Is Columbia Elementary a good school?

Columbia Elementary ranks in the bottom 17.9% of California elementary schools.

How many students attend Columbia Elementary?

In the 2023-24 school year, 670 students attended Columbia Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Columbia Elementary?

Students at Columbia Elementary are 95% Hispanic, 3% White, 1% African American, 1% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Columbia Elementary attend?

Students who attend Columbia Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Tomas Rivera Middle High : Citrus Hill High

Columbia Elementary

Summary:

Columbia Elementary is a public elementary school located in Perris, California, serving 659 students in grades K-5. It is part of the Val Verde Unified School District, which is ranked 1002 out of 1568 districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Columbia Elementary faces several challenges, including high chronic absenteeism rates, low academic performance, and a high percentage of students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds. The school's chronic absenteeism rate has risen significantly from 7.9% in 2017-2018 to 44.4% in 2021-2022, which is notably higher than nearby schools like Triple Crown Elementary (23.9%) and Val Verde Elementary (44.9%). Academically, Columbia Elementary's proficiency rates in English Language Arts/Literacy (30.55%) and Mathematics (14.77%) are significantly lower than the district and state averages.

Additionally, Columbia Elementary has a very high percentage of students (97.27%) qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, which is much higher than the nearby schools. The school also has a relatively high student-teacher ratio of 26:1, compared to nearby schools like Triple Crown Elementary (27.3:1) and Val Verde Elementary (19.2:1). These challenges appear to be widening the performance gap between Columbia Elementary and its surrounding counterparts, as well as the state averages, over time.

Detail:

Public K-5

21350 Rider St.
Perris, CA 92570-8879

(951) 443-2460

District: Val Verde Unified

SchoolDigger Rank:
4812^th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $6,034

Students who attend Columbia Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Tomas Rivera Middle
High:	Citrus Hill High

Student/teacher ratio: 25.3

Number of students: 670

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

94.8%

White:

2.7%

African American:

1.2%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 93.3%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Columbia Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Columbia Elementary ranks worse than 82.1% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks last among 12 ranked elementary schools in the Val Verde Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 20.41. (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 (94.8%), White (2.7%), African American (1.2%). (See more...)

Compare Details 93.3% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. This is the highest percentage in the Val Verde Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Columbia Elementary is 25.3. 9 elementary schools in the Val Verde Unified School District have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)

Compare Columbia Elementary employs 26.4 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Columbia Elementary is $6,034, which is the 4^th highest among 12 elementary schools in the Val Verde Unified School District.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Columbia Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Columbia Elementary 4812^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Columbia 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:

Val Verde Unified:

SchoolDigger ranks Val Verde Unified 1002^nd of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Columbia Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2007	31.22	3484^th	5113	31.9%
2008	49.24	2413^th	5113	52.8%
2009	43.71	2832^nd	5193	45.5%
2010	39.36	3210^th	5314	39.6%
2011	48.07	2721^st	5377	49.4%
2012	48.36	2718^th	5390	49.6%
2013	50.30	2675^th	5530	51.6%
2015	25.27	4107^th	5611	26.8%
2016	24.62	4209^th	5614	25.0%
2017	23.46	4385^th	5692	23.0%
2018	23.98	4327^th	5662	23.6%
2019	22.26	4611^th	5789	20.3%
2022	15.20	5349^th	5883	9.1%
2023	15.43	5286^th	5874	10.0%
2024	20.41	4812^th	5862	17.9%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	28.10	2518^th	3246	22.4%
2019	25.13	2863^rd	3275	12.6%
2022	30.01	2606^th	3311	21.3%
2023	27.98	2675^th	3250	17.7%
2024	44.73	1490^th	3160	52.8%

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

Rank History for Special Education students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	28.67	1713^th	2420	29.2%
2024	27.07	1997^th	2634	24.2%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	31.72	3642^nd	5084	28.4%
2019	31.44	3757^th	5173	27.4%
2022	20.80	4591^st	5264	12.8%
2023	21.30	4607^th	5374	14.3%
2024	27.45	4190^th	5511	24.0%

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

Rank History for Female students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	27.61	3952^nd	5413	27.0%
2019	22.79	4404^th	5492	19.8%
2022	17.75	4916^th	5635	12.8%
2023	15.00	5143^rd	5617	8.4%
2024	24.30	4311^th	5605	23.1%

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

Rank History for Disabled students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	25.55	1671^st	2128	21.5%
2019	22.84	2187^th	2585	15.4%
2022	17.20	2197^th	2227	1.3%

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

Rank History for Male students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	21.79	4411^th	5431	18.8%
2019	22.97	4386^th	5510	20.4%
2022	14.42	5261^st	5663	7.1%
2023	17.25	4975^th	5650	11.9%
2024	18.39	4864^th	5636	13.7%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Columbia Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	31.95	3417^th	4830	29.3%
2019	29.97	3695^th	4963	25.5%
2022	20.19	4486^th	5084	11.8%
2023	20.51	4459^th	5098	12.5%
2024	27.66	3902^nd	5102	23.5%

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 Columbia Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
2005	44	90	6	579	0	n/a	n/a	3	722
2006	38	73	3	531	1	n/a	n/a	7	653
2007	38	63	3	606	2	n/a	n/a	8	720
2008	36	38	2	589	1	n/a	n/a	0	666
2009	25	33	2	612	1	4	14	0	691
2010	15	24	1	639	0	2	13	0	694
2011	22	28	5	623	1	3	18	0	700
2012	15	30	7	621	1	2	10	0	686
2013	23	31	3	656	0	1	13	0	727
2014	29	26	8	653	0	1	9	0	726
2015	25	28	10	644	0	0	7	0	714
2016	28	32	6	651	1	0	6	0	724
2017	31	31	4	646	1	0	5	0	718
2018	22	31	5	654	1	0	6	0	719
2019	22	26	6	641	2	0	4	0	701
2020	19	25	5	695	2	0	5	0	751
2021	14	14	4	600	2	0	7	0	641
2022	13	11	1	615	3	0	4	0	647
2023	16	8	1	626	2	0	6	0	659
2024	18	8	1	635	1	0	7	0	670

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 Columbia Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2005	722	28.0	25.8	89.7
2006	653	27.0	24.2	89.8
2007	720	29.0	24.8	86.9
2008	666	32.0	20.8	80.9
2009	691	28.0	23.8	83.2
2010	694	28.0	24.7	96.7
2011	700	n/a	n/a	94
2012	686	26.0	26.3	n/a
2013	727	27.0	26.9	94.1
2014	726	27.0	26.8	90.5
2015	714	27.0	26.4	91.2
2016	724	26.0	27.8	92
2017	718	27.0	26.5	94.4
2018	719	27.0	26.6	91.9
2019	701	27.0	25.9	96.6
2020	751	n/a	n/a	96.7
2021	641	26.3	24.3	96.6
2022	647	25.0	25.8	92.6
2023	659	25.3	26.0	97.3
2024	670	26.4	25.3	93.3

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 Columbia Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2005	722	28.0	25.8	89.7
2006	653	27.0	24.2	89.8
2007	720	29.0	24.8	86.9
2008	666	32.0	20.8	80.9
2009	691	28.0	23.8	83.2
2010	694	28.0	24.7	96.7
2011	700	n/a	n/a	94
2012	686	26.0	26.3	n/a
2013	727	27.0	26.9	94.1
2014	726	27.0	26.8	90.5
2015	714	27.0	26.4	91.2
2016	724	26.0	27.8	92
2017	718	27.0	26.5	94.4
2018	719	27.0	26.6	91.9
2019	701	27.0	25.9	96.6
2020	751	n/a	n/a	96.7
2021	641	26.3	24.3	96.6
2022	647	25.0	25.8	92.6
2023	659	25.3	26.0	97.3
2024	670	26.4	25.3	93.3

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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