Is Lawton Alternative a good school?

Yes! Lawton Alternative is one of the best elementary schools in the state. It ranks 222 nd of 5862 California elementary schools.

How many students attend Lawton Alternative?

In the 2023-24 school year, 601 students attended Lawton Alternative.

What is the racial makeup of Lawton Alternative?

Students at Lawton Alternative are 74% Asian, 13% Two or more races, 6% Hispanic, 5% White, 2% African American.

Lawton Alternative

Summary:

Lawton Alternative is a highly-regarded public elementary school serving grades K-8 in San Francisco, California, with 597 students and a consistent 5-star rating from SchoolDigger. This exceptional school significantly outperforms the San Francisco Unified School District and the state of California in academic achievement, with impressive results across all grade levels and subject areas.

Lawton Alternative's academic prowess is particularly noteworthy, with 81.1% of students proficient or better in English Language Arts/Literacy, compared to 53.73% for the district and 47.04% for the state. In Mathematics, 75.59% of Lawton Alternative students were proficient or better, far exceeding the district's 45.59% and the state's 35.54%. The school also excels in supporting the academic success of specific student subgroups, ranking among the top elementary schools in California for female students and students from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Additionally, Lawton Alternative maintains relatively low chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 3.4% to 12.9% in recent years.

Compared to nearby schools in the San Francisco Unified School District, such as Ulloa Elementary, West Portal Elementary, and Stevenson (Robert Louis) Elementary, Lawton Alternative consistently outperforms in both academic achievement and subgroup performance. This exceptional school's ability to support the academic success of its diverse student population, including a significant representation of Asian, Multi-racial, and English Language Learner students, is truly remarkable.

Detail:

Public K-8

1570 31st Ave.
San Francisco, CA 94122-3104

(415) 759-2832

District: San Francisco Unified

SchoolDigger Rank:
222^nd of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $6,103

Student/teacher ratio: 21.8

Number of students: 601

Racial breakdown:

Asian:

73.9%

Two or more races:

13.3%

Hispanic:

5.7%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 56.9%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Lawton Alternative to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Lawton Alternative ranks better than 96.2% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 5^th among 71 ranked elementary schools in the San Francisco Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 96.42. (See more...)

Compare Details Lawton Alternative ranks better than 95.6% of middle schools in California. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 96.13. (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: Asian (73.9%), two or more races (13.3%), Hispanic (5.7%). (See more...)

Compare Details 56.9% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Lawton Alternative is 21.8, which is the 36^th best among 71 elementary schools in the San Francisco Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Lawton Alternative employs 27.4 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Lawton Alternative is $6,103, which is the highest among 72 elementary schools in the San Francisco Unified School District!

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Lawton Alternative:

SchoolDigger ranks Lawton Alternative 222^nd of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Lawton Alternative in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Male students:

Asian students:

SchoolDigger ranks Lawton Alternative 121^st of 2777 California public middle schools. (See Lawton Alternative in the ranking list.)

Middle School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Male students:

Asian students:

San Francisco Unified:

SchoolDigger ranks San Francisco Unified 651^st of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

Average Rating:

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Rank History for Lawton Alternative

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Rank History for all elementary school students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	88.98	546^th	4809	88.6%
2005	87.64	611^th	4822	87.3%
2006	89.30	520^th	4818	89.2%
2007	92.17	396^th	5113	92.3%
2008	96.21	122^nd	5113	97.6%
2009	92.04	345^th	5193	93.4%
2010	88.74	521^st	5314	90.2%
2011	85.22	716^th	5377	86.7%
2012	88.94	491^st	5390	90.9%
2013	91.64	352^nd	5530	93.6%
2015	97.03	187^th	5611	96.7%
2016	93.64	406^th	5614	92.8%
2017	96.51	217^th	5692	96.2%
2018	94.96	289^th	5662	94.9%
2019	94.39	344^th	5789	94.1%
2022	92.64	549^th	5883	90.7%
2023	94.30	407^th	5874	93.1%
2024	96.42	222^nd	5862	96.2%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for elementary school Multi-racial students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2022	79.30	103^rd	610	83.1%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Multi-racial Students!

Rank History for elementary school English Language Learner students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2022	99.39	34^th	3311	99.0%
2023	99.14	25^th	3250	99.2%

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

Rank History for elementary school Low Socio Economic Status students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	98.63	28^th	5084	99.4%
2019	98.33	36^th	5173	99.3%
2022	95.67	157^th	5264	97.0%
2023	98.30	68^th	5374	98.7%
2024	99.04	52^nd	5511	99.1%

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

Rank History for elementary school Female students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	92.51	402^nd	5413	92.6%
2019	92.02	435^th	5492	92.1%
2022	92.97	451^st	5635	92.0%
2023	95.83	217^th	5617	96.1%
2024	98.03	49^th	5605	99.1%

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

Rank History for elementary school Male students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	95.29	230^th	5431	95.8%
2019	95.03	248^th	5510	95.5%
2022	90.56	593^rd	5663	89.5%
2023	90.39	592^nd	5650	89.5%
2024	93.09	416^th	5636	92.6%

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

Rank History for elementary school Asian students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	69.34	379^th	1071	64.6%
2019	70.33	371^st	1149	67.7%
2022	58.30	622^nd	1154	46.1%
2023	62.88	554^th	1190	53.4%
2024	66.13	486^th	1203	59.6%

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

Data source: test scores: California Department of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

Rank History for Lawton Alternative

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Rank History for all middle school students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	91.82	90^th	1769	94.9%
2005	93.56	63^rd	1777	96.5%
2006	90.40	117^th	1804	93.5%
2007	95.11	36^th	1999	98.2%
2008	93.48	50^th	2005	97.5%
2009	93.24	43^rd	2063	97.9%
2010	95.81	15^th	2179	99.3%
2011	92.51	46^th	2236	97.9%
2012	91.87	46^th	2259	98.0%
2013	91.07	64^th	2379	97.3%
2015	96.76	54^th	2477	97.8%
2016	96.20	65^th	2497	97.4%
2017	98.36	25^th	2508	99.0%
2018	98.04	24^th	2480	99.0%
2019	98.02	35^th	2715	98.7%
2022	97.06	86^th	2740	96.9%
2023	97.50	78^th	2802	97.2%
2024	96.13	121^st	2777	95.6%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for middle school Special Education students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	83.59	142^nd	1538	90.8%

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

Rank History for middle school Low Socio Economic Status students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	99.56	10^th	2230	99.6%
2019	99.65	11^th	2369	99.5%
2022	99.18	20^th	2458	99.2%
2023	99.12	21^st	2549	99.2%
2024	99.32	17^th	2575	99.3%

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

Rank History for middle school Female students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	97.89	19^th	2262	99.2%
2019	96.35	57^th	2380	97.6%
2022	95.46	115^th	2509	95.4%
2023	97.29	62^nd	2547	97.6%
2024	96.59	79^th	2546	96.9%

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

Rank History for middle school Male students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	97.40	52^nd	2273	97.7%
2019	98.41	31^st	2407	98.7%
2022	97.58	62^nd	2527	97.5%
2023	96.16	101^st	2558	96.1%
2024	92.98	188^th	2547	92.6%

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

Rank History for middle school Asian students at Lawton Alternative

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	77.40	137^th	700	80.4%
2019	74.91	185^th	745	75.2%
2022	73.52	198^th	733	73.0%
2023	73.89	187^th	718	74.0%
2024	71.03	227^th	741	69.4%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for Asian 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: 5)

100%

Reviews:

by a teacher
Saturday, September 1, 2018

I am honored to teach at Lawton with a dedicated staff and devoted families! Close Quote

Enrollment information for Lawton Alternative

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	134	92	322	48	3	n/a	n/a	0	599
1989	127	107	332	42	5	n/a	n/a	0	613
1990	129	97	346	37	3	n/a	n/a	0	612
1991	142	89	349	38	1	n/a	n/a	0	619
1992	130	80	359	41	1	n/a	n/a	0	611
1993	140	74	375	44	0	n/a	n/a	0	633
1994	147	71	394	41	2	n/a	n/a	0	655
1995	172	70	425	48	6	n/a	n/a	0	721
1996	172	70	425	48	6	n/a	n/a	0	721
1997	146	49	386	43	4	n/a	n/a	0	628
1998	129	52	399	47	5	n/a	n/a	0	632
1999	113	38	420	49	6	n/a	n/a	0	626
2000	99	34	436	55	7	n/a	n/a	0	631
2001	74	28	429	52	7	n/a	n/a	6	596
2002	72	27	438	42	5	n/a	n/a	23	607
2003	72	27	438	42	5	n/a	n/a	23	607
2004	58	24	444	41	5	n/a	n/a	28	600
2005	48	20	455	37	4	n/a	n/a	35	599
2006	47	19	461	28	4	n/a	n/a	45	604
2007	45	18	435	22	5	n/a	n/a	63	588
2008	42	18	438	24	4	n/a	n/a	0	526
2009	43	20	446	21	3	0	64	0	597
2010	42	22	450	25	3	0	68	0	610
2011	42	22	454	29	2	0	63	0	612
2012	34	20	471	27	2	0	56	0	610
2013	31	15	418	31	2	9	99	0	605
2014	34	19	450	32	2	11	50	0	598
2015	40	21	453	35	2	4	46	0	601
2016	42	18	460	39	2	4	34	0	599
2017	38	21	450	31	2	3	49	0	594
2018	36	23	445	35	2	4	56	0	601
2019	35	22	436	37	2	4	57	0	593
2020	36	24	431	36	2	3	66	0	598
2021	35	23	428	36	2	1	77	0	602
2022	36	19	426	35	2	2	77	0	597
2023	34	15	437	35	2	1	73	0	597
2024	29	12	444	34	1	1	80	0	601

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 Lawton Alternative

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	599	26.0	23.0	n/a
1989	613	28.0	21.8	n/a
1990	612	26.5	23.0	n/a
1991	619	25.5	24.2	n/a
1992	611	25.9	23.5	30.3
1993	633	25.4	24.9	28.4
1994	655	25.5	25.7	27.5
1995	721	28.4	25.4	34.3
1996	721	28.4	25.4	34.3
1997	628	32.0	19.6	30.6
1998	632	32.2	19.6	38.8
1999	626	32.0	19.6	34.2
2000	631	31.0	20.4	36.9
2001	596	28.0	21.3	39.5
2002	607	31.0	19.6	44.7
2003	607	31.0	19.6	44.7
2004	600	29.4	20.4	50.9
2005	599	29.0	20.7	48.2
2006	604	29.0	20.8	0
2007	588	30.0	19.6	47.6
2008	526	31.6	16.6	47
2009	597	28.0	19.3	45.9
2010	610	28.0	21.7	44.3
2011	612	n/a	n/a	50.3
2012	610	28.1	21.7	53.1
2013	605	26.3	22.9	49.6
2014	598	25.0	23.9	54
2015	601	23.0	26.1	56.4
2016	599	27.0	22.1	49.7
2017	594	22.8	26.0	48.5
2018	601	26.3	22.8	46.9
2019	593	23.5	25.2	47.9
2020	598	n/a	n/a	46
2021	602	28.4	21.1	45.3
2022	597	24.8	24.0	45.2
2023	597	29.0	20.5	46.6
2024	601	27.4	21.8	56.9

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 Lawton Alternative

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	599	26.0	23.0	n/a
1989	613	28.0	21.8	n/a
1990	612	26.5	23.0	n/a
1991	619	25.5	24.2	n/a
1992	611	25.9	23.5	30.3
1993	633	25.4	24.9	28.4
1994	655	25.5	25.7	27.5
1995	721	28.4	25.4	34.3
1996	721	28.4	25.4	34.3
1997	628	32.0	19.6	30.6
1998	632	32.2	19.6	38.8
1999	626	32.0	19.6	34.2
2000	631	31.0	20.4	36.9
2001	596	28.0	21.3	39.5
2002	607	31.0	19.6	44.7
2003	607	31.0	19.6	44.7
2004	600	29.4	20.4	50.9
2005	599	29.0	20.7	48.2
2006	604	29.0	20.8	0
2007	588	30.0	19.6	47.6
2008	526	31.6	16.6	47
2009	597	28.0	19.3	45.9
2010	610	28.0	21.7	44.3
2011	612	n/a	n/a	50.3
2012	610	28.1	21.7	53.1
2013	605	26.3	22.9	49.6
2014	598	25.0	23.9	54
2015	601	23.0	26.1	56.4
2016	599	27.0	22.1	49.7
2017	594	22.8	26.0	48.5
2018	601	26.3	22.8	46.9
2019	593	23.5	25.2	47.9
2020	598	n/a	n/a	46
2021	602	28.4	21.1	45.3
2022	597	24.8	24.0	45.2
2023	597	29.0	20.5	46.6
2024	601	27.4	21.8	56.9

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