Is Branch Elementary a good school?

Branch Elementary ranks 670 th of 5862 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Branch Elementary?

In the 2022-23 school year, 244 students attended Branch Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Branch Elementary?

Students at Branch Elementary are 63% White, 27% Hispanic, 9% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Branch Elementary attend?

Students who attend Branch Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Paulding Middle High : Arroyo Grande High High : Central Coast New Technical High

Branch Elementary

Summary:

Branch Elementary is a public elementary school located in Arroyo Grande, California, serving grades K-6 with a total enrollment of 244 students. It is part of the Lucia Mar Unified School District, which is ranked 587 out of 1,568 districts in California and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Branch Elementary consistently ranks in the top 25% of California elementary schools, with students performing significantly better than the district and state averages in English Language Arts (ELA), Mathematics, and Science. In 2023-2024, 78.1% of Branch Elementary students were proficient or better in ELA, compared to 52.26% for the district and 47.04% for the state. The school's performance is particularly strong in Mathematics, with 66.67% of students proficient or better, compared to 36.02% for the district and 35.54% for the state. Branch Elementary also has relatively low chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 0.8% to 19.7% over the past few years, which is lower than the district and state averages.

When compared to nearby schools in the Lucia Mar Unified School District, such as Shell Beach Elementary, Dana Elementary, and Nipomo Elementary, Branch Elementary consistently outperforms them in both ELA and Mathematics. However, Ocean View Elementary, another school in the district, also performs very well, with similar or even higher proficiency rates in some areas compared to Branch Elementary.

Detail:

Public K-6

970 School Rd.
Arroyo Grande, CA 93420-6109

(805) 474-3720

District: Lucia Mar Unified

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

Per Pupil Expenditures: $4,968

Students who attend Branch Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Paulding Middle
High:	Arroyo Grande High
	Central Coast New Technical High

Student/teacher ratio: 21.8

Number of students: 244

Racial breakdown:

White:

62.7%

Hispanic:

27.0%

Two or more races:

9.0%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 36.5%

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Performance Trends

Compare Details Branch Elementary ranks better than 88.6% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 2^nd among 11 ranked elementary schools in the Lucia Mar Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 90.47. (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 Branch Elementary has the smallest elementary school student body size in the Lucia Mar Unified School District. Racial makeup is: White (62.7%), Hispanic (27%), two or more races (9%). (See more...)

Compare Details 36.5% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Branch Elementary is 21.8. 7 elementary schools in the Lucia Mar Unified School District have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)

Compare Branch Elementary employs 11.1 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Branch Elementary is $4,968, which is the 5^th highest among 11 elementary schools in the Lucia Mar Unified School District.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Branch Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Branch Elementary 670^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Branch Elementary in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Male students:

White students:

Lucia Mar Unified:

SchoolDigger ranks Lucia Mar Unified 587^th of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Branch Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Branch Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	90.88	461^st	4809	90.4%
2005	87.32	631^st	4822	86.9%
2006	80.15	960^th	4818	80.1%
2007	87.32	656^th	5113	87.2%
2008	81.05	921^st	5113	82.0%
2009	87.54	613^th	5193	88.2%
2010	88.87	510^th	5314	90.4%
2011	87.60	588^th	5377	89.1%
2012	80.92	978^th	5390	81.9%
2013	83.33	858^th	5530	84.5%
2015	84.40	915^th	5611	83.7%
2016	79.45	1151^st	5614	79.5%
2017	75.36	1319^th	5692	76.8%
2018	81.61	1044^th	5662	81.6%
2019	75.93	1347^th	5789	76.7%
2022	76.99	1324^th	5883	77.5%
2023	89.08	762^nd	5874	87.0%
2024	90.47	670^th	5862	88.6%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Branch Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	67.90	1305^th	5084	74.3%
2019	54.58	2098^th	5173	59.4%
2022	69.68	1192^nd	5264	77.4%
2023	78.39	836^th	5374	84.4%
2024	86.49	573^rd	5511	89.6%

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

Rank History for Female students at Branch Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	81.18	983^rd	5413	81.8%
2019	72.69	1383^rd	5492	74.8%
2022	71.73	1454^th	5635	74.2%
2023	81.84	1023^rd	5617	81.8%
2024	86.54	802^nd	5605	85.7%

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

Rank History for Male students at Branch Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	78.72	1116^th	5431	79.5%
2019	72.68	1402^nd	5510	74.6%
2022	79.16	1143^rd	5663	79.8%
2023	91.63	523^rd	5650	90.7%
2024	91.62	513^th	5636	90.9%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Branch Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2019	69.37	1200^th	4963	75.8%
2022	78.65	791^st	5084	84.4%

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

Rank History for White students at Branch Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	67.71	907^th	2737	66.9%
2019	58.49	1266^th	2834	55.3%
2022	53.52	1353^rd	2726	50.4%
2023	71.00	768^th	2662	71.1%
2024	78.41	487^th	2647	81.6%

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

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Enrollment information for Branch Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	166	1	5	23	1	n/a	n/a	0	196
1989	198	2	6	23	1	n/a	n/a	0	230
1990	201	2	10	34	1	n/a	n/a	0	248
1991	221	0	7	35	1	n/a	n/a	0	264
1992	212	0	9	32	0	n/a	n/a	0	253
1993	204	0	8	35	0	n/a	n/a	0	247
1994	208	2	6	35	0	n/a	n/a	0	251
1995	208	1	12	39	0	n/a	n/a	0	260
1996	208	1	12	39	0	n/a	n/a	0	260
1997	209	1	11	33	0	n/a	n/a	0	254
1998	216	3	17	25	2	n/a	n/a	0	263
1999	236	2	15	24	0	n/a	n/a	0	277
2000	260	2	17	28	0	n/a	n/a	0	307
2001	241	3	15	27	0	n/a	n/a	1	287
2002	251	3	13	29	1	n/a	n/a	0	297
2003	251	3	13	29	1	n/a	n/a	0	297
2004	227	2	8	23	0	n/a	n/a	25	285
2005	231	1	8	17	0	n/a	n/a	19	276
2006	225	1	6	23	0	n/a	n/a	26	281
2007	231	1	6	29	1	n/a	n/a	17	285
2008	224	1	3	28	1	n/a	n/a	0	257
2009	222	1	2	32	0	0	24	0	281
2010	238	1	4	55	0	0	4	0	302
2011	232	1	5	56	0	0	4	0	298
2012	231	2	5	61	0	0	2	0	301
2013	227	4	7	69	0	0	2	0	309
2014	236	4	8	70	0	0	5	0	323
2015	251	4	7	60	0	0	7	0	329
2016	260	5	9	53	0	0	8	0	335
2017	234	3	8	58	0	0	9	0	312
2018	236	2	7	62	0	0	14	0	321
2019	222	1	6	74	0	0	15	0	318
2020	226	0	3	71	0	0	24	0	324
2021	170	0	1	50	0	0	19	0	240
2022	164	0	2	60	0	0	18	0	244
2023	153	1	2	66	0	0	22	0	244

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 Branch Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	196	8.7	22.5	n/a
1989	230	8.7	26.4	n/a
1990	248	11.5	21.5	n/a
1991	264	11.7	22.5	n/a
1992	253	11.9	21.2	9.1
1993	247	9.8	25.2	12.1
1994	251	9.8	25.6	15.5
1995	260	11.8	22.0	19.6
1996	260	11.8	22.0	19.6
1997	254	13.5	18.8	19.7
1998	263	11.5	22.9	20.9
1999	277	13.8	20.1	19.9
2000	307	14.0	21.9	12.4
2001	287	14.0	20.5	19.6
2002	297	13.7	21.7	22.6
2003	297	13.7	21.7	22.6
2004	285	12.7	22.4	18.1
2005	276	12.0	23.0	14.4
2006	281	12.0	23.4	12.9
2007	285	12.0	23.8	15.3
2008	257	13.0	19.8	17.9
2009	281	12.0	21.6	19.9
2010	302	12.0	25.1	20.9
2011	298	n/a	n/a	24.2
2012	301	10.5	28.6	n/a
2013	309	11.5	26.8	19.1
2014	323	13.0	24.8	22.6
2015	329	14.0	23.5	20.7
2016	335	14.0	23.9	20.9
2017	312	13.5	23.1	19.2
2018	321	14.0	22.9	23.4
2019	318	13.6	23.3	25.5
2020	324	n/a	n/a	25
2021	240	11.6	20.6	36.7
2022	244	9.8	24.8	35.2
2023	244	11.1	21.8	36.5

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 Branch Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	196	8.7	22.5	n/a
1989	230	8.7	26.4	n/a
1990	248	11.5	21.5	n/a
1991	264	11.7	22.5	n/a
1992	253	11.9	21.2	9.1
1993	247	9.8	25.2	12.1
1994	251	9.8	25.6	15.5
1995	260	11.8	22.0	19.6
1996	260	11.8	22.0	19.6
1997	254	13.5	18.8	19.7
1998	263	11.5	22.9	20.9
1999	277	13.8	20.1	19.9
2000	307	14.0	21.9	12.4
2001	287	14.0	20.5	19.6
2002	297	13.7	21.7	22.6
2003	297	13.7	21.7	22.6
2004	285	12.7	22.4	18.1
2005	276	12.0	23.0	14.4
2006	281	12.0	23.4	12.9
2007	285	12.0	23.8	15.3
2008	257	13.0	19.8	17.9
2009	281	12.0	21.6	19.9
2010	302	12.0	25.1	20.9
2011	298	n/a	n/a	24.2
2012	301	10.5	28.6	n/a
2013	309	11.5	26.8	19.1
2014	323	13.0	24.8	22.6
2015	329	14.0	23.5	20.7
2016	335	14.0	23.9	20.9
2017	312	13.5	23.1	19.2
2018	321	14.0	22.9	23.4
2019	318	13.6	23.3	25.5
2020	324	n/a	n/a	25
2021	240	11.6	20.6	36.7
2022	244	9.8	24.8	35.2
2023	244	11.1	21.8	36.5

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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