Is Laurel Elementary a good school?

Laurel Elementary ranks in the bottom 17.8% of California elementary schools.

How many students attend Laurel Elementary?

In the 2023-24 school year, 475 students attended Laurel Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Laurel Elementary?

Students at Laurel Elementary are 72% Hispanic, 9% Asian, 8% White, 7% Two or more races, 2% Pacific Islander.

What schools do graduates of Laurel Elementary attend?

Students who attend Laurel Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Abbott Middle High : Hillsdale High

Laurel Elementary

Summary:

Laurel Elementary is a public elementary school located in San Mateo, California, serving grades K-5 with a student population of 527. It is part of the San Mateo-Foster City School District, which is ranked 452 out of 1,568 districts in California and has a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Laurel Elementary has seen a decline in its statewide ranking over the past few years, dropping from a high of 1,477 out of 5,611 California elementary schools in 2014-2015 to 4,821 out of 5,862 in 2023-2024. Its performance on standardized tests is significantly lower than the district and state averages across all grade levels and subject areas. The school also struggles with performance gaps across different student subgroups, ranking particularly low for Hispanic students, English Language Learners, and students from low socioeconomic backgrounds. In contrast, the school's performance for White students and students with disabilities is relatively stronger. Laurel Elementary has also seen a significant increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from 9.2% in 2018-2019 to 39.5% in 2022-2023, which is much higher than the district and state averages.

Laurel Elementary's performance lags behind many of the nearby schools in the San Mateo-Foster City School District and the Belmont-Redwood Shores Elementary School District, such as George Hall Elementary, Central Elementary, and Fox Elementary, which consistently outperform Laurel Elementary across a range of metrics. The high rates of chronic absenteeism and free/reduced-price lunch eligibility at Laurel Elementary may be contributing to the school's lower academic performance, and addressing these issues could be crucial in improving student outcomes.

Detail:

Public K-5

316 36th Ave.
San Mateo, CA 94403-4204

(650) 312-7555

District: San Mateo-Foster City

SchoolDigger Rank:
4821^st of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $8,160

Students who attend Laurel Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Abbott Middle
High:	Hillsdale High

Student/teacher ratio: 21.1

Number of students: 475

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

72.2%

Asian:

9.3%

White:

8.4%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 68%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Laurel Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Laurel Elementary ranks worse than 82.2% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 14^th among 17 ranked elementary schools in the San Mateo-Foster City School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 20.32. (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 (72.2%), Asian (9.3%), White (8.4%). (See more...)

Compare Details 68% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Laurel Elementary is 21.1, which is the 8^th best among 17 elementary schools in the San Mateo-Foster City School District. (See more...)

Compare Laurel Elementary employs 22.5 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Laurel Elementary is $8,160, which is the 6^th highest among 17 elementary schools in the San Mateo-Foster City School District.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Laurel Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Laurel Elementary 4821^st of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Laurel Elementary in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

English Language Learner students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Homeless students:

Female students:

Male students:

Hispanic students:

White students:

San Mateo-Foster City:

SchoolDigger ranks San Mateo-Foster City 452^nd of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Laurel Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Laurel Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	83.25	784^th	4809	83.7%
2005	82.90	821^st	4822	83.0%
2006	69.38	1364^th	4818	71.7%
2007	72.75	1254^th	5113	75.5%
2008	69.06	1450^th	5113	71.6%
2009	72.63	1317^th	5193	74.6%
2010	69.51	1481^st	5314	72.1%
2011	66.44	1671^st	5377	68.9%
2012	63.84	1844^th	5390	65.8%
2013	59.03	2177^th	5530	60.6%
2015	70.41	1477^th	5611	73.7%
2016	66.84	1672^nd	5614	70.2%
2017	49.54	2575^th	5692	54.8%
2018	46.03	2777^th	5662	51.0%
2019	43.25	2992^nd	5789	48.3%
2021	44.86	713^th	1417	49.7%
2022	35.31	3436^th	5883	41.6%
2023	23.81	4478^th	5874	23.8%
2024	20.32	4821^st	5862	17.8%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Laurel Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	38.95	1817^th	3246	44.0%
2019	30.18	2481^st	3275	24.2%
2021	28.80	499^th	602	17.1%
2022	34.62	2237^th	3311	32.4%
2023	25.43	2849^th	3250	12.3%
2024	21.93	2997^th	3160	5.2%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Laurel Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	13.29	4819^th	5084	5.2%
2019	14.49	4865^th	5173	6.0%
2021	20.56	985^th	1110	11.3%
2022	13.57	5046^th	5264	4.1%
2023	8.56	5322^nd	5374	1.0%
2024	10.28	5375^th	5511	2.5%

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

Rank History for Homeless students at Laurel Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	17.17	320^th	336	4.8%
2024	16.91	341^st	364	6.3%

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

Rank History for Female students at Laurel Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	45.82	2735^th	5413	49.5%
2019	49.98	2494^th	5492	54.6%
2021	45.26	621^st	1267	51.0%
2022	38.70	3073^rd	5635	45.5%
2023	27.99	3963^rd	5617	29.4%
2024	23.09	4416^th	5605	21.2%

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

Rank History for Disabled students at Laurel Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2019	90.11	177^th	2585	93.2%

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

Rank History for Male students at Laurel Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	45.83	2685^th	5431	50.6%
2019	36.80	3265^th	5510	40.7%
2021	44.67	640^th	1272	49.7%
2022	32.96	3547^th	5663	37.4%
2023	21.23	4612^th	5650	18.4%
2024	18.94	4815^th	5636	14.6%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Laurel Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	20.83	4192^nd	4830	13.2%
2019	21.47	4276^th	4963	13.8%
2022	18.92	4585^th	5084	9.8%
2023	9.75	5029^th	5098	1.4%
2024	11.12	4961^st	5102	2.8%

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

Rank History for White students at Laurel Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	63.05	1073^rd	2737	60.8%
2019	48.92	1585^th	2834	44.1%
2022	63.58	1029^th	2726	62.3%
2023	33.02	1910^th	2662	28.2%
2024	27.31	2034^th	2647	23.2%

See the entire list of Best California Elementary Schools for White 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 Laurel Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	219	20	40	44	1	n/a	n/a	0	324
1989	235	17	39	52	0	n/a	n/a	0	343
1990	234	21	35	49	0	n/a	n/a	0	339
1991	262	15	53	58	1	n/a	n/a	0	389
1992	267	11	59	77	0	n/a	n/a	0	414
1993	280	8	64	86	0	n/a	n/a	0	438
1994	271	6	65	89	0	n/a	n/a	0	431
1995	264	14	71	84	1	n/a	n/a	0	434
1996	264	14	71	84	1	n/a	n/a	0	434
1997	291	11	70	88	0	n/a	n/a	0	460
1998	301	12	91	98	0	n/a	n/a	0	502
1999	287	9	80	86	0	n/a	n/a	0	462
2000	277	9	84	89	1	n/a	n/a	8	468
2001	255	15	97	105	1	n/a	n/a	0	473
2002	219	17	97	71	0	n/a	n/a	0	404
2003	219	17	97	71	0	n/a	n/a	0	404
2004	203	13	102	75	0	n/a	n/a	15	408
2005	189	10	94	96	0	n/a	n/a	19	408
2006	165	11	66	97	0	n/a	n/a	20	359
2007	173	14	71	89	1	n/a	n/a	25	373
2008	180	10	68	88	1	n/a	n/a	0	347
2009	178	16	60	104	1	4	54	0	417
2010	190	13	58	146	0	8	22	0	437
2011	176	8	72	156	0	8	36	0	456
2012	165	9	71	189	0	11	33	0	478
2013	178	7	77	221	0	12	26	0	521
2014	169	9	67	230	0	14	23	0	512
2015	173	2	63	240	1	15	23	0	517
2016	167	5	52	239	1	11	29	0	504
2017	164	8	56	257	1	7	34	0	527
2018	154	7	61	260	1	8	34	0	525
2019	128	8	61	275	1	9	43	0	525
2020	117	7	58	316	0	9	48	0	555
2021	101	4	55	311	0	11	47	0	529
2022	75	1	52	363	2	13	44	0	550
2023	59	2	52	358	1	13	42	0	527
2024	40	2	44	343	1	10	35	0	475

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 Laurel Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	324	13.6	23.8	n/a
1989	343	14.4	23.8	n/a
1990	339	14.0	24.2	n/a
1991	389	16.5	23.5	n/a
1992	414	16.8	24.6	13.5
1993	438	18.5	23.7	18.3
1994	431	19.6	22.0	21.3
1995	434	19.0	22.8	19.4
1996	434	19.0	22.8	19.4
1997	460	21.0	21.9	18.9
1998	502	24.0	20.9	17.1
1999	462	23.0	20.1	21
2000	468	23.0	20.3	20.9
2001	473	24.0	19.7	16.1
2002	404	20.5	19.7	14.9
2003	404	20.5	19.7	14.9
2004	408	19.3	21.1	18.6
2005	408	20.3	20.1	23.9
2006	359	19.4	18.5	24.8
2007	373	20.5	18.2	26.4
2008	347	21.5	16.1	22.8
2009	417	21.0	17.4	24.9
2010	437	23.0	19.0	27
2011	456	n/a	n/a	28.3
2012	478	21.0	22.7	n/a
2013	521	24.0	21.7	36.3
2014	512	22.0	23.2	36.3
2015	517	23.0	22.4	38.9
2016	504	23.0	21.9	38.9
2017	527	23.0	22.9	43.5
2018	525	22.0	23.8	43.4
2019	525	22.0	23.8	44.2
2020	555	n/a	n/a	46.1
2021	529	23.0	23.0	55.6
2022	550	25.0	21.9	59.1
2023	527	24.0	21.9	54.3
2024	475	22.5	21.1	68

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 Laurel Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	324	13.6	23.8	n/a
1989	343	14.4	23.8	n/a
1990	339	14.0	24.2	n/a
1991	389	16.5	23.5	n/a
1992	414	16.8	24.6	13.5
1993	438	18.5	23.7	18.3
1994	431	19.6	22.0	21.3
1995	434	19.0	22.8	19.4
1996	434	19.0	22.8	19.4
1997	460	21.0	21.9	18.9
1998	502	24.0	20.9	17.1
1999	462	23.0	20.1	21
2000	468	23.0	20.3	20.9
2001	473	24.0	19.7	16.1
2002	404	20.5	19.7	14.9
2003	404	20.5	19.7	14.9
2004	408	19.3	21.1	18.6
2005	408	20.3	20.1	23.9
2006	359	19.4	18.5	24.8
2007	373	20.5	18.2	26.4
2008	347	21.5	16.1	22.8
2009	417	21.0	17.4	24.9
2010	437	23.0	19.0	27
2011	456	n/a	n/a	28.3
2012	478	21.0	22.7	n/a
2013	521	24.0	21.7	36.3
2014	512	22.0	23.2	36.3
2015	517	23.0	22.4	38.9
2016	504	23.0	21.9	38.9
2017	527	23.0	22.9	43.5
2018	525	22.0	23.8	43.4
2019	525	22.0	23.8	44.2
2020	555	n/a	n/a	46.1
2021	529	23.0	23.0	55.6
2022	550	25.0	21.9	59.1
2023	527	24.0	21.9	54.3
2024	475	22.5	21.1	68

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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