Is Columbia Elementary a good school?

Columbia Elementary ranks in the bottom 7.7% of California elementary schools.

How many students attend Columbia Elementary?

In the 2023-24 school year, 678 students attended Columbia Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Columbia Elementary?

Students at Columbia Elementary are 65% Hispanic, 25% African American, 5% White, 4% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Columbia Elementary attend?

Students who attend Columbia Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Gifford C. Cole Middle High : Eastside High

Columbia Elementary

Summary:

Columbia Elementary is a public elementary school located in Lancaster, CA, serving 644 students in grades K-6. It is part of the Eastside Union Elementary District, which is ranked 1482 out of 1568 districts in California and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Columbia Elementary has consistently ranked in the bottom 10% of California elementary schools over the past decade, with a ranking between 4949 and 5650 out of around 5,600-5,900 schools. It has received 0 or 1 out of 5 stars from SchoolDigger for most years. The school faces significant challenges, including high chronic absenteeism rates, which have risen from 17.6% in 2017-2018 to 49.0% in 2021-2022, much higher than the state average of around 14-15%. Academically, Columbia Elementary students perform significantly below the state and district averages, with only 15.44% of students proficient or better in ELA in 2023-2024, compared to 21.02% for the district and 47.04% statewide. The school also struggles to support the academic achievement of various student subgroups, with its African American, Hispanic, and Special Education students ranking in the bottom 10-20% of California elementary schools in ELA and Math.

Interestingly, the nearby Tierra Bonita Elementary and Enterprise Elementary schools, which are also part of the Eastside Union Elementary District, perform significantly better than Columbia Elementary across various metrics, suggesting that factors beyond just socioeconomic status may be contributing to Columbia's underperformance. Addressing the school's high chronic absenteeism, low academic achievement, and struggles to support its diverse student population will require a multifaceted approach that considers the school's unique context and the broader systemic challenges within the district.

Detail:

Public K-6

2640 East Avenue J-4
Lancaster, CA 93535-2882

(661) 946-5656

District: Eastside Union Elementary

SchoolDigger Rank:
5413^th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Students who attend Columbia Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Gifford C. Cole Middle
High:	Eastside High

Student/teacher ratio: 24.2

Number of students: 678

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

65.2%

African American:

25.2%

White:

4.9%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 95%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Columbia Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Columbia Elementary ranks worse than 92.3% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 3^rd among 4 ranked elementary schools in the Eastside Union Elementary School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 13.7. (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 Columbia Elementary has the largest elementary school student body size in the Eastside Union Elementary School District. Racial makeup is: Hispanic (65.2%), African American (25.2%), White (4.9%). (See more...)

Compare Details 95% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Columbia Elementary is 24.2. 2 elementary schools in the Eastside Union Elementary School District have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)

Compare Columbia Elementary employs 28 full-time teachers.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Columbia Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Columbia Elementary 5413^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Columbia 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:

African American students:

Hispanic students:

Eastside Union Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Eastside Union Elementary 1482^nd of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Columbia Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	18.94	4024^th	4809	16.3%
2005	16.66	4199^th	4822	12.9%
2006	15.65	4311^th	4818	10.5%
2007	18.22	4429^th	5113	13.4%
2008	10.13	4916^th	5113	3.9%
2009	10.22	4991^st	5193	3.9%
2010	15.75	4869^th	5314	8.4%
2011	12.82	5086^th	5377	5.4%
2012	15.12	4949^th	5390	8.2%
2013	16.30	4974^th	5530	10.1%
2015	11.96	5353^rd	5611	4.6%
2016	11.68	5326^th	5614	5.1%
2017	10.96	5438^th	5692	4.5%
2018	9.64	5460^th	5662	3.6%
2019	11.05	5506^th	5789	4.9%
2022	17.54	5104^th	5883	13.2%
2023	14.89	5337^th	5874	9.1%
2024	13.70	5413^th	5862	7.7%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	38.81	1828^th	3246	43.7%
2019	36.74	2003^rd	3275	38.8%
2022	38.09	1949^th	3311	41.1%
2023	45.12	1479^th	3250	54.5%
2024	53.90	978^th	3160	69.1%

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

Rank History for Special Education students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	17.75	2339^th	2420	3.3%
2024	24.70	2128^th	2634	19.2%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	11.08	4908^th	5084	3.5%
2019	14.21	4882^nd	5173	5.6%
2022	22.19	4491^st	5264	14.7%
2023	19.16	4775^th	5374	11.1%
2024	18.69	4887^th	5511	11.3%

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

Rank History for Female students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	9.20	5267^th	5413	2.7%
2019	13.50	5119^th	5492	6.8%
2022	18.96	4812^th	5635	14.6%
2023	14.54	5187^th	5617	7.7%
2024	13.78	5211^th	5605	7.0%

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

Rank History for Disabled students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	29.71	1463^rd	2128	31.3%
2019	25.10	2056^th	2585	20.5%
2022	16.67	2210^th	2227	0.8%

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

Rank History for Male students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	11.79	5170^th	5431	4.8%
2019	10.85	5316^th	5510	3.5%
2022	17.90	4938^th	5663	12.8%
2023	16.59	5030^th	5650	11.0%
2024	15.41	5124^th	5636	9.1%

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

Rank History for African American students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	18.89	644^th	700	8.0%
2019	18.67	677^th	747	9.4%
2022	28.07	499^th	663	24.7%
2023	27.13	509^th	662	23.1%
2024	16.29	559^th	593	5.7%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	12.30	4629^th	4830	4.2%
2019	19.03	4436^th	4963	10.6%
2022	29.76	3717^th	5084	26.9%
2023	25.40	4078^th	5098	20.0%
2024	27.75	3895^th	5102	23.7%

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

Rank History for White students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2018	5.86	2649^th	2737	3.2%

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 Columbia Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	247	21	15	27	0	n/a	n/a	0	310
1989	335	27	12	42	0	n/a	n/a	0	416
1990	513	42	11	65	2	n/a	n/a	0	633
1991	533	50	7	83	0	n/a	n/a	0	673
1992	465	57	17	112	6	n/a	n/a	0	657
1993	534	111	26	149	5	n/a	n/a	0	825
1994	568	138	25	170	3	n/a	n/a	0	904
1995	495	176	23	217	2	n/a	n/a	0	913
1996	495	176	23	217	2	n/a	n/a	0	913
1997	464	204	26	258	0	n/a	n/a	0	952
1998	261	144	16	174	1	n/a	n/a	0	596
1999	280	140	19	173	1	n/a	n/a	0	613
2000	213	122	17	140	4	n/a	n/a	0	496
2001	207	134	19	141	0	n/a	n/a	3	504
2002	156	155	10	145	4	n/a	n/a	6	476
2003	156	155	10	145	4	n/a	n/a	6	476
2004	154	181	2	216	5	n/a	n/a	12	570
2005	134	190	10	250	2	n/a	n/a	14	600
2006	100	202	9	246	5	n/a	n/a	16	578
2007	121	242	15	395	5	n/a	n/a	12	790
2008	119	249	12	414	5	n/a	n/a	0	799
2009	11	519	122	123	1	0	6	0	782
2010	96	274	15	421	1	0	13	0	820
2011	105	242	14	472	2	1	15	0	851
2012	79	247	16	498	3	1	14	0	858
2013	83	224	20	519	3	2	29	0	880
2014	80	218	17	526	4	0	30	0	875
2015	66	157	9	461	1	1	14	0	709
2016	66	158	9	505	2	1	22	0	763
2017	65	152	7	519	1	1	19	0	764
2018	66	150	10	503	1	1	34	0	765
2019	60	145	6	479	1	2	30	0	723
2020	51	153	7	443	1	2	29	0	686
2021	50	136	7	432	1	2	27	0	655
2022	35	131	4	426	2	0	24	0	622
2023	36	140	2	439	4	1	22	0	644
2024	33	171	1	442	4	1	26	0	678

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 Columbia Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	310	12.0	25.8	n/a
1989	416	15.0	27.7	n/a
1990	633	24.0	26.3	n/a
1991	673	24.0	28.0	n/a
1992	657	24.4	26.9	30.6
1993	825	28.0	29.5	39.9
1994	904	32.0	28.3	34.8
1995	913	33.0	27.7	54.9
1996	913	33.0	27.7	54.9
1997	952	34.0	28.0	53
1998	596	29.0	20.6	53.2
1999	613	29.0	21.1	49.4
2000	496	29.0	17.1	61.9
2001	504	25.0	20.2	66.3
2002	476	24.0	19.8	74
2003	476	24.0	19.8	74
2004	570	25.3	22.5	64.3
2005	600	25.0	24.0	89.1
2006	578	29.0	19.9	84.5
2007	790	35.0	22.6	85.9
2008	799	42.0	19.0	89.6
2009	782	37.6	19.5	70.3
2010	820	39.0	21.0	78.9
2011	851	n/a	n/a	84.6
2012	858	38.0	22.5	n/a
2013	880	37.0	23.7	79.2
2014	875	38.0	23.0	86.9
2015	709	29.0	24.4	88.6
2016	763	32.0	23.8	87.5
2017	764	32.0	23.8	88.9
2018	765	32.0	23.9	91.1
2019	723	32.0	22.5	87.7
2020	686	n/a	n/a	97.1
2021	655	25.0	26.2	94.4
2022	622	26.0	23.9	88.9
2023	644	26.0	24.7	93.8
2024	678	28.0	24.2	95

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 Columbia Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	310	12.0	25.8	n/a
1989	416	15.0	27.7	n/a
1990	633	24.0	26.3	n/a
1991	673	24.0	28.0	n/a
1992	657	24.4	26.9	30.6
1993	825	28.0	29.5	39.9
1994	904	32.0	28.3	34.8
1995	913	33.0	27.7	54.9
1996	913	33.0	27.7	54.9
1997	952	34.0	28.0	53
1998	596	29.0	20.6	53.2
1999	613	29.0	21.1	49.4
2000	496	29.0	17.1	61.9
2001	504	25.0	20.2	66.3
2002	476	24.0	19.8	74
2003	476	24.0	19.8	74
2004	570	25.3	22.5	64.3
2005	600	25.0	24.0	89.1
2006	578	29.0	19.9	84.5
2007	790	35.0	22.6	85.9
2008	799	42.0	19.0	89.6
2009	782	37.6	19.5	70.3
2010	820	39.0	21.0	78.9
2011	851	n/a	n/a	84.6
2012	858	38.0	22.5	n/a
2013	880	37.0	23.7	79.2
2014	875	38.0	23.0	86.9
2015	709	29.0	24.4	88.6
2016	763	32.0	23.8	87.5
2017	764	32.0	23.8	88.9
2018	765	32.0	23.9	91.1
2019	723	32.0	22.5	87.7
2020	686	n/a	n/a	97.1
2021	655	25.0	26.2	94.4
2022	622	26.0	23.9	88.9
2023	644	26.0	24.7	93.8
2024	678	28.0	24.2	95

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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