Is Nipomo Elementary a good school?

Nipomo Elementary ranks 4164 th of 5862 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

How many students attend Nipomo Elementary?

In the 2023-24 school year, 386 students attended Nipomo Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Nipomo Elementary?

Students at Nipomo Elementary are 79% Hispanic, 18% White, 2% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Nipomo Elementary attend?

Students who attend Nipomo Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Mesa Middle High : Central Coast New Technical High High : Nipomo High

Nipomo Elementary

Summary:

Nipomo Elementary is a public elementary school serving 369 students in grades K-6 in Nipomo, California, which is part of the Lucia Mar Unified School District. The school faces significant challenges, with high chronic absenteeism, low test scores, and a student population that is predominantly from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Nipomo Elementary has seen a sharp increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from 7.6% in 2017-2018 to 32.1% in 2022-2023, which is much higher than the district and state averages. The school also consistently underperforms the district and state averages in Smarter Balanced Assessments for English Language Arts and Mathematics across all grade levels. For example, in 2023-2024, only 32.57% of Nipomo Elementary students were proficient or better in ELA, compared to 52.26% for the district and 47.04% for the state. In Mathematics, only 21.56% of Nipomo Elementary students were proficient or better, compared to 36.02% for the district and 35.54% for the state. Additionally, Nipomo Elementary has a very high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 76.1% to 85.01% over the past few years, which is significantly higher than the district and state averages.

While Nipomo Elementary outperforms the nearby schools in the Santa Maria-Bonita district, which have significantly lower test scores and higher chronic absenteeism rates, the school's performance is generally lower than the nearby Lange (Dorothea) Elementary and Dana Elementary schools in the Lucia Mar Unified district, which have higher test scores and lower chronic absenteeism rates. Nipomo Elementary's performance is particularly low for Hispanic students, English Language Learners, and students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, with these subgroups ranking in the bottom 20-30% of California elementary schools.

Detail:

Public K-6

190 East Price St.
Nipomo, CA 93444-9099

(805) 474-3780

District: Lucia Mar Unified

SchoolDigger Rank:
4164^th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $4,902

Students who attend Nipomo Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Mesa Middle
High:	Central Coast New Technical High
	Nipomo High

Student/teacher ratio: 18.5

Number of students: 386

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

78.8%

White:

17.9%

Two or more races:

2.1%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 87.6%

See top rated California elementary schools

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Performance Trends

Compare Details Nipomo Elementary ranks worse than 71% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 10^th among 11 ranked elementary schools in the Lucia Mar Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 27.35. (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 (78.8%), White (17.9%), two or more races (2.1%). (See more...)

Compare Details 87.6% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Nipomo Elementary is 18.5, which is the 3^rd best among 11 elementary schools in the Lucia Mar Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Nipomo Elementary employs 20.8 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Nipomo Elementary is $4,902. 5 elementary schools in the Lucia Mar Unified School District spend more per student.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Nipomo Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Nipomo Elementary 4164^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Nipomo Elementary in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

English Language Learner students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Homeless students:

Female students:

Male students:

Hispanic 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 Nipomo Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Nipomo Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2007	27.95	3713^th	5113	27.4%
2008	22.63	4153^rd	5113	18.8%
2009	28.34	3819^th	5193	26.5%
2010	53.66	2349^th	5314	55.8%
2011	46.35	2812^th	5377	47.7%
2012	50.51	2583^rd	5390	52.1%
2013	53.39	2484^th	5530	55.1%
2015	39.19	3058^th	5611	45.5%
2016	30.21	3749^th	5614	33.2%
2017	34.36	3491^st	5692	38.7%
2018	34.96	3474^th	5662	38.6%
2019	39.10	3241^st	5789	44.0%
2022	26.44	4208^th	5883	28.5%
2023	40.23	3110^th	5874	47.1%
2024	27.35	4164^th	5862	29.0%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Nipomo Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	38.12	1865^th	3246	42.5%
2019	38.30	1895^th	3275	42.1%
2022	36.28	2103^rd	3311	36.5%
2023	48.81	1256^th	3250	61.4%
2024	22.32	2985^th	3160	5.5%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Nipomo Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	35.30	3373^rd	5084	33.7%
2019	41.42	3008^th	5173	41.9%
2022	30.76	3774^th	5264	28.3%
2023	45.94	2633^rd	5374	51.0%
2024	30.50	3898^th	5511	29.3%

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

Rank History for Homeless students at Nipomo Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2022	32.16	266^th	356	25.3%
2023	47.84	149^th	336	55.7%
2024	43.66	198^th	364	45.6%

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

Rank History for Female students at Nipomo Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	32.90	3544^th	5413	34.5%
2019	40.42	3074^th	5492	44.0%
2022	25.28	4188^th	5635	25.7%
2023	41.05	2961^st	5617	47.3%
2024	29.09	3868^th	5605	31.0%

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

Rank History for Male students at Nipomo Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	38.00	3156^th	5431	41.9%
2019	39.54	3065^th	5510	44.4%
2022	29.24	3850^th	5663	32.0%
2023	41.34	2973^rd	5650	47.4%
2024	28.52	3951^st	5636	29.9%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Nipomo Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	36.90	3085^th	4830	36.1%
2019	40.26	2945^th	4963	40.7%
2022	24.54	4153^rd	5084	18.3%
2023	47.52	2388^th	5098	53.2%
2024	24.54	4140^th	5102	18.9%

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

Rank History for White students at Nipomo Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	31.94	2029^th	2737	25.9%
2019	34.63	2023^rd	2834	28.6%
2024	57.92	1194^th	2647	54.9%

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 Nipomo Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	276	1	6	191	1	n/a	n/a	0	475
1989	289	3	9	210	2	n/a	n/a	0	513
1990	306	4	7	212	2	n/a	n/a	0	531
1991	286	1	4	201	2	n/a	n/a	0	494
1992	220	5	10	217	66	n/a	n/a	0	518
1993	379	5	10	274	4	n/a	n/a	0	672
1994	346	6	10	267	4	n/a	n/a	0	633
1995	334	6	17	317	6	n/a	n/a	0	680
1996	334	6	17	317	6	n/a	n/a	0	680
1997	335	13	12	321	6	n/a	n/a	0	687
1998	321	9	12	308	5	n/a	n/a	0	655
1999	316	8	13	299	3	n/a	n/a	0	639
2000	329	7	8	307	3	n/a	n/a	0	654
2001	331	4	9	305	4	n/a	n/a	4	657
2002	322	9	12	322	0	n/a	n/a	10	675
2003	322	9	12	322	0	n/a	n/a	10	675
2004	297	10	10	309	0	n/a	n/a	42	668
2005	293	5	10	308	0	n/a	n/a	55	671
2006	265	4	13	297	0	n/a	n/a	64	643
2007	170	2	6	242	1	n/a	n/a	28	449
2008	158	n/a	6	279	1	n/a	n/a	0	444
2009	152	4	4	278	1	0	36	0	475
2010	145	5	6	304	2	0	5	0	467
2011	148	4	9	299	3	0	4	0	467
2012	132	2	9	281	2	0	8	0	434
2013	122	2	12	301	2	0	8	0	447
2014	115	2	10	303	3	0	15	0	448
2015	125	3	8	313	3	0	17	0	469
2016	117	2	9	318	3	0	19	0	468
2017	112	1	6	304	1	0	20	0	444
2018	102	2	6	292	1	0	17	0	420
2019	103	2	5	296	0	0	14	0	420
2020	97	2	5	283	0	0	16	0	403
2021	71	4	3	278	0	0	11	0	367
2022	70	2	4	280	0	0	8	0	364
2023	73	2	5	285	0	0	4	0	369
2024	69	1	3	304	1	0	8	0	386

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 Nipomo Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	475	19.0	25.0	n/a
1989	513	20.0	25.6	n/a
1990	531	23.0	23.0	n/a
1991	494	21.9	22.5	n/a
1992	518	22.3	23.2	59.7
1993	672	28.0	24.0	52.2
1994	633	25.0	25.3	54
1995	680	31.3	21.7	54.1
1996	680	31.3	21.7	54.1
1997	687	39.3	17.5	58.4
1998	655	37.8	17.3	57.6
1999	639	36.0	17.8	58.8
2000	654	36.0	18.2	56
2001	657	37.0	17.8	60.2
2002	675	38.0	17.8	65.9
2003	675	38.0	17.8	65.9
2004	668	37.0	18.1	62.9
2005	671	37.0	18.1	66.2
2006	643	36.0	17.9	62.3
2007	449	23.0	19.5	70.5
2008	444	25.0	17.8	64.6
2009	475	24.0	19.0	64.4
2010	467	22.5	20.7	74.7
2011	467	n/a	n/a	72.6
2012	434	18.5	23.4	n/a
2013	447	18.5	24.1	73.4
2014	448	20.5	21.8	71.7
2015	469	20.0	23.4	76.1
2016	468	20.0	23.4	75
2017	444	19.0	23.3	72.7
2018	420	18.0	23.3	71.2
2019	420	18.5	22.6	73.1
2020	403	n/a	n/a	81.6
2021	367	20.7	17.6	85
2022	364	23.1	15.7	76.1
2023	369	20.1	18.2	79.9
2024	386	20.8	18.5	87.6

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 Nipomo Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	475	19.0	25.0	n/a
1989	513	20.0	25.6	n/a
1990	531	23.0	23.0	n/a
1991	494	21.9	22.5	n/a
1992	518	22.3	23.2	59.7
1993	672	28.0	24.0	52.2
1994	633	25.0	25.3	54
1995	680	31.3	21.7	54.1
1996	680	31.3	21.7	54.1
1997	687	39.3	17.5	58.4
1998	655	37.8	17.3	57.6
1999	639	36.0	17.8	58.8
2000	654	36.0	18.2	56
2001	657	37.0	17.8	60.2
2002	675	38.0	17.8	65.9
2003	675	38.0	17.8	65.9
2004	668	37.0	18.1	62.9
2005	671	37.0	18.1	66.2
2006	643	36.0	17.9	62.3
2007	449	23.0	19.5	70.5
2008	444	25.0	17.8	64.6
2009	475	24.0	19.0	64.4
2010	467	22.5	20.7	74.7
2011	467	n/a	n/a	72.6
2012	434	18.5	23.4	n/a
2013	447	18.5	24.1	73.4
2014	448	20.5	21.8	71.7
2015	469	20.0	23.4	76.1
2016	468	20.0	23.4	75
2017	444	19.0	23.3	72.7
2018	420	18.0	23.3	71.2
2019	420	18.5	22.6	73.1
2020	403	n/a	n/a	81.6
2021	367	20.7	17.6	85
2022	364	23.1	15.7	76.1
2023	369	20.1	18.2	79.9
2024	386	20.8	18.5	87.6

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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