Capay Joint Union Elementary, Orland CA

Original Research by School Decision on Capay Joint Union Elementary

Capay Joint Union Elementary serves kindergarten through eighth grade in Orland, a small agricultural town in the northern Sacramento Valley. The school enrolls about a modest number of students, spanning grades distributed fairly evenly across the span, with roughly half qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. The student body is split between white and Hispanic enrollment, with very small numbers of other groups; the district does not report English learner or special-education enrollment counts in available data.

Academic performance across state assessments shows consistent challenges across grade bands and subjects. In mathematics, proficiency ranges from lower results in the upper grades to moderate performance in third and sixth grades. English language arts results follow a similar pattern, with third and fourth grade performing slightly better than higher grades, where proficiency dips notably. Science proficiency, measured in fifth and eighth grades, is low. The school's overall proficiency index across tested subjects and grades falls slightly above the median among Tehama County school districts, meaning it sits in the middle range regionally rather than at the bottom.

Only one prior year of testing data is available in the systems reviewed, from 2012, so trend comparisons cannot be drawn. A parent may want to ask the school directly about recent academic improvement efforts and what specific interventions have been implemented to raise proficiency, particularly in mathematics and in the upper-middle grades where results are weakest.

The district recently introduced a Transitional Kindergarten program with a dedicated classroom and teacher, expanding early-childhood access for families with younger siblings. More broadly, the school has adopted a schoolwide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) framework within a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) model. This approach structures both behavioral expectations and academic supports around prevention and tiered response rather than purely reactive discipline, which shapes the day-to-day student experience and support environment.

Orland itself is a quiet, close-knit agricultural community known as the Queen Bee Capital of North America, surrounded by farms growing olives, almonds and walnuts. The town has a small pedestrian-friendly downtown with local shops and restaurants centered on Walker Street, though most daily activity and commerce spreads along Interstate 5. Housing in the area is relatively affordable compared to broader California, with modest home values and a strong emphasis on new construction aimed at first-time homebuyers. The town is actively planning growth and welcomes families, with several new subdivisions underway. Parks and recreation—including ball fields, a public pool, and nearby Black Butte Lake—anchor community life. The local economy centers on retail, health care, and agriculture.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 361%

School 61% · District 61%

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 31 pts above county median

Grade 432%

School 32% · District 32%

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 524%

School 24% · District 24%

▼ 7 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 641%

School 41% · District 41%

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Grade 724%

School 24% · District 24%

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 811%

School 11% · District 11%

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 335%

School 35% · District 35%

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 441%

School 41% · District 41%

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 518%

School 18% · District 18%

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

Grade 633%

School 33% · District 33%

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Grade 741%

School 41% · District 41%

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Grade 821%

School 21% · District 21%

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

Science

Grade 524%

School 24% · District 24%

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 816%

School 16% · District 16%

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 868%

School 68% · District 68%

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

This schoolCapay Joint Union Elementary, 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.