Is Edward M. Downer Elementary a good school?

Edward M. Downer Elementary ranks in the bottom 6.7% of California elementary schools.

How many students attend Edward M. Downer Elementary?

In the 2023-24 school year, 405 students attended Edward M. Downer Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Edward M. Downer Elementary?

Students at Edward M. Downer Elementary are 89% Hispanic, 5% African American, 4% Asian.

What schools do graduates of Edward M. Downer Elementary attend?

Students who attend Edward M. Downer Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Helms Middle High : Richmond High

Edward M. Downer Elementary

Summary:

Edward M. Downer Elementary is a public elementary school in San Pablo, California, serving students from kindergarten to 6th grade as part of the West Contra Costa Unified School District. However, the school's performance metrics are consistently lower than its nearby counterparts, raising concerns about the quality of education provided to its students.

The school's chronic absenteeism rates are significantly higher than the surrounding schools, ranging from 6.1% to 57.9% in recent years. Additionally, its test scores in English Language Arts/Literacy and other subject areas are well below the district and state averages, with proficiency rates as low as 8.51% in 3rd grade. The school's rankings are particularly concerning for specific student groups, such as male students, Hispanic students, and students with disabilities, who are performing significantly worse than their peers at other schools.

Compared to nearby schools like Riverside Elementary, Edward M. Downer Elementary's performance is consistently lower across the board, suggesting that the school may be facing unique challenges that are not being adequately addressed. The school's declining statewide ranking over the years, from 4,820 out of 5,611 California elementary schools in 2014-2015 to 5,470 out of 5,862 in 2023-2024, further indicates that the school's performance is not improving and may be falling further behind its peers.

Detail:

Public K-6

1231 18th St.
San Pablo, CA 94806-4731

(510) 234-3851

District: West Contra Costa Unified

SchoolDigger Rank:
5470^th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $6,677

Students who attend Edward M. Downer Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Helms Middle
High:	Richmond High

Student/teacher ratio: 22.7

Number of students: 405

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

89.1%

African American:

5.4%

Asian:

4.0%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 68.6%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Edward M. Downer Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Edward M. Downer Elementary ranks worse than 93.3% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 26^th among 37 ranked elementary schools in the West Contra Costa Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 13.03. (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 (89.1%), African American (5.4%), Asian (4%). (See more...)

Compare Details 68.6% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Edward M. Downer Elementary is 22.7. 20 elementary schools in the West Contra Costa Unified School District have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)

Compare Edward M. Downer Elementary employs 17.8 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Edward M. Downer Elementary is $6,677, which is the 19^th highest among 37 elementary schools in the West Contra Costa Unified School District.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Edward M. Downer Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Edward M. Downer Elementary 5470^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Edward M. Downer Elementary in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

English Language Learner students:

Special Education students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Male students:

Hispanic students:

West Contra Costa Unified:

SchoolDigger ranks West Contra Costa Unified 1129^th of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Edward M. Downer Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Edward M. Downer Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	10.64	4636^th	4809	3.6%
2005	9.67	4664^th	4822	3.3%
2006	7.38	4724^th	4818	2.0%
2007	13.74	4729^th	5113	7.5%
2008	9.64	4936^th	5113	3.5%
2009	7.40	5100^th	5193	1.8%
2010	7.93	5220^th	5314	1.8%
2011	13.91	5006^th	5377	6.9%
2012	8.95	5230^th	5390	3.0%
2013	13.02	5152^nd	5530	6.8%
2015	18.19	4820^th	5611	14.1%
2016	16.77	4883^rd	5614	13.0%
2017	18.04	4860^th	5692	14.6%
2018	11.30	5364^th	5662	5.3%
2019	12.94	5384^th	5789	7.0%
2022	13.35	5504^th	5883	6.4%
2023	11.07	5651^st	5874	3.8%
2024	13.03	5470^th	5862	6.7%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Edward M. Downer Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	23.59	2812^th	3246	13.4%
2019	26.12	2772^nd	3275	15.4%
2022	30.37	2573^rd	3311	22.3%
2023	33.03	2319^th	3250	28.6%
2024	37.49	2004^th	3160	36.6%

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

Rank History for Special Education students at Edward M. Downer Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	16.95	2357^th	2420	2.6%
2024	20.35	2377^th	2634	9.8%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Edward M. Downer Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	15.78	4715^th	5084	7.3%
2019	18.86	4640^th	5173	10.3%
2022	19.80	4669^th	5264	11.3%
2023	13.53	5142^nd	5374	4.3%
2024	17.64	4962^nd	5511	10.0%

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

Rank History for Female students at Edward M. Downer Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	11.42	5171^st	5413	4.5%
2019	13.47	5122^nd	5492	6.7%
2022	14.69	5213^th	5635	7.5%
2023	15.81	5079^th	5617	9.6%
2024	16.58	4996^th	5605	10.9%

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

Rank History for Disabled students at Edward M. Downer Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	24.26	1747^th	2128	17.9%
2019	16.74	2546^th	2585	1.5%
2022	18.67	2063^rd	2227	7.4%

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

Rank History for Male students at Edward M. Downer Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	11.98	5153^rd	5431	5.1%
2019	13.59	5143^rd	5510	6.7%
2022	13.50	5339^th	5663	5.7%
2023	8.59	5576^th	5650	1.3%
2024	12.17	5356^th	5636	5.0%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Edward M. Downer Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	16.07	4461^st	4830	7.6%
2019	16.38	4592^nd	4963	7.5%
2022	18.30	4627^th	5084	9.0%
2023	14.42	4827^th	5098	5.3%
2024	16.44	4686^th	5102	8.2%

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 Edward M. Downer Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	104	308	116	310	2	n/a	n/a	0	840
1989	123	289	151	368	0	n/a	n/a	0	931
1990	107	300	143	413	9	n/a	n/a	0	972
1991	91	267	160	469	7	n/a	n/a	0	994
1992	69	227	166	480	7	n/a	n/a	0	949
1993	69	230	160	505	10	n/a	n/a	0	974
1994	58	217	129	557	4	n/a	n/a	0	965
1995	55	220	113	656	1	n/a	n/a	0	1045
1996	55	220	113	656	1	n/a	n/a	0	1045
1997	53	203	104	726	2	n/a	n/a	0	1088
1998	33	117	81	611	0	n/a	n/a	0	842
1999	29	101	80	649	0	n/a	n/a	0	859
2000	24	81	94	708	1	n/a	n/a	0	908
2001	30	76	94	764	1	n/a	n/a	3	968
2002	16	53	85	767	1	n/a	n/a	4	926
2003	16	53	85	767	1	n/a	n/a	4	926
2004	12	69	74	788	1	n/a	n/a	2	946
2005	13	72	74	768	1	n/a	n/a	9	937
2006	11	42	68	722	1	n/a	n/a	9	853
2007	7	29	54	638	0	n/a	n/a	4	732
2008	5	29	37	635	n/a	n/a	n/a	0	706
2009	4	23	29	618	2	0	2	0	678
2010	6	29	22	615	0	0	0	0	672
2011	3	19	17	631	0	0	93	0	763
2012	7	28	28	596	0	1	0	0	660
2013	11	33	24	583	1	2	5	0	659
2014	18	39	20	595	3	1	3	0	679
2015	19	46	19	552	3	1	6	0	646
2016	20	41	21	522	1	1	1	0	607
2017	16	36	25	526	1	2	3	0	609
2018	25	36	25	533	1	1	5	0	626
2019	17	34	26	505	1	0	9	0	592
2020	13	35	21	467	1	0	5	0	542
2021	10	24	19	437	1	0	5	0	496
2022	8	21	14	423	2	0	3	0	471
2023	5	20	16	379	1	0	4	0	425
2024	1	22	16	361	1	0	4	0	405

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 Edward M. Downer Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	840	36.6	22.9	n/a
1989	931	41.6	22.3	n/a
1990	972	39.5	24.6	n/a
1991	994	39.0	25.4	n/a
1992	949	39.6	23.9	82.8
1993	974	36.6	26.6	91.3
1994	965	37.4	25.8	87.5
1995	1045	38.6	27.1	93
1996	1045	38.6	27.1	93
1997	1088	41.0	26.5	89.6
1998	842	43.0	19.6	88.8
1999	859	41.0	21.0	90.7
2000	908	46.0	19.7	88
2001	968	49.3	19.6	94.5
2002	926	52.5	17.6	98.2
2003	926	52.5	17.6	98.2
2004	946	49.1	19.3	93.3
2005	937	45.6	20.5	100.6
2006	853	43.9	19.4	87.2
2007	732	39.4	18.6	100.1
2008	706	37.8	18.7	99.6
2009	678	37.6	15.6	99.6
2010	672	30.6	21.9	99.6
2011	763	n/a	n/a	79.6
2012	660	27.0	24.4	n/a
2013	659	26.0	25.3	99.5
2014	679	25.0	27.1	96.8
2015	646	26.0	24.8	96.3
2016	607	26.0	23.3	95.2
2017	609	25.0	24.3	94.4
2018	626	24.5	25.5	90.9
2019	592	25.0	23.6	92.2
2020	542	n/a	n/a	90
2021	496	20.0	24.8	90.5
2022	471	19.0	24.7	50.5
2023	425	17.8	23.8	79.1
2024	405	17.8	22.7	68.6

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 Edward M. Downer Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	840	36.6	22.9	n/a
1989	931	41.6	22.3	n/a
1990	972	39.5	24.6	n/a
1991	994	39.0	25.4	n/a
1992	949	39.6	23.9	82.8
1993	974	36.6	26.6	91.3
1994	965	37.4	25.8	87.5
1995	1045	38.6	27.1	93
1996	1045	38.6	27.1	93
1997	1088	41.0	26.5	89.6
1998	842	43.0	19.6	88.8
1999	859	41.0	21.0	90.7
2000	908	46.0	19.7	88
2001	968	49.3	19.6	94.5
2002	926	52.5	17.6	98.2
2003	926	52.5	17.6	98.2
2004	946	49.1	19.3	93.3
2005	937	45.6	20.5	100.6
2006	853	43.9	19.4	87.2
2007	732	39.4	18.6	100.1
2008	706	37.8	18.7	99.6
2009	678	37.6	15.6	99.6
2010	672	30.6	21.9	99.6
2011	763	n/a	n/a	79.6
2012	660	27.0	24.4	n/a
2013	659	26.0	25.3	99.5
2014	679	25.0	27.1	96.8
2015	646	26.0	24.8	96.3
2016	607	26.0	23.3	95.2
2017	609	25.0	24.3	94.4
2018	626	24.5	25.5	90.9
2019	592	25.0	23.6	92.2
2020	542	n/a	n/a	90
2021	496	20.0	24.8	90.5
2022	471	19.0	24.7	50.5
2023	425	17.8	23.8	79.1
2024	405	17.8	22.7	68.6

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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