Is Berkshire Elementary a good school?

Berkshire Elementary ranks 4234 th of 5862 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

How many students attend Berkshire Elementary?

In the 2023-24 school year, 923 students attended Berkshire Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Berkshire Elementary?

Students at Berkshire Elementary are 71% Hispanic, 13% Asian, 7% African American, 6% White, 2% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Berkshire Elementary attend?

Students who attend Berkshire Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Stonecreek Junior High High : Ridgeview High

Berkshire Elementary

Summary:

Berkshire Elementary is a public elementary school in Bakersfield, California, serving 926 students in grades K-6. It is part of the Panama-Buena Vista Union School District, which is ranked 790 out of 1,568 districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Berkshire Elementary faces several challenges, including consistently low academic performance, high chronic absenteeism, and a high percentage of students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds. The school's performance on the Smarter Balanced Assessments is consistently lower than the district and state averages across all grade levels and subject areas. For example, in the 2023-2024 school year, the percentage of students proficient or better in English Language Arts at the end-of-course level was 34.08% for Berkshire Elementary, compared to 46.16% for the district and 47.04% for the state. Similarly, in Mathematics, the end-of-course proficiency rate for Berkshire Elementary was 20.19%, compared to 30.2% for the district and 35.54% for the state. Additionally, Berkshire Elementary has experienced a significant increase in chronic absenteeism, from 5.6% in 2017-2018 to 45.8% in 2021-2022, which is notably higher than the nearby Panama Elementary (23.3%) and Louise Sandrini Elementary (37.9%).

When comparing Berkshire Elementary to the nearby schools within the same district, as well as schools in the neighboring Greenfield Union School District, it is clear that Berkshire Elementary consistently underperforms academically. For instance, in the 2023-2024 school year, the end-of-course proficiency rate in English Language Arts for Panama Elementary was 47.31%, compared to 34.08% for Berkshire Elementary. Similarly, in Mathematics, Panama Elementary's end-of-course proficiency rate was 40.67%, while Berkshire Elementary's was 20.19%. The performance gap is even more pronounced when compared to schools like W.A. Kendrick Elementary, which had end-of-course proficiency rates of 70.29% in English Language Arts and 61.85% in Mathematics.

Detail:

Public K-6

3900 Berkshire Rd.
Bakersfield, CA 93313-5509

(661) 834-9472

District: Panama-Buena Vista Union

SchoolDigger Rank:
4234^th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $10,341

Students who attend Berkshire Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Stonecreek Junior High
High:	Ridgeview High

Student/teacher ratio: 26.7

Number of students: 923

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

71.2%

Asian:

13.3%

African American:

6.8%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 86%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Berkshire Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Berkshire Elementary ranks worse than 72.2% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 14^th among 18 ranked elementary schools in the Panama-Buena Vista Union School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 26.64. (See more...)

Chronic absenteeism in a 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 (71.2%), Asian (13.3%), African American (6.8%). (See more...)

Compare Details 86% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Berkshire Elementary is 26.7. 13 elementary schools in the Panama-Buena Vista Union School District have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)

Compare Berkshire Elementary employs 34.5 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Berkshire Elementary is $10,341. 14 elementary schools in the Panama-Buena Vista Union School District spend more per student.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Berkshire Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Berkshire Elementary 4234^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Berkshire 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:

Male students:

Asian students:

African American students:

Hispanic students:

Panama-Buena Vista Union:

SchoolDigger ranks Panama-Buena Vista Union 790^th of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Berkshire Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Berkshire Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	36.29	2851^st	4809	40.7%
2005	46.18	2384^th	4822	50.6%
2006	35.19	2988^th	4818	38.0%
2007	38.41	3014^th	5113	41.1%
2008	30.42	3551^st	5113	30.5%
2009	50.45	2456^th	5193	52.7%
2010	51.74	2471^st	5314	53.5%
2011	60.11	2022^nd	5377	62.4%
2012	46.28	2860^th	5390	46.9%
2013	53.87	2454^th	5530	55.6%
2015	55.22	2168^th	5611	61.4%
2016	61.26	1932^nd	5614	65.6%
2017	76.67	1263^rd	5692	77.8%
2018	56.83	2192^nd	5662	61.3%
2019	44.49	2911^th	5789	49.7%
2022	35.91	3383^rd	5883	42.5%
2023	32.37	3704^th	5874	36.9%
2024	26.64	4234^th	5862	27.8%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Berkshire Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	61.74	799^th	3246	75.4%
2019	51.04	1194^th	3275	63.5%
2022	43.80	1551^st	3311	53.2%
2023	31.37	2443^rd	3250	24.8%
2024	36.97	2036^th	3160	35.6%

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

Rank History for Special Education students at Berkshire Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	23.44	2001^st	2420	17.3%
2024	26.87	2008^th	2634	23.8%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Berkshire Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	72.18	1067^th	5084	79.0%
2019	60.19	1770^th	5173	65.8%
2022	49.47	2308^th	5264	56.2%
2023	40.92	2996^th	5374	44.3%
2024	33.50	3647^th	5511	33.8%

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

Rank History for Female students at Berkshire Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	60.28	1964^th	5413	63.7%
2019	48.25	2596^th	5492	52.7%
2022	34.00	3415^th	5635	39.4%
2023	32.00	3580^th	5617	36.3%
2024	31.65	3665^th	5605	34.6%

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

Rank History for Disabled students at Berkshire Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	43.77	929^th	2128	56.3%
2019	55.61	825^th	2585	68.1%
2022	29.49	1516^th	2227	31.9%

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

Rank History for Male students at Berkshire Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	51.45	2369^th	5431	56.4%
2019	40.47	3011^th	5510	45.4%
2022	37.98	3136^th	5663	44.6%
2023	32.86	3558^th	5650	37.0%
2024	22.37	4499^th	5636	20.2%

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

Rank History for Asian students at Berkshire Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	36.72	799^th	1071	25.4%
2019	24.14	946^th	1149	17.7%
2022	19.99	967^th	1154	16.2%
2023	8.52	1081^st	1190	9.2%
2024	11.68	1063^rd	1203	11.6%

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

Rank History for African American students at Berkshire Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2022	69.92	137^th	663	79.3%
2023	55.28	238^th	662	64.0%
2024	26.08	468^th	593	21.1%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Berkshire Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	65.15	1379^th	4830	71.4%
2019	50.86	2226^th	4963	55.1%
2022	41.38	2796^th	5084	45.0%
2023	43.53	2644^th	5098	48.1%
2024	29.96	3744^th	5102	26.6%

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

Rank History for White students at Berkshire Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	38.50	1858^th	2737	32.1%
2019	34.26	2037^th	2834	28.1%
2022	19.15	2292^nd	2726	15.9%
2023	15.16	2339^th	2662	12.1%

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 Berkshire Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
2002	221	52	35	312	7	n/a	n/a	0	627
2003	221	52	35	312	7	n/a	n/a	0	627
2004	213	67	65	366	2	n/a	n/a	2	715
2005	218	65	81	437	3	n/a	n/a	0	804
2006	213	72	90	519	2	n/a	n/a	0	896
2007	200	89	86	583	5	n/a	n/a	2	965
2008	214	94	98	634	9	n/a	n/a	0	1049
2009	180	100	100	599	7	0	3	0	989
2010	158	96	105	628	6	1	0	0	994
2011	152	88	108	626	3	0	2	0	979
2012	170	90	116	637	3	1	5	0	1022
2013	176	81	106	649	2	1	6	0	1021
2014	175	72	115	699	2	1	10	0	1074
2015	151	67	113	657	1	0	14	0	1003
2016	162	56	124	688	0	1	13	0	1044
2017	146	56	132	648	0	2	16	0	1000
2018	139	54	134	647	0	1	15	0	990
2019	124	58	141	656	0	1	13	0	993
2020	113	60	134	658	2	2	24	0	993
2021	109	69	122	659	0	1	21	0	981
2022	96	52	113	640	0	1	18	0	920
2023	66	64	117	655	0	0	24	0	926
2024	57	63	123	657	0	0	23	0	923

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 Berkshire Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2002	627	27.0	23.2	53.9
2003	627	27.0	23.2	53.9
2004	715	35.8	20.0	58.8
2005	804	39.4	20.4	59.8
2006	896	43.5	20.6	59.8
2007	965	49.0	19.7	60.5
2008	1049	51.6	20.3	57.6
2009	989	47.9	19.0	63.1
2010	994	42.7	23.2	68.8
2011	979	n/a	n/a	75.7
2012	1022	30.5	33.4	70.4
2013	1021	34.6	29.4	74
2014	1074	35.6	30.1	76.6
2015	1003	39.0	25.7	77.4
2016	1044	37.0	28.2	78.4
2017	1000	35.6	28.0	77.5
2018	990	36.1	27.4	81
2019	993	30.6	32.3	81.8
2020	993	n/a	n/a	82.5
2021	981	37.2	26.3	76.4
2022	920	32.7	28.0	85.3
2023	926	33.3	27.7	80
2024	923	34.5	26.7	86

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 Berkshire Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2002	627	27.0	23.2	53.9
2003	627	27.0	23.2	53.9
2004	715	35.8	20.0	58.8
2005	804	39.4	20.4	59.8
2006	896	43.5	20.6	59.8
2007	965	49.0	19.7	60.5
2008	1049	51.6	20.3	57.6
2009	989	47.9	19.0	63.1
2010	994	42.7	23.2	68.8
2011	979	n/a	n/a	75.7
2012	1022	30.5	33.4	70.4
2013	1021	34.6	29.4	74
2014	1074	35.6	30.1	76.6
2015	1003	39.0	25.7	77.4
2016	1044	37.0	28.2	78.4
2017	1000	35.6	28.0	77.5
2018	990	36.1	27.4	81
2019	993	30.6	32.3	81.8
2020	993	n/a	n/a	82.5
2021	981	37.2	26.3	76.4
2022	920	32.7	28.0	85.3
2023	926	33.3	27.7	80
2024	923	34.5	26.7	86

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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