Santa Rosa market challenging, though the demographics of the school suggest it enrolls students from a range of economic backgrounds.

For a family considering this school, the key questions are whether the STEAM-focused learning environment aligns with their child's interests and learning style, and what additional support systems exist for students whose state assessment performance suggests they may need intervention in foundational skills. The school's small size and specialized curriculum create a particular environment, distinct from a traditional public elementary. A parent should discuss directly with the school how it addresses students performing below grade level and what resources are available for English learners and students with disabilities, since enrollment data on these populations is not publicly reported here.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 332%

School 32% · district not reported

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Grade 417%

School 17% · district not reported

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

Grade 523%

School 23% · district not reported

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Grade 617%

School 17% · district not reported

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 327%

School 27% · district not reported

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Grade 421%

School 21% · district not reported

▼ 21 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

Grade 529%

School 29% · district not reported

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

Grade 628%

School 28% · district not reported

▼ 16 pts below state median · ▼ 22 pts below county median

Science

Grade 518%

School 18% · district not reported

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

This schoolDistrict average, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 5Lower-income29%Higher-income27%3 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 5Lower-income17%Higher-income40%23 pp gap