Is McDowell Elementary a good school?

McDowell Elementary ranks in the bottom 18.6% of California elementary schools.

How many students attend McDowell Elementary?

In the 2022-23 school year, 245 students attended McDowell Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of McDowell Elementary?

Students at McDowell Elementary are 87% Hispanic, 6% White, 3% Asian, 2% American Indian, 1% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of McDowell Elementary attend?

Students who attend McDowell Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Petaluma Junior High High : Petaluma High

McDowell Elementary

Summary:

McDowell Elementary is a public elementary school in Petaluma, California, serving 245 students in grades K-6. It is part of the Petaluma City Elementary District, which is ranked 754 out of 1,568 districts in the state and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

McDowell Elementary has faced significant challenges in recent years, with high chronic absenteeism rates ranging from 11.1% to 34.6%, well above the district and state averages. The school's academic performance has also been a concern, as it consistently underperforms the Petaluma City Elementary district and the state of California in standardized test scores across all grade levels and subject areas. For example, in 2023-2024, only 23.81% of McDowell students were proficient or better in English Language Arts/Literacy, compared to 46.45% for the district and 47.04% for the state. Additionally, McDowell has a very high percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 77.68% to 84.65% in recent years, significantly higher than nearby schools in the same district.

When comparing McDowell Elementary to other schools in the Petaluma City Elementary District, such as McNear Elementary, Grant Elementary, and McKinley Elementary, it is clear that McDowell is underperforming significantly. These nearby schools have higher test scores, lower chronic absenteeism rates, and lower percentages of students from low-income families. The school's performance has also been declining over time, with its statewide ranking dropping from 4,393 out of 5,662 California elementary schools in 2017-2018 to 4,774 out of 5,862 in 2023-2024. Addressing the challenges faced by McDowell Elementary will be crucial for improving educational outcomes for its students.

Detail:

Public K-6

421 South McDowell Blvd.
Petaluma, CA 94954-3753

(707) 778-4745

District: Petaluma City Elementary

SchoolDigger Rank:
4774^th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $10,444

Students who attend McDowell Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Petaluma Junior High
High:	Petaluma High

Student/teacher ratio: 20.4

Number of students: 245

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

86.9%

White:

5.7%

Asian:

2.9%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 84.1%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare McDowell Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details McDowell Elementary ranks worse than 81.4% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks last among 6 ranked elementary schools in the Petaluma City Elementary School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 20.86. (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 (86.9%), White (5.7%), Asian (2.9%). (See more...)

Compare Details 84.1% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. This is the highest percentage in the Petaluma City Elementary School District. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at McDowell Elementary is 20.4, which is the lowest among 7 elementary schools in the Petaluma City Elementary School District! (See more...)

Compare McDowell Elementary employs 12 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at McDowell Elementary is $10,444, which is the highest among 7 elementary schools in the Petaluma City Elementary School District!

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

McDowell Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks McDowell Elementary 4774^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See McDowell 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:

Petaluma City Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Petaluma City Elementary 754^th of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for McDowell Elementary

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Rank History for all students at McDowell Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	29.98	3244^th	4809	32.5%
2005	15.87	4266^th	4822	11.5%
2006	17.87	4143^rd	4818	14.0%
2007	21.42	4177^th	5113	18.3%
2008	19.47	4376^th	5113	14.4%
2009	26.33	3956^th	5193	23.8%
2010	15.48	4881^st	5314	8.1%
2017	19.02	4786^th	5692	15.9%
2018	23.31	4393^rd	5662	22.4%
2019	24.07	4446^th	5789	23.2%
2022	17.17	5140^th	5883	12.6%
2023	13.70	5426^th	5874	7.6%
2024	20.86	4774^th	5862	18.6%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at McDowell Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	52.84	1129^th	3246	65.2%
2019	54.18	1038^th	3275	68.3%
2022	40.31	1786^th	3311	46.1%
2023	21.44	3081^st	3250	5.2%
2024	20.87	3041^st	3160	3.8%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at McDowell Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	29.91	3773^rd	5084	25.8%
2019	35.60	3463^rd	5173	33.1%
2022	23.23	4398^th	5264	16.5%
2023	16.41	4945^th	5374	8.0%
2024	26.61	4257^th	5511	22.8%

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

Rank History for Female students at McDowell Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	18.44	4666^th	5413	13.8%
2019	22.49	4426^th	5492	19.4%
2022	16.17	5068^th	5635	10.1%
2023	14.91	5151^st	5617	8.3%
2024	23.82	4363^rd	5605	22.2%

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

Rank History for Disabled students at McDowell Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2018	26.29	1629^th	2128	23.4%

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

Rank History for Male students at McDowell Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	28.69	3794^th	5431	30.1%
2019	27.07	4017^th	5510	27.1%
2022	20.34	4683^rd	5663	17.3%
2023	14.36	5216^th	5650	7.7%
2024	19.62	4764^th	5636	15.5%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at McDowell Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	28.98	3624^th	4830	25.0%
2019	27.44	3865^th	4963	22.1%
2022	21.46	4404^th	5084	13.4%
2023	18.82	4568^th	5098	10.4%
2024	27.41	3922^nd	5102	23.1%

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 McDowell Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	351	7	14	35	0	n/a	n/a	0	407
1989	357	5	11	38	0	n/a	n/a	0	411
1990	351	9	12	41	0	n/a	n/a	0	413
1991	309	12	15	49	1	n/a	n/a	0	386
1992	311	13	17	61	2	n/a	n/a	0	404
1993	303	6	21	68	4	n/a	n/a	0	402
1994	294	10	20	84	4	n/a	n/a	0	412
1995	313	18	15	106	8	n/a	n/a	0	460
1996	313	18	15	106	8	n/a	n/a	0	460
1997	295	15	20	126	7	n/a	n/a	0	463
1998	284	13	31	145	7	n/a	n/a	0	480
1999	271	10	25	147	5	n/a	n/a	0	458
2000	251	11	24	156	3	n/a	n/a	1	446
2001	235	13	22	184	3	n/a	n/a	0	457
2002	148	8	22	198	2	n/a	n/a	0	378
2003	148	8	22	198	2	n/a	n/a	0	378
2004	120	10	15	216	1	n/a	n/a	0	362
2005	84	5	8	221	2	n/a	n/a	2	322
2006	76	6	8	239	2	n/a	n/a	2	333
2007	61	6	6	251	2	n/a	n/a	5	331
2008	40	5	2	257	2	n/a	n/a	0	306
2009	32	5	2	274	2	0	2	0	317
2010	27	6	3	276	3	0	0	0	315
2011	32	6	6	276	1	1	1	0	323
2012	23	5	11	258	1	0	1	0	299
2013	22	7	10	251	1	0	1	0	292
2014	24	6	10	224	2	0	3	0	269
2015	22	5	2	215	2	0	3	0	249
2016	22	6	3	202	1	0	1	0	235
2017	16	4	4	202	1	2	1	0	230
2018	19	1	5	225	1	2	1	0	254
2019	24	1	5	235	2	2	1	0	270
2020	16	2	10	223	2	1	3	0	257
2021	16	2	7	198	2	1	2	0	228
2022	15	2	5	192	4	2	4	0	224
2023	14	2	7	213	6	0	3	0	245

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 McDowell Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	407	20.6	19.7	n/a
1989	411	20.5	20.0	n/a
1990	413	17.7	23.3	n/a
1991	386	17.5	22.0	n/a
1992	404	17.8	22.6	16.6
1993	402	16.5	24.4	20.6
1994	412	17.0	24.2	21.8
1995	460	19.5	23.6	10.9
1996	460	19.5	23.6	10.9
1997	463	23.5	19.7	28.9
1998	480	24.5	19.6	40.2
1999	458	24.5	18.7	37.8
2000	446	23.0	19.4	43.4
2001	457	24.0	19.0	44
2002	378	20.0	18.9	48.1
2003	378	20.0	18.9	48.1
2004	362	19.5	18.6	55.5
2005	322	21.5	15.0	73.8
2006	333	20.0	16.7	80.4
2007	331	n/a	n/a	n/a
2008	306	21.0	14.6	91.2
2009	317	19.0	15.9	89.6
2010	315	17.0	18.5	90.8
2011	323	n/a	n/a	89.8
2012	299	17.5	17.0	n/a
2013	292	15.5	18.8	95.9
2014	269	13.0	20.6	94.4
2015	249	13.0	19.1	96.8
2016	235	12.0	19.5	98.7
2017	230	12.0	19.1	97.8
2018	254	12.0	21.1	91.3
2019	270	12.0	22.5	87
2020	257	n/a	n/a	90.3
2021	228	10.0	22.8	84.6
2022	224	11.0	20.3	77.7
2023	245	12.0	20.4	84.1

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 McDowell Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	407	20.6	19.7	n/a
1989	411	20.5	20.0	n/a
1990	413	17.7	23.3	n/a
1991	386	17.5	22.0	n/a
1992	404	17.8	22.6	16.6
1993	402	16.5	24.4	20.6
1994	412	17.0	24.2	21.8
1995	460	19.5	23.6	10.9
1996	460	19.5	23.6	10.9
1997	463	23.5	19.7	28.9
1998	480	24.5	19.6	40.2
1999	458	24.5	18.7	37.8
2000	446	23.0	19.4	43.4
2001	457	24.0	19.0	44
2002	378	20.0	18.9	48.1
2003	378	20.0	18.9	48.1
2004	362	19.5	18.6	55.5
2005	322	21.5	15.0	73.8
2006	333	20.0	16.7	80.4
2007	331	n/a	n/a	n/a
2008	306	21.0	14.6	91.2
2009	317	19.0	15.9	89.6
2010	315	17.0	18.5	90.8
2011	323	n/a	n/a	89.8
2012	299	17.5	17.0	n/a
2013	292	15.5	18.8	95.9
2014	269	13.0	20.6	94.4
2015	249	13.0	19.1	96.8
2016	235	12.0	19.5	98.7
2017	230	12.0	19.1	97.8
2018	254	12.0	21.1	91.3
2019	270	12.0	22.5	87
2020	257	n/a	n/a	90.3
2021	228	10.0	22.8	84.6
2022	224	11.0	20.3	77.7
2023	245	12.0	20.4	84.1

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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