Wagner Ranch Elementary School

350 Camino Pablo

School District

Orinda Union Elementary
Grade

K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:17
Type

public

School Map for Orinda Union Elementary School District

GreatSchools Rating

The school rating calculation is based on four ratings: the Student Progress Rating or Academic Progress Rating, College Readiness Rating, Equity Rating, and Test Score Rating each designed to show different facets of school success. Learn more about GreatSchools Ratings

Reviews

Submitted by parent on October 03, 2024

I been part of Wagner Ranch school since 2020 and still are, my experience with Mr. Manhaimer was awful in 2020, then they been changing principals, there is now a principal for his second year, he seems to ride along with the snobby and stuck up comunity. I live in the neighborhood and got assigned to this schools but I will not recommend it. There is no diversity in the Lamorinda schools and that is very sad unfortunately!
Submitted by parent on September 23, 2023

What a wonderful and supportive school, with a beautiful campus. Our girls transferred from another Bay Area school knowing nobody less than 2 years ago. The outreach to help them feel welcome blew my mind. Ever since then, the girls have been happy and thriving thanks to the incredible staff, a great group of kids surrounding them and a parent group that does so much for the school community. Could not be happier with Wagner.
Submitted by other on June 05, 2023

We moved to orinda for the schools and wagner is exactly what we hoped for. Great teachers, enthusiastic students, involved parents, and tremendous after school care. Couldn’t be happier with the school.
Submitted by parent on February 03, 2023

We love this school so far! The aftercare is also so incredibly helpful for working parents and the kids love it.
Submitted by parent on April 19, 2021

We moved to Orinda a year and half ago and love the school.
Submitted by parent on November 12, 2020

Fabulous! We moved to Orinda for their schools and were really happy to be assigned Wagner Ranch. It has met all of our expectations.
Submitted by parent on February 09, 2020

We are so happy with the school and are glad to be a part of a community that cares so much about education. My kids love school and actually complain if I pick them up early from Bandit Club.
Submitted by parent on April 08, 2019

I just wanted to post that the new principal is spectacular and anyone worried about school leadership needn't be. Hands-on Science, Readers and Writers Workshop, a new innovation lab, regional math professional development--I could not be happier with the curriculum available at this school. So many of the kids here are focused and high-achieving. There's a real focus on community and character. I'm so happy my kids get to go here.
Submitted by parent on October 09, 2018

First and foremost, my daughter loves going to school. The "early bird/late bird" approach provides smaller groups of children (~9) an hour with their teacher most grades, which is an innovative approach to finding ways to give children individualized attention. Parent and other funding allows for a class size from K-3 of ~18-20 students. Amazing parent community. Wonderful school!
Submitted by parent on April 28, 2016

The WR environment in terms of its locale as well as within its environs cannot be matched. The school layout is centered around a very large library and computer center. The classroom "pods" radiate out around the central building like a star. Our cafeteria/multi-purpose room is stellar and is used as a sports arena for the school district. We have a full kitchen with a Chef and Chef's assistant (Chef Basil & Chef Rodrigo) featuring fresh meals and a full salad bar daily! Adjacent to the school is the Wagner Ranch Nature Area which is available for the use of all the schools for various learning activities. Due to its proximity to the school, in addition to these "field trip" learning activities that all the OUSD students participate in, we have had garden classes for the youngest WR grades and various after school activities. The student population is one of the most diverse in Orinda, which also personally appealed to our family. With respect to academics, like all the OUSD schools, this can't be beat! But, for extra detail, we have found the teachers to be very committed and knowledgeable as well as very approachable. Likewise, the supporting staff like Debbie Wong and Sabu, and our Special Education staff, provide an environment of caring, dedication, and professionalism. We arrived to WR just after the fallout from a subgroup of the school who had a significant gripe with the then principal (read negative reviews a few years back which is bringing down the average to a 4). Those times are long past! The parent/family population seems to be, for the most part, a healthy, happy group who are highly involved and motivated to make the school the best it can be for our children. Furthermore, we have a new principal, Mr. Manheimer, nearly through his first year here, and he's doing a terrific job which is also lending itself to the good climate and positive direction for the school. If you're looking for diversity, relaxed outlook, appreciation for environment and the arts, as well as very serious academic commitment, you have found the right school here in Orinda!
Submitted by other on November 23, 2014

Finally --- A new principal at Wagner Ranch. It only took 10 years... It may take him a year or two to rebuild the community & reestablish trust/good communication ... BUT.... WR is now headed by a competent administrator , continues to be a beautiful school site with good teachers in a semi-rural community. With a new administrator in place, the sky is the limit for this school.
Submitted by parent on October 19, 2014

Wonderful school. We have been very happy with our teachers this past year. The school is run very well. The staff are positive and helpful. My son is very happy here.
Submitted by parent on October 08, 2013

We had a wonderful experience at Wagner Ranch. The teachers are extremely committed, my children have enjoyed the school and have consequently flourished. It is a shame that the school has received bad press-it is based on a small group of parents that unfairly accused the school of wrongfully dealing with bullying.
Submitted by parent on September 18, 2013

EXCELLENT experience. I am writing this review solely on my family's personal interactions with the teachers, staff, principal and overall educational experience. We have a daughter in the 1st grade who has had an exemplary educational, social and developmental experience. She has learned, met and exceeded all benchmarks which I believe is a testament to her overall learning environment. Our daughter looks forward to school everyday. I am grateful that our daughter has the opportunity to receive her elementary education at such a wonderful school. I hope this review inspires parents to objectively consider a school based on a number of factors.
Submitted by parent on September 03, 2013

I have two kids, one already graduated from Wagner and is now at middle school and another in K-3. The education my older child received was great and the child is performing at top level at middle school, both in math and writing. My younger one loves going to school, being among great friends and teachers who cares greatly about the child. I won't say it is perfect. No schools are to the eyes of parents, no other public schools at Orinda nor private schools are. But the negative campaign that happened at school a couple of years ago went far beyond the scope of the dissatisfaction the parents who carried out the campaign had with the school, unjustly criticizing the principal with personalized attacks and brought far more damage to the school community themselves than the damage they claimed they received. Fortunately, that is in the past. I feel the community is much more positive and focused on what we are all aiming for; providing good and safe learning environment for our children. I am very satisfied with Wagner Ranch.
Submitted by parent on June 12, 2013

My son attended Wagner Ranch K-5 and had a wonderful experience throughout. The principal is caring and provides good leadership to an exceptional staff of dedicated teachers. Most of the negative comments are unfounded and most likely posted by a group of disgruntled parents who wanted to oust her given that she takes a hard stand against bullying and bad behavior! Do not hesitate to enroll your child in this amazing Orinda school.
Submitted by parent on September 09, 2012

For the 3rd straight year Star testing at this Orinda schoool has dropped, They are teaching from the manual but our kids aren't getting the higher scores, I wissh my kids went to one of the other Orinda schools that have achieved higher star test scores. Must be the bad teachers? I don't think so!
Submitted by parent on August 28, 2012

There has been a lot of bad PR regarding the Principal and the admin s process from the local residents of Wagner Ranch Elementary School in Orinda. There has been an exodus in great teachers and student transfers along with lawsuits against the school/district over the last three years. This goes along with declining Star Test Scores at what should be a model school in a model city. I was very concerned about the treatment of our child and we decided it was in our other children's best interest that they attend another school in the district. We had attended many school board meetings and it was very clear to us that Neither the head of the school board nor the School Superintendent were willing to change things, In fact in the midst of city wide discrepancies over the allocations of school bonds the head of the school board with a partial board vote extended the contract and gave him a raise to the superintendent leaving many of the k-12 parents bewildered as to what happened. Orinda is a great place located 20 minute from downtown San Francisco but the atmosphere at Wagner Ranch needs vast improvement and it doesn t seem to be happening with the current admin and school board.
Submitted by other on May 21, 2012

We are thinking of moving to Orinda but are concerned with sending our son to Wagner Ranch given several of the comments. Are there still concerns with this school's leadership? (I gave this 5 stars so as not to negatively impact the overall community rating.)
Submitted by parent on October 01, 2011

Excellent experiences is what we have had for the last 6 years at Wagner Ranch. We have loved our teachers and believe that the principal does a great job. She hires great teachers, maintains a healthy environment and has a clear understanding of academic priorities. We are looking forward to many more years at Wagner.