Is Adams Elementary a good school?

Adams Elementary ranks 2119 th of 5862 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Adams Elementary?

In the 2022-23 school year, 517 students attended Adams Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Adams Elementary?

Students at Adams Elementary are 76% Hispanic, 18% White, 5% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Adams Elementary attend?

Students who attend Adams Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : La Cumbre Junior High High : San Marcos Senior High

Adams Elementary

Summary:

Adams Elementary is a public elementary school located in Santa Barbara, California, serving grades K-6 with a total enrollment of 517 students. It is part of the Santa Barbara Unified School District, which is ranked 696 out of 1,568 districts in California and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Adams Elementary consistently outperforms the Santa Barbara Unified School District and the state of California in Smarter Balanced Assessments for English Language Arts/Literacy and Mathematics across all grade levels. For example, in the 2023-2024 school year, Adams Elementary had 49.13% of students proficient or better in ELA/Literacy, compared to 49.44% for the district and 47.04% for the state. In Mathematics, Adams Elementary had 43.69% of students proficient or better, compared to 39.4% for the district and 35.54% for the state. The school also performs well in CAST Science assessments, with 30.12% of students proficient or better, compared to 34.46% for the district and 30.7% for the state. Adams Elementary has strong performance across different student subgroups, particularly for White and English Language Learner students.

However, Adams Elementary faces some challenges, including a steady increase in chronic absenteeism, from 6.2% in 2017-2018 to 19.8% in 2021-2022, which is higher than the state average. The school also has a relatively high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 53.94% in 2020-2021 to 70.31% in 2021-2022, indicating a high proportion of students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds. Compared to nearby schools, Adams Elementary generally outperforms McKinley Elementary and Santa Barbara Community Academy in test scores, but lags behind the higher-performing Vieja Valley Elementary, Peabody Charter, and Hope Elementary schools.

Detail:

Public K-6

2701 Las Positas Rd.
Santa Barbara, CA 93105-3739

(805) 563-2515

District: Santa Barbara Unified

SchoolDigger Rank:
2119^th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $10,594

Students who attend Adams Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	La Cumbre Junior High
High:	San Marcos Senior High

Student/teacher ratio: 18.5

Number of students: 517

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

75.6%

White:

18.0%

Two or more races:

5.4%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 69.1%

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Performance Trends

Compare Details Adams Elementary ranks better than 63.9% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 4^th among 10 ranked elementary schools in the Santa Barbara Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 58.54. (See more...)

Chronic absenteeism in a high school refers to a situation where students repeatedly miss school, with the threshold often defined as missing 10% or more of school days for any reason, excused or unexcused.

Student Body

Compare Details Racial makeup is: Hispanic (75.6%), White (18%), two or more races (5.4%). (See more...)

Compare Details 69.1% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Adams Elementary is 18.5. 7 elementary schools in the Santa Barbara Unified School District have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)

Compare Adams Elementary employs 27.9 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Adams Elementary is $10,594, which is the lowest among 10 elementary schools in the Santa Barbara Unified School District!

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Adams Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Adams Elementary 2119^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Adams Elementary in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

English Language Learner students:

Special Education students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Military Connected students:

Male students:

Hispanic students:

White students:

Santa Barbara Unified:

SchoolDigger ranks Santa Barbara Unified 696^th of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Adams Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Adams Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2013	36.43	3569^th	5530	35.5%
2015	52.21	2331^st	5611	58.5%
2016	60.76	1957^th	5614	65.1%
2017	72.87	1432^nd	5692	74.8%
2018	64.89	1817^th	5662	67.9%
2019	59.84	2085^th	5789	64.0%
2022	41.81	2970^th	5883	49.5%
2023	65.80	1767^th	5874	69.9%
2024	58.54	2119^th	5862	63.9%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Adams Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	53.13	1115^th	3246	65.7%
2019	42.35	1648^th	3275	49.7%
2022	46.99	1364^th	3311	58.8%
2023	62.80	681^st	3250	79.0%
2024	51.74	1091^st	3160	65.5%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for English Language Learner Students!

Rank History for Special Education students at Adams Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2024	47.30	1045^th	2634	60.3%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Adams Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	63.57	1537^th	5084	69.8%
2019	56.87	1959^th	5173	62.1%
2022	37.81	3191^st	5264	39.4%
2023	68.12	1321^st	5374	75.4%
2024	58.88	1865^th	5511	66.2%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Adams Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	62.27	1869^th	5413	65.5%
2019	62.35	1877^th	5492	65.8%
2022	34.08	3410^th	5635	39.5%
2023	55.88	2134^th	5617	62.0%
2024	52.53	2297^th	5605	59.0%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Disabled students at Adams Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2019	67.23	554^th	2585	78.6%
2022	43.45	976^th	2227	56.2%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Disabled Students!

Rank History for Military Connected students at Adams Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2024	9.18	115^th	118	2.5%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Military Connected Students!

Rank History for Male students at Adams Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	64.83	1726^th	5431	68.2%
2019	54.57	2220^th	5510	59.7%
2022	47.74	2570^th	5663	54.6%
2023	69.25	1537^th	5650	72.8%
2024	60.32	1957^th	5636	65.3%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Adams Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	65.59	1343^rd	4830	72.2%
2019	61.64	1596^th	4963	67.8%
2022	38.25	3031^st	5084	40.4%
2023	62.76	1511^th	5098	70.4%
2024	51.96	2137^th	5102	58.1%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for White students at Adams Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	80.39	439^th	2737	84.0%
2019	81.94	392^nd	2834	86.2%
2022	71.33	761^st	2726	72.1%
2023	91.86	52^nd	2662	98.0%
2024	84.15	269^th	2647	89.8%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: California Department of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Data source: California Department of Education

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Enrollment information for Adams Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Total
2012	58	6	10	454	6	0	9	543
2013	91	9	10	445	4	0	6	565
2014	95	11	9	457	3	0	10	585
2015	99	6	8	437	2	0	17	569
2016	121	6	9	417	2	0	0	555
2017	132	8	9	405	1	0	0	555
2018	138	7	8	404	0	0	5	562
2019	142	3	8	431	0	0	8	592
2020	131	2	5	440	0	0	13	591
2021	110	2	6	408	0	1	18	545
2022	85	2	5	403	1	0	26	522
2023	93	3	2	391	0	0	28	517

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Adams Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2012	543	22.5	24.1	n/a
2013	565	24.0	23.5	74.2
2014	585	25.0	23.4	69.9
2015	569	24.0	23.7	63.8
2016	555	23.0	24.1	65.8
2017	555	21.0	26.4	58.9
2018	562	21.0	26.7	61
2019	592	24.0	24.6	52.4
2020	591	n/a	n/a	52.5
2021	545	27.0	20.1	53.9
2022	522	31.0	16.8	70.3
2023	517	27.9	18.5	69.1

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Adams Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2012	543	22.5	24.1	n/a
2013	565	24.0	23.5	74.2
2014	585	25.0	23.4	69.9
2015	569	24.0	23.7	63.8
2016	555	23.0	24.1	65.8
2017	555	21.0	26.4	58.9
2018	562	21.0	26.7	61
2019	592	24.0	24.6	52.4
2020	591	n/a	n/a	52.5
2021	545	27.0	20.1	53.9
2022	522	31.0	16.8	70.3
2023	517	27.9	18.5	69.1

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.

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