Is Wilson Elementary a good school?

Wilson Elementary ranks in the bottom 21.1% of California elementary schools.

How many students attend Wilson Elementary?

In the 2023-24 school year, 354 students attended Wilson Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Wilson Elementary?

Students at Wilson Elementary are 95% Hispanic, 1% White, 1% Asian.

What schools do graduates of Wilson Elementary attend?

Students who attend Wilson Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Charles W. Tewinkle Middle High : Estancia High

Wilson Elementary

Summary:

Wilson Elementary is a public elementary school located in Costa Mesa, California, serving grades K-6 with a total enrollment of 361 students. It is part of the Newport-Mesa Unified School District, which is ranked 430 out of 1,568 districts in California and has a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Wilson Elementary faces several key challenges, including significantly higher chronic absenteeism rates compared to nearby schools, consistently lower test scores across all grade levels and subject areas, and an extremely high percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 65.29% to 95.01% in recent years. This is much higher than the nearby schools, such as Heinz Kaiser Elementary and Adams Elementary, which have much higher test scores, lower chronic absenteeism rates, and lower percentages of students receiving free/reduced lunch.

The combination of high chronic absenteeism, low test scores, and a high percentage of students from low-income families indicates that Wilson Elementary may face significant challenges in providing a high-quality education and supporting student success. However, by analyzing the factors contributing to the school's challenges and implementing evidence-based strategies to address them, Wilson could potentially improve student outcomes and provide a more equitable educational experience for its students.

Detail:

Public K-6

801 Wilson St.
Costa Mesa, CA 92627-3333

(949) 515-6995

District: Newport-Mesa Unified

SchoolDigger Rank:
4623^rd of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Students who attend Wilson Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Charles W. Tewinkle Middle
High:	Estancia High

Student/teacher ratio: 19.9

Number of students: 354

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

95.5%

White:

1.1%

Asian:

1.1%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 93.8%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Wilson Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Wilson Elementary ranks worse than 78.9% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks last among 21 ranked elementary schools in the Newport-Mesa Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 22.5. (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 (95.5%), Asian (1.1%), White (1.1%). (See more...)

Compare Details 93.8% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Wilson Elementary is 19.9. 16 elementary schools in the Newport-Mesa Unified School District have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)

Compare Wilson Elementary employs 17.7 full-time teachers.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Wilson Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Wilson Elementary 4623^rd of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Wilson Elementary in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

English Language Learner students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Male students:

Hispanic students:

Newport-Mesa Unified:

SchoolDigger ranks Newport-Mesa Unified 430^th of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Wilson Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Wilson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	14.38	4384^th	4809	8.8%
2005	18.72	4055^th	4822	15.9%
2006	21.75	3868^th	4818	19.7%
2007	26.18	3847^th	5113	24.8%
2008	23.26	4098^th	5113	19.9%
2009	17.21	4606^th	5193	11.3%
2010	17.61	4734^th	5314	10.9%
2011	20.66	4633^rd	5377	13.8%
2012	22.77	4469^th	5390	17.1%
2013	35.76	3619^th	5530	34.6%
2015	31.61	3575^th	5611	36.3%
2016	35.15	3400^th	5614	39.4%
2017	31.24	3737^th	5692	34.3%
2018	28.38	3958^th	5662	30.1%
2019	22.92	4548^th	5789	21.4%
2021	35.68	854^th	1417	39.7%
2022	25.14	4323^rd	5883	26.5%
2023	27.02	4171^st	5874	29.0%
2024	22.50	4623^rd	5862	21.1%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Wilson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	42.76	1624^th	3246	50.0%
2019	53.17	1083^rd	3275	66.9%
2021	57.78	140^th	602	76.7%
2022	38.66	1902^nd	3311	42.6%
2023	31.26	2451^st	3250	24.6%
2024	32.37	2389^th	3160	24.4%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Wilson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	39.15	3076^th	5084	39.5%
2019	31.95	3717^th	5173	28.1%
2021	56.84	396^th	1110	64.3%
2022	35.28	3393^rd	5264	35.5%
2023	36.98	3322^nd	5374	38.2%
2024	31.04	3848^th	5511	30.2%

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

Rank History for Female students at Wilson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	28.19	3899^th	5413	28.0%
2019	25.85	4164^th	5492	24.2%
2021	41.10	682^nd	1267	46.2%
2022	38.37	3102^nd	5635	45.0%
2023	30.16	3750^th	5617	33.2%
2024	27.69	4002^nd	5605	28.6%

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

Rank History for Male students at Wilson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	30.43	3665^th	5431	32.5%
2019	23.42	4341^st	5510	21.2%
2021	31.96	804^th	1272	36.8%
2022	16.33	5093^rd	5663	10.1%
2023	25.10	4249^th	5650	24.8%
2024	19.58	4770^th	5636	15.4%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Wilson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	37.77	3018^th	4830	37.5%
2019	33.34	3440^th	4963	30.7%
2022	35.06	3285^th	5084	35.4%
2023	36.39	3195^th	5098	37.3%
2024	30.94	3670^th	5102	28.1%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Hispanic 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 Wilson Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Total
1988	251	2	53	293	2	n/a	n/a	601
1989	241	4	45	349	0	n/a	n/a	639
1990	201	5	47	396	0	n/a	n/a	649
1991	135	4	41	401	0	n/a	n/a	581
1992	81	4	32	273	0	n/a	n/a	390
1993	82	0	34	404	0	n/a	n/a	520
1994	46	0	31	418	0	n/a	n/a	495
1995	40	1	16	508	0	n/a	n/a	565
1996	40	1	16	508	0	n/a	n/a	565
1997	58	0	22	529	0	n/a	n/a	609
1998	45	1	14	492	0	n/a	n/a	552
1999	50	2	13	508	0	n/a	n/a	573
2000	39	2	22	543	0	n/a	n/a	606
2001	35	7	19	587	0	n/a	n/a	648
2002	20	1	16	611	3	n/a	n/a	651
2003	20	1	16	611	3	n/a	n/a	651
2004	23	5	19	588	1	n/a	n/a	636
2005	17	2	16	581	1	n/a	n/a	617
2006	16	0	9	578	1	n/a	n/a	604
2007	15	1	7	510	0	n/a	n/a	533
2008	9	2	7	498	n/a	n/a	n/a	516
2009	11	1	5	590	1	1	1	610
2010	7	2	6	583	1	0	0	599
2011	2	3	4	531	1	0	0	541
2012	5	2	7	536	2	0	0	552
2013	8	5	4	533	2	0	2	554
2014	4	4	5	525	3	0	4	545
2015	6	4	1	510	2	0	3	526
2016	4	2	2	466	2	0	1	477
2017	3	0	2	461	2	0	1	469
2018	3	1	1	454	2	0	1	462
2019	6	0	0	411	1	0	2	420
2020	6	2	2	397	1	0	2	410
2021	4	0	0	300	0	1	1	306
2022	4	2	0	353	1	1	2	363
2023	3	2	1	352	1	0	2	361
2024	4	3	4	338	1	1	3	354

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 Wilson Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	601	23.1	26.0	n/a
1989	639	27.6	23.1	n/a
1990	649	28.7	22.6	n/a
1991	581	25.1	23.1	n/a
1992	390	25.5	15.2	86.7
1993	520	18.5	28.1	90.6
1994	495	19.7	25.1	94.9
1995	565	22.5	25.1	94.9
1996	565	22.5	25.1	94.9
1997	609	28.6	21.3	91.8
1998	552	27.0	20.4	86.6
1999	573	28.5	20.1	92.3
2000	606	30.5	19.9	87.1
2001	648	32.0	20.3	32.9
2002	651	31.0	21.0	95.2
2003	651	31.0	21.0	95.2
2004	636	31.7	20.1	93.7
2005	617	30.0	20.6	93.2
2006	604	30.5	19.8	93
2007	533	28.0	19.0	90.8
2008	516	31.0	16.6	90.9
2009	610	28.2	19.6	91.5
2010	599	26.9	22.2	92.2
2011	541	n/a	n/a	91.1
2012	552	24.0	23.0	99.5
2013	554	28.1	19.7	99.5
2014	545	22.0	24.7	71.9
2015	526	23.0	22.8	83.7
2016	477	23.0	20.7	93.1
2017	469	21.0	22.3	87
2018	462	21.0	22.0	89.2
2019	420	17.9	23.3	87.6
2020	410	n/a	n/a	82.4
2021	306	12.4	24.5	92.2
2022	363	16.5	22.0	65.3
2023	361	16.3	22.0	95
2024	354	17.7	19.9	93.8

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 Wilson Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	601	23.1	26.0	n/a
1989	639	27.6	23.1	n/a
1990	649	28.7	22.6	n/a
1991	581	25.1	23.1	n/a
1992	390	25.5	15.2	86.7
1993	520	18.5	28.1	90.6
1994	495	19.7	25.1	94.9
1995	565	22.5	25.1	94.9
1996	565	22.5	25.1	94.9
1997	609	28.6	21.3	91.8
1998	552	27.0	20.4	86.6
1999	573	28.5	20.1	92.3
2000	606	30.5	19.9	87.1
2001	648	32.0	20.3	32.9
2002	651	31.0	21.0	95.2
2003	651	31.0	21.0	95.2
2004	636	31.7	20.1	93.7
2005	617	30.0	20.6	93.2
2006	604	30.5	19.8	93
2007	533	28.0	19.0	90.8
2008	516	31.0	16.6	90.9
2009	610	28.2	19.6	91.5
2010	599	26.9	22.2	92.2
2011	541	n/a	n/a	91.1
2012	552	24.0	23.0	99.5
2013	554	28.1	19.7	99.5
2014	545	22.0	24.7	71.9
2015	526	23.0	22.8	83.7
2016	477	23.0	20.7	93.1
2017	469	21.0	22.3	87
2018	462	21.0	22.0	89.2
2019	420	17.9	23.3	87.6
2020	410	n/a	n/a	82.4
2021	306	12.4	24.5	92.2
2022	363	16.5	22.0	65.3
2023	361	16.3	22.0	95
2024	354	17.7	19.9	93.8

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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