Is Garfield Elementary a good school?

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

How many students attend Garfield Elementary?

In the 2023-24 school year, 302 students attended Garfield Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Garfield Elementary?

Students at Garfield Elementary are 54% Hispanic, 20% African American, 17% White, 7% Two or more races, 1% Asian.

What schools do graduates of Garfield Elementary attend?

Students who attend Garfield Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Roosevelt International Middle High : San Diego High

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:
1694^th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $10,926

Students who attend Garfield Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Roosevelt International Middle
High:	San Diego High

Student/teacher ratio: 23.2

Number of students: 302

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

54.3%

African American:

19.5%

White:

16.6%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 75.5%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Garfield Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Garfield Elementary ranks better than 71.1% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 48^th among 117 ranked elementary schools in the San Diego Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 67.66. (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 Student population at Garfield Elementary is diverse. Racial makeup is: Hispanic (54.3%), African American (19.5%), White (16.6%). (See more...)

Compare Details 75.5% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Garfield Elementary is 23.2. 63 elementary schools in the San Diego Unified School District have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)

Compare Garfield Elementary employs 13 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Garfield Elementary is $10,926, which is the 13^th highest among 117 elementary schools in the San Diego Unified School District.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Garfield Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Garfield Elementary 1694^th 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 604^th 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
2004	17.81	4134^th	4809	14.0%
2005	20.80	3912^th	4822	18.9%
2006	15.85	4298^th	4818	10.8%
2007	16.03	4570^th	5113	10.6%
2008	25.75	3912^th	5113	23.5%
2009	49.64	2513^th	5193	51.6%
2010	79.13	1041^st	5314	80.4%
2011	72.37	1375^th	5377	74.4%
2012	67.00	1675^th	5390	68.9%
2013	65.06	1828^th	5530	66.9%
2015	42.20	2899^th	5611	48.3%
2016	59.00	2043^rd	5614	63.6%
2017	74.58	1355^th	5692	76.2%
2018	74.73	1371^st	5662	75.8%
2019	80.14	1163^rd	5789	79.9%
2022	86.44	879^th	5883	85.1%
2023	78.39	1225^th	5874	79.1%
2024	67.66	1694^th	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	2109^th	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
2018	88.36	349^th	5084	93.1%
2019	91.77	240^th	5173	95.4%
2022	96.46	132^nd	5264	97.5%
2023	86.73	507^th	5374	90.6%
2024	74.40	1079^th	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
2018	65.24	1740^th	5413	67.9%
2019	87.60	685^th	5492	87.5%
2022	82.44	989^th	5635	82.4%
2023	71.41	1442^nd	5617	74.3%
2024	63.74	1771^st	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
2018	80.09	1050^th	5431	80.7%
2019	65.62	1692^nd	5510	69.3%
2022	85.95	827^th	5663	85.4%
2023	82.86	974^th	5650	82.8%
2024	70.70	1468^th	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
2018	79.47	715^th	4830	85.2%
2019	88.52	358^th	4963	92.8%
2022	96.05	157^th	5084	96.9%
2023	80.71	707^th	5098	86.1%
2024	82.12	642^nd	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.

Data source: California Department of Education

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 2.5)

50%

Reviews:

by a parent
Tuesday, September 6, 2011

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

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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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
2024	50	59	4	164	2	1	22	0	302

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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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
2024	302	13.0	23.2	75.5

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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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
2024	302	13.0	23.2	75.5

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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