Garfield Elementary

Summary:

Garfield Elementary is a public elementary school in San Diego, California, serving 267 students in grades K-5. The school is part of the San Diego Unified School District, which is ranked 604 out of 1,568 districts in the state.

Garfield Elementary stands out for its consistent academic excellence, with students consistently performing above the district and state averages in English Language Arts/Literacy and Mathematics. The school's Hispanic and low-socioeconomic status students also outperform their peers at the state level, indicating a focus on equity and inclusion. However, the school's English Language Learner students struggle, an area that requires further attention. Garfield Elementary also faces challenges with high chronic absenteeism rates, which may impact student learning and overall school performance.

Compared to nearby schools, Garfield Elementary outperforms most in academic achievement, but some schools, such as Birney Elementary and Jefferson Elementary, also demonstrate strong performance. The disparity in socioeconomic factors among the schools, as evidenced by the percentage of students eligible for free and reduced-price lunch, may contribute to these differences. Additionally, the inclusion of San Diego Global Vision Academy, a high-performing public charter school, provides an interesting comparison and suggests that alternative educational models could benefit the Garfield Elementary community.


Detail:

Public K-5

 4487 Oregon St.
       San Diego, CA  92116-3018


(619) 362-4300

District: San Diego Unified

SchoolDigger Rank:
1694th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $10,926 Help


Students who attend Garfield Elementary usually attend:

Middle:    Roosevelt International Middle
High:    San Diego High

Student/teacher ratio:  20.5 Help
Number of students:  267

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:
59.9%
White:
16.9%
African American:
16.5%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  77.2% Help


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Performance Trends
Help
Compare Details Garfield Elementary ranks better than 71.1% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 48th among 117 ranked elementary schools in the San Diego Unified School District. (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 67.66. (See more...)
Help
Chronic absenteeism in a high 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
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Compare Details Student population at Garfield Elementary is diverse. Racial makeup is: Hispanic (59.9%), White (16.9%), African American (16.5%). (See more...)
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Compare Details 77.2% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)
Teachers
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Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Garfield Elementary is 20.5, which is the 27th best among 117 elementary schools in the San Diego Unified School District. (See more...)
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Compare Garfield Elementary employs 13 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at Garfield Elementary is $10,926, which is the 13th highest among 117 elementary schools in the San Diego Unified School District.
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Garfield Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Garfield Elementary 1694th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Garfield 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:


San Diego Unified:

SchoolDigger ranks San Diego Unified 604th of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

Average Parent Rating:

Read all reviews and ratings detail for Garfield Elementary.

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Rank History for Garfield Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Garfield Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools CA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2004 17.81 4134th 4809 14.0%
2005 20.80 3912th 4822 18.9%
2006 15.85 4298th 4818 10.8%
2007 16.03 4570th 5113 10.6%
2008 25.75 3912th 5113 23.5%
2009 49.64 2513th 5193 51.6%
2010 79.13 1041st 5314 80.4%
2011 72.37 1375th 5377 74.4%
2012 67.00 1675th 5390 68.9%
2013 65.06 1828th 5530 66.9%
2015 42.20 2899th 5611 48.3%
2016 59.00 2043rd 5614 63.6%
2017 74.58 1355th 5692 76.2%
2018 74.73 1371st 5662 75.8%
2019 80.14 1163rd 5789 79.9%
2022 86.44 879th 5883 85.1%
2023 78.39 1225th 5874 79.1%
2024 67.66 1694th 5862 71.1%
See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Garfield Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools CA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2024 36.01 2109th 3160 33.3%
See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for English Language Learner Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Garfield Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools CA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 88.36 349th 5084 93.1%
2019 91.77 240th 5173 95.4%
2022 96.46 132nd 5264 97.5%
2023 86.73 507th 5374 90.6%
2024 74.40 1079th 5511 80.4%
See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Garfield Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools CA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 65.24 1740th 5413 67.9%
2019 87.60 685th 5492 87.5%
2022 82.44 989th 5635 82.4%
2023 71.41 1442nd 5617 74.3%
2024 63.74 1771st 5605 68.4%
See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Male students at Garfield Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools CA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 80.09 1050th 5431 80.7%
2019 65.62 1692nd 5510 69.3%
2022 85.95 827th 5663 85.4%
2023 82.86 974th 5650 82.8%
2024 70.70 1468th 5636 74.0%
See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Garfield Elementary

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools CA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 79.47 715th 4830 85.2%
2019 88.52 358th 4963 92.8%
2022 96.05 157th 5084 96.9%
2023 80.71 707th 5098 86.1%
2024 82.12 642nd 5102 87.4%
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.

Garfield Elementary Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 






Data source: California Department of Education

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 2.5)
0%

50%

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50%

  

Reviews:
by a parent
Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Open Quote In brief, my daughter attended 1st grade at Garfield for most of the year 2010-11. After a few months of attendance she told me about a bully in her class and the actions by him. I approached the staff (teacher) and was told changes were being made that would end the bullying.

My daughter continued to complain about the bully and later I got to see first-hand on a field trip the actions of this child. I again spoke with the teacher and the next day the principle.

I was assured “aggressive measures” were being taken and that within 6 weeks of their new adjustments that all would be well. Needless to say, this went on from November to June.

The last report of the bully was the last straw for my ex and me so we filed a police report and immediately moved my daughter out of the school to another. This was a last resort and was not desired by myself as she was mere weeks from ending school.

To our delight, my daughter was clearly not stressed about going to her new school and loved it immediately. Garfield Elementary’s administration does not handle bullying at all, they do nothing. In fact, after a few weeks at this new school, we found out that ANOTHER child was pulled out by his parents for the same EXACT reasons and for the exact same child at the same school.

That was ANOTHER verification for me; What will it take for you to decide where to send your child? Don’t send them to Garfield Elementary on Oregon St in San Diego whatever you do. Close Quote


by a parent
Monday, January 26, 2009

Open Quote Lovely school with a great bunch of teachers. My son really loves going to school. Close Quote



Enrollment information for Garfield Elementary

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Compare
Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
2000 85 141 44 236 4 n/a n/a 0 510
2001 73 111 41 244 2 n/a n/a 0 471
2002 62 131 40 277 2 n/a n/a 0 512
2003 62 131 40 277 2 n/a n/a 0 512
2004 52 126 43 291 2 n/a n/a 0 514
2005 40 126 36 284 2 n/a n/a 0 488
2006 43 116 29 277 1 n/a n/a 0 466
2007 31 107 25 256 2 n/a n/a 15 436
2008 35 105 28 230 2 n/a n/a 0 400
2009 35 92 21 224 2 10 0 0 384
2010 31 80 13 245 1 4 17 0 391
2011 34 70 12 236 1 3 15 0 371
2012 47 55 9 238 0 5 17 0 371
2013 43 57 10 218 0 5 16 0 349
2014 37 59 10 215 0 5 17 0 343
2015 29 54 7 207 1 4 19 0 321
2016 28 61 9 219 1 2 17 0 337
2017 22 56 9 211 0 2 11 0 311
2018 20 49 9 166 1 2 7 0 254
2019 17 45 8 145 0 3 9 0 227
2020 30 45 8 150 1 3 11 0 248
2021 36 45 8 146 0 2 15 1 253
2022 39 39 6 146 1 1 13 0 245
2023 45 44 3 160 1 1 13 0 267

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 Garfield Elementary

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
2000 510 25.0 20.4 90.6
2001 471 29.0 16.2 86.2
2002 512 30.0 17.1 91
2003 512 30.0 17.1 91
2004 514 31.0 16.6 88.1
2005 488 30.0 16.3 81.4
2006 466 31.0 15.0 82.8
2007 436 29.0 15.0 95.7
2008 400 33.9 11.8 90
2009 384 27.8 11.3 90.4
2010 391 23.0 17.0 90
2011 371 n/a n/a 90
2012 371 22.0 16.8 n/a
2013 349 22.0 15.8 99.1
2014 343 13.0 26.3 81.3
2015 321 13.0 24.6 92.5
2016 337 14.0 24.0 89.6
2017 311 14.0 22.2 87.5
2018 254 11.0 23.0 88.2
2019 227 9.0 25.2 84.1
2020 248 n/a n/a 81.9
2021 253 11.0 23.0 80.2
2022 245 13.0 18.8 77.1
2023 267 13.0 20.5 77.2

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 Garfield Elementary

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
2000 510 25.0 20.4 90.6
2001 471 29.0 16.2 86.2
2002 512 30.0 17.1 91
2003 512 30.0 17.1 91
2004 514 31.0 16.6 88.1
2005 488 30.0 16.3 81.4
2006 466 31.0 15.0 82.8
2007 436 29.0 15.0 95.7
2008 400 33.9 11.8 90
2009 384 27.8 11.3 90.4
2010 391 23.0 17.0 90
2011 371 n/a n/a 90
2012 371 22.0 16.8 n/a
2013 349 22.0 15.8 99.1
2014 343 13.0 26.3 81.3
2015 321 13.0 24.6 92.5
2016 337 14.0 24.0 89.6
2017 311 14.0 22.2 87.5
2018 254 11.0 23.0 88.2
2019 227 9.0 25.2 84.1
2020 248 n/a n/a 81.9
2021 253 11.0 23.0 80.2
2022 245 13.0 18.8 77.1
2023 267 13.0 20.5 77.2

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.

Kindergarten Immunization Rates

Garfield Elementary

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Compare
YearCompletely ImmunizedReligious ExemptionMedical ExemptionConditionalPolioHepatitis BVaricellaDTPMMR
201295.0%5.0%0.0%0.0%95.0%95.0%95.0%95.0%95.0%
2013100.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%100.0%100.0%100.0%100.0%100.0%
201475.0%0.0%0.0%25.0%75.0%87.0%89.0%77.0%75.0%
201598.0%0.0%0.0%2.0%100.0%98.0%100.0%100.0%98.0%
201699.0%1.0%0.0%0.0%99.0%99.0%99.0%99.0%99.0%
2017≥98.0%≤2.0%≤2.0%≤2.0%≥98.0%≥98.0%≥98.0%≥98.0%≥98.0%
201891.0%0.0%0.0%3.0%≥95.0%94.0%≥95.0%94.0%≥95.0%
2019≥95.0%≤5.0%≤5.0%≥95.0%≥95.0%≥95.0%≥95.0%≥95.0%
202296.2%0.0%1.9%96.2%

Data source: California Department of Public Health
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for Garfield Elementary

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YearTotal Expenditures Per Pupil
2018 $10,926

Data source: California Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Garfield Elementary

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Rank
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Ranks 1163rd of 5789 Elementary schoolsRanks 1225th of 5874 Elementary schools
 0.8%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
3rd Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (Garfield Elementary)73.573.7
 0.2%
   3rd Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (San Diego Unified)56.253.6
 2.6%
   3rd Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (California)48.543
 5.6%
3rd Grade Mathematics (Garfield Elementary)8079.5
 0.5%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (San Diego Unified)60.455
 5.5%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (California)50.245.1
 5.1%
4th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (Garfield Elementary)68.682.9
 14.3%
   4th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (San Diego Unified)56.851.1
 5.7%
   4th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (California)49.543.7
 5.7%
4th Grade Mathematics (Garfield Elementary)47.235.7
 11.5%
   4th Grade Mathematics (San Diego Unified)5550
 5%
   4th Grade Mathematics (California)44.940.8
 4.1%
5th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (Garfield Elementary)76.763
 13.7%
   5th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (San Diego Unified)6055.6
 4.4%
   5th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (California)51.746.7
 5%
5th Grade Mathematics (Garfield Elementary)61.342.9
 18.4%
   5th Grade Mathematics (San Diego Unified)50.742.5
 8.2%
   5th Grade Mathematics (California)3833.4
 4.6%
5th Grade Science (Garfield Elementary)35.542.9
 7.4%
   5th Grade Science (San Diego Unified)39.940
 0.2%
   5th Grade Science (California)31.731.9
 0.1%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students227267
 17.6%
African American4544
 2.2%
American Indian01
Asian83
 62.5%
Hispanic145160
 10.3%
Pacific Islander31
 66.7%
White1745
 164.7%
Two or More Races913
 44.4%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients84.1%77.2%
 7%


Schools Near Garfield Elementary









Frequently Asked Questions about Garfield Elementary

In the 2022-23 school year, 267 students attended Garfield Elementary.

Garfield Elementary ranks 1694th of 5862 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Students who attend Garfield Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Roosevelt International Middle
High : San Diego High

Students at Garfield Elementary are 60% Hispanic, 17% White, 16% African American, 5% Two or more races, 1% Asian.


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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the California Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.





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