Sulphur Springs Union vs Lakeside Union Elementary
CA · 5,157 students • CA · 4,515 students • fiscal year 2024 • swap sides
In one line
- Lakeside Union Elementary spends 7% more per student than Sulphur Springs Union after adjusting for local price levels.
- Sulphur Springs Union directs 2 more cents of every operating dollar to instruction than Lakeside Union Elementary.
- Lakeside Union Elementary reports fewer students per teacher (22.4 vs 24.9). This is a staffing ratio, not an average class size.
Are these even comparable?
Establish the shape of each district before reading a single dollar figure.
| Sulphur Springs Union | Lakeside Union Elementary | |
|---|---|---|
| Students enrolled | 5,157 | 4,515 |
| Schools | 10 | 10 |
| Grades served | K–6 | K–12 |
| Setting | Suburb | Suburb |
| County | Los Angeles County | San Diego County |
| State | CA | CA |
| Local price level (US = 100) Above 100 means a dollar buys less here than the national average. | 113.6 | 111.9 |
The headline dollar
Current operating spending per student, shown three ways. The first is what each district reports. The second and third are the honest ones for comparison.
| Sulphur Springs Union | Lakeside Union Elementary | |
|---|---|---|
| Per student, as reported | $16,040 | $16,846 |
| Per student, price-adjusted Divided by the local price level, so both figures are in the same money. | $14,124 | $15,057 |
| Per student, price-adjusted, excluding transport Transportation provision varies enormously between districts and states. Removing it compares the parts both districts actually do. | $13,791 | $14,777 |
| Capital spending per student Buildings and land, never folded into the operating figures above. It is lumpy: a district mid-build looks expensive for two years. | Locked | Locked |
Sulphur Springs Union
Lakeside Union Elementary
Where the money comes from
The funding mix determines how exposed a district is to local property values, to state politics, and to federal programmes ending.
Sulphur Springs Union
- Local 39.4% Locked
- State 54.9% Locked
- Federal 5.7% Locked
Lakeside Union Elementary
- Local 34.5% Locked
- State 57.9% Locked
- Federal 7.5% Locked
| Sulphur Springs Union | Lakeside Union Elementary | |
|---|---|---|
| Local share of revenue Mostly property tax. A high share means school budgets track local property values, up and down. | 39.4% | 34.5% |
| State share of revenue | 54.9% | 57.9% |
| Federal share of revenue | 5.7% | 7.5% |
| Total revenue | Locked | Locked |
How CA funds its districts
LCFF — Local Control Funding Formula: a base grant per pupil plus supplemental and concentration grants driven by low-income, English-learner and foster-youth counts.
How CA funds its districts
LCFF — Local Control Funding Formula: a base grant per pupil plus supplemental and concentration grants driven by low-income, English-learner and foster-youth counts.
Where the money goes
The same slices in the same order for both districts, plus the differences by function — because two pie charts side by side hide exactly the thing you want to see.
Sulphur Springs Union
- Instruction 66.2% Locked
- Instructional staff support 3.4% Locked
- Student support 6.7% Locked
- Operations & maintenance 9.7% Locked
- Transportation 2.4% Locked
- Food service 0.3% Locked
- School administration 4.8% Locked
- District administration 1.5% Locked
- Other support 5.0% Locked
- Other current 0.3% Locked
Lakeside Union Elementary
- Instruction 65.7% Locked
- Instructional staff support 2.3% Locked
- Student support 4.5% Locked
- Operations & maintenance 6.7% Locked
- Transportation 1.9% Locked
- Food service 3.8% Locked
- School administration 7.1% Locked
- District administration 1.6% Locked
- Other support 6.0% Locked
- Other current 3.8% Locked
What is actually different
Share of each district's operating dollar, Sulphur Springs Union minus Lakeside Union Elementary. Two pie charts side by side are almost impossible to read against each other; this is the same data as one chart.
| Sulphur Springs Union | Lakeside Union Elementary | |
|---|---|---|
| Cents of each operating dollar reaching classrooms Instruction plus instructional staff support, as a share of current spending. | 69.6% | 68.0% |
| Administration share District office plus school administration. | 6.3% | 8.7% |
| Transportation share | 2.4% | 1.9% |
What the money buys
Staffing levels are the most direct thing a budget converts into.
| Sulphur Springs Union | Lakeside Union Elementary | |
|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher This is a staffing ratio: total enrollment divided by teaching staff. It is NOT average class size. Actual classes are larger than this number in every district. | 24.9 | 22.4 |
| Students per counselor | Locked | Locked |
| Students per administrator | Locked | Locked |
| Total salaries All staff, not teachers alone. | Locked | Locked |
Who they serve
The answer to "but they serve different kids" — which is usually a fair objection.
| Sulphur Springs Union | Lakeside Union Elementary | |
|---|---|---|
| Child poverty rate Children aged 5 to 17 in poverty within the district boundary. Used instead of free-lunch eligibility, which community eligibility has made unusable for comparison. | 10.9% | 9.9% |
| English learners | — | — |
| Students with disabilities | — | — |
| Enrollment change, 5 years | -3.2% | -9.5% |
Results, and results for the money
Stability and risk
The homebuyer’s real question: what is likely to change after I move in?
Sulphur Springs Union
No stability flags raised.
Lakeside Union Elementary
- Declining enrollment Enrollment fell more than 5% over five years. Enrollment decline is the single best predictor of school closures and programme cuts.
| Sulphur Springs Union | Lakeside Union Elementary | |
|---|---|---|
| Enrollment change, 5 years | -3.2% | -9.5% |
| Long-term debt per student | Locked | Locked |
| Debt service share of spending | Locked | Locked |
Enrolling a child
The same checklist for both districts. Every "required" below links to the sentence it came from.
Sulphur Springs Union
Sulphur Springs Union School District - Homepage
Registration runs through Aeries. Read August 23, 2026.
Lakeside Union Elementary
Enrollment – Lakeside Union School District
Registration runs through Infinite Campus. Read August 23, 2026.
Is a seat at your zoned school guaranteed?
Sulphur Springs Union
We have no such statement from this district — which is not the same as a promise that your zoned school has room. Most districts never publish the policy in either direction. Ask the school office directly whether your address’s school is enrolling at your child’s grade level before you sign anything.
Lakeside Union Elementary
We have no such statement from this district — which is not the same as a promise that your zoned school has room. Most districts never publish the policy in either direction. Ask the school office directly whether your address’s school is enrolling at your child’s grade level before you sign anything.
- This is the district’s own published wording, not our summary of it. Policies are rewritten between enrollment seasons and a page can be out of date the day after we read it — the school office is the only authority on whether a particular grade at a particular school is full right now.
- A warning here is about capacity, not about your address. It does not mean your child will be moved; it means the district has told you in writing that it may move them.
- Required the page says so, and the sentence is quoted.
- Mentioned only it comes up, but not as a requirement — often a sentence saying the district cannot demand it.
- Not mentioned we read the page and it was not on it. That is not the same as "not required".
- Page not read we have no enrollment page for this district.
Documents to bring
| Sulphur Springs Union | Lakeside Union Elementary | |
|---|---|---|
| Proof of residency | Required “Two (2) Proofs of Residency (Drivers' License, Utility Bills, Paystubs)” | Required “You must also provide your child’s birth certificate and your proof of residency for Lakeside.” |
| Proof of age (usually a birth certificate) | Not mentioned | Required “You must also provide your child’s birth certificate and your proof of residency for Lakeside.” |
| Immunisation records | Required “Proof of Immunization (see document below for requirements)” | Required “Your child must have all current Kindergarten entry Immunizations as required per the state of California.” |
| Physical examination | Not mentioned | Not mentioned |
| Dental, vision or hearing screening | Not mentioned | Not mentioned |
| Tuberculosis test | Not mentioned | Not mentioned |
| Records from the previous school | Required “CLASS Education Foundation-Creativity*Innovation*Wellness School Accountability Report Card School Safety Plans” | Not mentioned |
| IEP or 504 plan | Not mentioned | Not mentioned |
| Custody or guardianship paperwork | Not mentioned | Not mentioned |
| Parent or guardian photo ID | Required “Two (2) Proofs of Residency (Drivers' License, Utility Bills, Paystubs)” | Not mentioned |
| Home language survey | Not mentioned | Not mentioned |
| Emergency contact information | Not mentioned | Not mentioned |
| Proof of income | Not mentioned | Not mentioned |
| Social security number Asked for by some districts. It is not required to enrol, and a school may not refuse a child who does not provide one. We list it because districts ask, not because you must answer. | Not mentioned | Not mentioned |
How enrolling works
Locked 11 steps of the enrollment process — deadlines, appointments, proof of residency — are not shown. What to bring is above, and stays free.
- A blank row means the requirement did not appear on the district’s page. It does not mean the district will not ask for it — published lists are routinely incomplete, and the registrar has the final word.
- Requirements change every enrollment season. Check the district’s own page, linked above, before you gather anything.
- A district cannot condition enrollment on your child’s immigration status: under Plyler v. Doe (1982) every child resident in the district is entitled to a free public education. If a district asks for something that would reveal status, you are not obliged to provide it.
- If your family is in temporary or shared housing, the McKinney-Vento Act lets a child enrol immediately without the residency and records documents listed here. Ask for the district’s homeless liaison by name.
Comparability notes
No comparability caveats: these two are a like-for-like pair.
What these numbers are, exactly
Who decides, and what it costs you
Every band above this one asks what a district spends. This one asks who chose to.
Sulphur Springs Union
The district levies its own school tax
This district raises property tax in its own name. Who sets the rate varies by state — an elected board in some, a public vote in others — but the levy is the school system’s own, and it is the part of a tax bill that school politics moves most directly.
Lakeside Union Elementary
The district levies its own school tax
This district raises property tax in its own name. Who sets the rate varies by state — an elected board in some, a public vote in others — but the levy is the school system’s own, and it is the part of a tax bill that school politics moves most directly.
| Sulphur Springs Union | Lakeside Union Elementary | |
|---|---|---|
| School property tax levied, per student Only for districts that levy in their own name. Blank where the county or town levies instead — see the cards above, and read the next row. | $5,515 | $3,581 |
| Appropriated by the county or town, per student What the parent government handed the schools, for dependent systems. This is a general appropriation, not solely property tax. | — | — |
| Property tax as a share of all revenue How much of the budget rides on local property values, and therefore on local votes. | 27.0% | 17.9% |
| Long-term debt already owed, per student The balance at the end of the year, for scale. Repaid over decades, so it is a commitment made by earlier boards rather than a bill arriving now. | Locked | Locked |
| Debt service as a share of spending Interest plus principal repaid this year, against total spending. This is the part of the debt that is being paid now, out of money that would otherwise reach a classroom. | Locked | Locked |
| New long-term debt issued, per student Money borrowed during fiscal year 2024. What this figure does and does not tell you is set out under the table. | $0 | $373 |
- Sulphur Springs Union: issued no new long-term debt in fiscal year 2024. That is a reported zero, not a gap in the data.
- A figure in the borrowing row is not a bond voters approved. It records debt issued, and that includes refinancing existing debt at a new rate — which changes nothing about what a district owes — as well as certificates of participation and lease-revenue debt, which in many states a board can issue with no referendum at all. To find out what was actually on a ballot, check the county election office.
- Debt is repaid over decades. A large balance per student is a commitment made by earlier boards and earlier voters, not a bill arriving this year. The debt service row above it is the part being paid now.
Who sits on the board
Sulphur Springs Union board of education
- Shelley Weinstein — Board President
- Ken Chase — Clerk
- Denis DeFigueiredo — Board Member
- Lori MacDonald — Board Member
- Paola Jellings — Board Member
Read from the district’s own board page on 2026-08-24. Boards change; the district’s page is the current record, not ours.
These seats are elected, and what this board decides — the budget, the attendance boundaries, the calendar — is decided at a meeting the public may attend. The district’s own board page, linked above, is where it publishes the schedule and the agenda. We do not hold meeting dates or contact details for these people.
Lakeside Union Elementary board of education
- Lara Hoefer Moir — President term ends 2028
- Autumn Ellenson — Vice President term ends 2028
- Jim Bennett — Clerk term ends 2026
- Andrew Hayes — Trustee term ends 2026
- Ron Kasper — Trustee term ends 2026
Read from the district’s own board page on 2026-08-24. Boards change; the district’s page is the current record, not ours.
These seats are elected, and what this board decides — the budget, the attendance boundaries, the calendar — is decided at a meeting the public may attend. The district’s own board page, linked above, is where it publishes the schedule and the agenda. We do not hold meeting dates or contact details for these people.
Funding measures on the ballot
Sulphur Springs Union
$72M approved by voters in a single measure.
| Election | Measure | Amount | Yes | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-03-03 | Bond · Prop. Measure USTo improve local elementary schools by increasing access to science, technology, engineering, math, and arts instruction; modernizing classrooms and l…To improve local elementary schools by increasing access to science, technology, engineering, math, and arts instruction; modernizing classrooms and labs; upgrading security and emergency communication systems; replacing aging portable classrooms; shall the Sulphur Springs Union School District measure be adopted to issue $78,000,000 in bonds at legal rates, raising an average of $4,000,000 annually through maturity, projected levies of $0.022 per $100 of assessed valuation, audits, an oversight committee, and no money for administrator salaries? |
$78M | 42.6% | Failed |
Locked One earlier measure in this district’s history is not shown.
From the state’s own election file. Latest election on record: 2025-06-03.
What this state publishes: School district bonds and parcel taxes as the California Elections Data Archive compiles them for the Secretary of State. Bonds carry the principal; parcel taxes are quoted per parcel and carry no comparable dollar figure. Recalls and advisory questions are not included.
CA published no results for 2010, so a measure put to voters in that year would not appear here. That is a gap in the state’s own publishing.
Lakeside Union Elementary
| Election | Measure | Amount | Yes | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-03-03 | Bond · Prop. Measure RTo increase student safety and school security; repair aging classrooms and schools including outdated plumbing, electrical wiring, roofs and heating/…To increase student safety and school security; repair aging classrooms and schools including outdated plumbing, electrical wiring, roofs and heating/ air conditioning; replace portables with permanent classrooms; renovate classrooms and qualify for State matching funds, shall Lakeside Union School District’s measure authorizing $33 million of bonds with annual audits, legal rates, projected yearly levies less than $0.03 per $100 of asse ssed valuation while bonds are outstanding (generating $2.2 million per year) and taxpayer oversight be approved? |
$33M | 41.6% | Failed |
Locked One earlier measure in this district’s history is not shown.
From the state’s own election file. Latest election on record: 2025-06-03.
What this state publishes: School district bonds and parcel taxes as the California Elections Data Archive compiles them for the Secretary of State. Bonds carry the principal; parcel taxes are quoted per parcel and carry no comparable dollar figure. Recalls and advisory questions are not included.
CA published no results for 2010, so a measure put to voters in that year would not appear here. That is a gap in the state’s own publishing.
- A vote share is not an outcome. What it takes to carry varies by state and by measure — in some states a bond needs a supermajority and a minimum turnout while a levy on the same ballot needs half, so a clear majority can still lose. Every outcome shown here is copied from the state’s own election file, and the rule that applied is stated with the coverage above. Where that file stated no outcome we show whatever count it published and no verdict, rather than working one out from the percentage — and some states publish the ballot question without ever recording a count, so a blank there is a number nobody printed.
- These are the measures a district put to its voters, not its whole tax bill. A property tax bill also carries county, city and state levies that have nothing to do with schools, and in most states a school board can issue some kinds of debt with no vote at all.
The detailed figures for Sulphur Springs Union and Lakeside Union Elementary
The verdict, the headline dollar, the funding shares, who is served and every comparability caveat are free above, and stay free. What is behind the lock is the detail you would want before acting on any of it:
- capital spending per student
- total revenue and total current spending, and the funding mix in dollars (the percentage shares stay free)
- the ten-line per-student breakdown of where the money goes
- counselor and administrator ratios, and the total salary bill
- the debt behind the risk flags — per student, and as a share of spending
- the enrollment process — deadlines, appointments and proof of residency
- the full ballot history: 2 more bonds and levies, with the amounts
$1.79 for both, for three months, 21 cents less than buying them one at a time.
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Compare something else
Sulphur Springs Union on its own · Lakeside Union Elementary on its own