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“Follow the data” is a mantra applying to governments just as “follow the money” is the way to understand American politics. Statistics demonstrate the huge role that education, both public and private, plays in Marin.

I asked Marin County Superintendent of Education John Carroll to provide current school data. It’s supplemented with information from California’s Department of Education. These are facts knowledgeable voters should have when they cast ballots regarding education-related tax measures.

In the 2025-26 school year, 30,077 students attended Marin public schools. The state indicates 6,629 attend private schools including secular and faith-based institutions. The former includes Montessori programs and the latter includes six Catholic elementary schools, one high school (Marin Catholic), Good Shepherd Lutheran, the Jewish day school (Brandeis) and Marin Christian Academy.

Local public schools employ 1,708 teachers and about 1,500 certified staff including administrators, custodians, classroom aides and bus drivers.

Three public school districts are unified, meaning they have classes ranging from transitional kindergarten through high school. Novato Unified has 7,516 students enrolled. San Rafael is close behind with 7,145 and West Marin’s Shoreline Unified has 473 in attendance.

Marin has 12 school districts serving students through eighth grade and one high school district – Tamalpais Union – which has 4,542 enrolled. Their students come from central and southern Marin. The largest elementary district is Mill Valley with 2,313 kids. It’s followed, from largest to smallest, by Miller Creek, Ross Valley, Larkspur-Corte Madera, Reed and Kentfield.

The smallest school district is Laguna Joint in rural northwest Marin with only 11 students. Carroll reports it is the county’s last one-room school. Nicasio has just 34, 161 are enrolled at Lagunitas and 340 at Ross.

Separately, the Marin County Office of Education has 490 students across 33 classrooms serving kids with special needs. Carroll tells us MCOE “provides an alternative high school. Marin’s Community School, which serves students from grades 7-12. It includes expelled youth as well as students who choose to be there for other reasons. It also includes Oracle, the independent-study program and Loma Alta School, the education program housed at Marin Juvenile Hall.”

The policy question: Does Marin need 17 school districts, each with separate administration. Might they be combined into one countywide district? Perhaps instead, they could be centered around high schools along with their elementary and middle feeder schools.

The status quo might be fine. Most Marin parents, with a few exceptions, are pleased with the quality of our schools. It’s one reason why families leave San Francisco and move to Marin. Despite that success, we need to keep on top of quality control so that our schools deliver consistently excellent products.

It’s expensive maintaining the quality schools Marin residents demand. The annual cost of Marin’s public schools is $60.8 million. That derives from property taxes, federal payments and the state – including its “local control funding” formula.

School bonds aren’t included in this summary. Policy issue: Bond proceeds should only be devoted to long-term projects including construction and modernization. A few districts bend that rule by inappropriately utilizing bond revenue to finance ongoing maintenance.

Enrollment by the ethnicity and subgroup of public-school students is revealing: White 48.6%, Latino 36.3%, Asian 3.8%, Black 1.6%, Filipino 0.6%, American Indian-Alaska Native 0.2% and Pacific Islander 0.01%. A small percentage of respondents did not specify

The Office of Education tracks subgroups. Even in prosperous Marin, 35.9% of public schoolers are “socioeconomically disadvantaged.” That’s defined “as qualifying for the federal free and reduced lunch program … at or below 130% of the federal poverty level.” Most are concentrated in Novato, San Rafael and Marin City.

Students with disabilities total 13.65%, English learners are at 17.4% and homeless youths came in at 5%. Schools aside, it’s disgraceful that 1,503 Marin children are living in squalor. “Homeless” is determined by the McKinney Vento Act and includes residing in shared housing, staying in shelters, motels and rough campgrounds.

Columnist Dick Spotswood of Mill Valley writes on local issues Sundays and Wednesdays. Email him at spotswood@comcast.net.