Is El Morro Elementary a good school?

Yes. El Morro Elementary ranks in the top 6.9% of California elementary schools.

How many students attend El Morro Elementary?

In the 2022-23 school year, 416 students attended El Morro Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of El Morro Elementary?

Students at El Morro Elementary are 66% White, 16% Hispanic, 11% Two or more races, 5% Asian.

What schools do graduates of El Morro Elementary attend?

Students who attend El Morro Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Thurston Middle High : Laguna Beach High

El Morro Elementary

Summary:

El Morro Elementary is a public elementary school in Laguna Beach, California, serving 416 students in grades K-5 and part of the highly-ranked Laguna Beach Unified School District.

El Morro Elementary is an exceptional school, consistently ranking among the top 5-10% of elementary schools in California with 77.92% of students proficient or better in English Language Arts and 73.16% proficient or better in Mathematics - significantly higher than state averages. The school also excels in supporting diverse student subgroups, with particularly strong performance among Hispanic students and students with disabilities. While El Morro has seen an increase in chronic absenteeism in recent years, its rate remains better than the state average.

Compared to nearby schools, El Morro's academic performance is notably higher than Top of the World Elementary, another school in the Laguna Beach Unified School District. El Morro also outperforms schools in other nearby districts, such as Bonita Canyon Elementary in Irvine Unified and schools in the Newport-Mesa Unified District. This exceptional performance, combined with the school's relatively low student-teacher ratio, makes El Morro Elementary a standout institution in the Laguna Beach community and the state of California.

Detail:

Public K-5

8681 North Coast Hwy.
Laguna Beach, CA 92651-1032

(949) 497-7780

District: Laguna Beach Unified

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

Per Pupil Expenditures: $22,338

Students who attend El Morro Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Thurston Middle
High:	Laguna Beach High

Student/teacher ratio: 18.0

Number of students: 416

Racial breakdown:

White:

65.9%

Hispanic:

16.3%

Two or more races:

10.8%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 23.3%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare El Morro Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details El Morro Elementary ranks better than 93.1% of elementary schools in California. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 94.3. (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: White (65.9%), Hispanic (16.3%), two or more races (10.8%). (See more...)

Compare Details 23.3% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at El Morro Elementary is 18. (See more...)

Compare El Morro Elementary employs 23 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at El Morro Elementary is $22,338.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

El Morro Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks El Morro Elementary 405^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See El Morro Elementary in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Special Education students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Male students:

Hispanic students:

White students:

Laguna Beach Unified:

SchoolDigger ranks Laguna Beach Unified 42^nd of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

Average Parent Rating:

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Rank History for El Morro Elementary

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Rank History for all students at El Morro Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	84.81	714^th	4809	85.2%
2005	87.02	641^st	4822	86.7%
2006	89.57	506^th	4818	89.5%
2007	84.19	787^th	5113	84.6%
2008	87.79	613^th	5113	88.0%
2009	86.47	678^th	5193	86.9%
2010	85.92	680^th	5314	87.2%
2011	82.34	875^th	5377	83.7%
2012	89.16	479^th	5390	91.1%
2013	91.58	358^th	5530	93.5%
2015	93.91	389^th	5611	93.1%
2016	92.31	480^th	5614	91.4%
2017	94.37	370^th	5692	93.5%
2018	96.13	210^th	5662	96.3%
2019	96.60	178^th	5789	96.9%
2022	94.66	391^st	5883	93.4%
2023	94.97	355^th	5874	94.0%
2024	94.30	405^th	5862	93.1%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for Special Education students at El Morro Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2024	99.63	14^th	2634	99.5%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at El Morro Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	93.25	174^th	5084	96.6%
2019	97.85	48^th	5173	99.1%
2022	97.04	111^th	5264	97.9%
2023	98.36	65^th	5374	98.8%
2024	93.37	304^th	5511	94.5%

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

Rank History for Female students at El Morro Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	94.87	226^th	5413	95.8%
2019	96.65	112^th	5492	98.0%
2022	90.10	634^th	5635	88.7%
2023	94.34	342^nd	5617	93.9%
2024	91.17	555^th	5605	90.1%

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

Rank History for Disabled students at El Morro Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2019	99.81	9^th	2585	99.7%
2022	92.33	141^st	2227	93.7%

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

Rank History for Male students at El Morro Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	94.84	263^rd	5431	95.2%
2019	94.80	263^rd	5510	95.2%
2022	94.92	306^th	5663	94.6%
2023	93.85	374^th	5650	93.4%
2024	95.00	281^st	5636	95.0%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at El Morro Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	92.06	225^th	4830	95.3%
2019	99.55	13^th	4963	99.7%
2022	79.88	735^th	5084	85.5%
2024	96.14	123^rd	5102	97.6%

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

Rank History for White students at El Morro Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	87.07	178^th	2737	93.5%
2019	87.18	181^st	2834	93.6%
2022	85.88	236^th	2726	91.3%
2023	81.86	358^th	2662	86.6%
2024	80.36	407^th	2647	84.6%

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

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 5)

100%

Reviews:
No reviews have been submitted!

Enrollment information for El Morro Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	330	2	2	37	0	n/a	n/a	0	371
1989	385	4	3	47	0	n/a	n/a	0	439
1990	361	2	30	77	0	n/a	n/a	0	470
1991	459	7	3	85	0	n/a	n/a	0	554
1992	407	2	9	86	5	n/a	n/a	0	509
1993	404	6	10	82	1	n/a	n/a	0	503
1994	409	5	6	101	1	n/a	n/a	0	522
1995	385	5	13	85	6	n/a	n/a	0	494
1996	385	5	13	85	6	n/a	n/a	0	494
1997	410	4	16	87	7	n/a	n/a	0	524
1998	406	4	15	88	4	n/a	n/a	0	517
1999	419	2	12	86	5	n/a	n/a	1	525
2000	424	5	13	84	2	n/a	n/a	8	536
2001	377	6	16	81	1	n/a	n/a	9	490
2002	442	10	14	77	3	n/a	n/a	14	560
2003	442	10	14	77	3	n/a	n/a	14	560
2004	455	10	14	69	1	n/a	n/a	0	549
2005	444	10	16	60	1	n/a	n/a	0	531
2006	445	6	17	64	2	n/a	n/a	8	542
2007	440	6	16	65	3	n/a	n/a	19	549
2008	462	6	22	47	2	n/a	n/a	0	539
2009	479	10	23	61	2	4	24	0	603
2010	492	16	28	62	2	3	2	0	605
2011	486	24	41	75	4	4	4	0	638
2012	493	16	42	84	8	3	4	0	650
2013	454	12	47	78	6	2	4	0	603
2014	403	12	46	79	5	4	8	0	557
2015	424	11	42	76	3	7	18	0	581
2016	395	11	41	78	4	3	26	0	558
2017	371	7	36	72	3	2	38	0	529
2018	337	2	28	59	2	0	43	0	471
2019	318	2	30	68	2	0	44	0	464
2020	327	1	28	61	1	0	43	0	461
2021	269	3	28	69	2	0	52	0	423
2022	293	4	21	65	1	0	53	0	437
2023	274	4	21	68	4	0	45	0	416

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 El Morro Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	371	13.6	27.2	n/a
1989	439	18.6	23.6	n/a
1990	470	19.0	24.7	n/a
1991	554	19.0	29.1	n/a
1992	509	19.3	26.3	16.7
1993	503	22.0	22.9	20.9
1994	522	20.0	26.1	20.3
1995	494	23.0	21.5	17.4
1996	494	23.0	21.5	17.4
1997	524	23.0	22.8	21.2
1998	517	22.0	23.5	14.1
1999	525	24.0	21.9	18.9
2000	536	24.0	22.3	19.5
2001	490	24.0	20.4	17.7
2002	560	27.0	20.7	17.8
2003	560	27.0	20.7	17.8
2004	549	26.0	21.1	17.1
2005	531	26.0	20.4	10
2006	542	26.6	20.4	10.9
2007	549	27.6	19.9	14.7
2008	539	29.0	18.6	10.4
2009	603	29.0	20.1	8.8
2010	605	31.6	19.1	12.9
2011	638	n/a	n/a	16.1
2012	650	28.6	22.7	n/a
2013	603	28.0	21.5	14.1
2014	557	27.0	20.6	13.8
2015	581	27.0	21.5	11.5
2016	558	28.0	19.9	15.6
2017	529	27.0	19.5	13.2
2018	471	24.0	19.6	15.3
2019	464	22.0	21.0	14.9
2020	461	n/a	n/a	15.6
2021	423	24.5	17.2	15.8
2022	437	22.0	19.8	21.3
2023	416	23.0	18.0	23.3

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 El Morro Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	371	13.6	27.2	n/a
1989	439	18.6	23.6	n/a
1990	470	19.0	24.7	n/a
1991	554	19.0	29.1	n/a
1992	509	19.3	26.3	16.7
1993	503	22.0	22.9	20.9
1994	522	20.0	26.1	20.3
1995	494	23.0	21.5	17.4
1996	494	23.0	21.5	17.4
1997	524	23.0	22.8	21.2
1998	517	22.0	23.5	14.1
1999	525	24.0	21.9	18.9
2000	536	24.0	22.3	19.5
2001	490	24.0	20.4	17.7
2002	560	27.0	20.7	17.8
2003	560	27.0	20.7	17.8
2004	549	26.0	21.1	17.1
2005	531	26.0	20.4	10
2006	542	26.6	20.4	10.9
2007	549	27.6	19.9	14.7
2008	539	29.0	18.6	10.4
2009	603	29.0	20.1	8.8
2010	605	31.6	19.1	12.9
2011	638	n/a	n/a	16.1
2012	650	28.6	22.7	n/a
2013	603	28.0	21.5	14.1
2014	557	27.0	20.6	13.8
2015	581	27.0	21.5	11.5
2016	558	28.0	19.9	15.6
2017	529	27.0	19.5	13.2
2018	471	24.0	19.6	15.3
2019	464	22.0	21.0	14.9
2020	461	n/a	n/a	15.6
2021	423	24.5	17.2	15.8
2022	437	22.0	19.8	21.3
2023	416	23.0	18.0	23.3

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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