Walden Academy

Summary:

Walden Academy is a public charter elementary school serving grades K-8 in Willows, CA, with 192 students. The school is part of the Walden Academy District, which is ranked 1348 out of 1568 districts in California and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Walden Academy's performance has been a concern, with its statewide ranking declining from 2770 out of 5883 California elementary schools in 2021-2022 to 4798 out of 5862 in 2023-2024, earning a 1-star rating. The school's test scores are significantly below the state averages across all grade levels and subjects, with only 24.49% of students proficient or better in English Language Arts/Literacy and 16.33% in Mathematics, compared to state averages of 47.04% and 35.54%, respectively. Additionally, Walden Academy has a high chronic absenteeism rate of 20.9% in 2022-2023, which is much higher than nearby schools like Capay Joint Union Elementary (12.0%), Lake Elementary (6.3%), and Plaza Elementary (5.4%).

While Walden Academy shares some similarities with nearby schools in terms of demographics and resources, it consistently underperforms compared to many of them, especially in test scores and chronic absenteeism. The high percentage of students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds, ranging from 47.24% to 57.37% over the past three years, may be a contributing factor to the school's poor academic performance. Addressing these challenges will likely require a multifaceted approach that considers the unique circumstances and needs of Walden Academy and its community.

Detail:

Public, Charter K-8

1149 West Wood St.
Willows, CA 95988-2614

(530) 361-6480

District: Walden Academy District

SchoolDigger Rank:
4798^th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Student/teacher ratio: 16.9

Number of students: 186

Racial breakdown:

White:

40.3%

Hispanic:

38.7%

Two or more races:

17.7%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 57.5%

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Performance Trends

Compare Details Walden Academy ranks worse than 81.8% of elementary schools in California. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 20.55. (See more...)

Compare Details Walden Academy ranks worse than 74.8% of middle schools in California. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 24.02. (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

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Teachers

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Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Walden Academy:

SchoolDigger ranks Walden Academy 4798^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Walden Academy in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Male students:

White students:

SchoolDigger ranks Walden Academy 2078^th of 2777 California public middle schools. (See Walden Academy in the ranking list.)

Walden Academy District:

SchoolDigger ranks Walden Academy District 1348^th of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Walden Academy

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Rank History for all elementary school students at Walden Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2019	11.80	5464^th	5789	5.6%
2021	37.50	823^rd	1417	41.9%
2022	45.50	2770^th	5883	52.9%
2023	32.41	3699^th	5874	37.0%
2024	20.55	4798^th	5862	18.2%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for elementary school Low Socio Economic Status students at Walden Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2019	15.89	4786^th	5173	7.5%
2021	39.83	651^st	1110	41.4%
2024	18.69	4888^th	5511	11.3%

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

Rank History for elementary school Female students at Walden Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2019	13.63	5113^th	5492	6.9%
2021	29.38	860^th	1267	32.1%

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

Rank History for elementary school Male students at Walden Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2019	15.40	5027^th	5510	8.8%
2021	34.31	768^th	1272	39.6%
2022	47.28	2594^th	5663	54.2%
2023	28.08	3956^th	5650	30.0%
2024	7.64	5579^th	5636	1.0%

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

Rank History for elementary school White students at Walden Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2019	2.23	2809^th	2834	0.9%
2022	24.64	2156^th	2726	20.9%
2023	11.28	2443^rd	2662	8.2%
2024	14.58	2337^th	2647	11.7%

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

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

Rank History for Walden Academy

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Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	CA State Percentile
2021	55.94	352^nd	894	60.6%
2022	37.85	1532^nd	2740	44.1%
2023	38.94	1498^th	2802	46.5%
2024	24.02	2078^th	2777	25.2%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

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

Data source: California Department of Education

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Enrollment information for Walden Academy

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Two or More Races	Total
2019	97	1	2	65	5	13	183
2020	96	1	5	69	5	25	201
2021	99	2	4	70	6	9	190
2022	77	2	2	59	3	20	163
2023	86	2	1	70	4	29	192
2024	75	1	3	72	2	33	186

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 Walden Academy

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2019	183	10.0	18.3	54.6
2020	201	n/a	n/a	41.3
2021	190	10.0	19.0	57.4
2022	163	10.3	15.7	47.2
2023	192	11.0	17.4	55.7
2024	186	11.0	16.9	57.5

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 Walden Academy

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2019	183	10.0	18.3	54.6
2020	201	n/a	n/a	41.3
2021	190	10.0	19.0	57.4
2022	163	10.3	15.7	47.2
2023	192	11.0	17.4	55.7
2024	186	11.0	16.9	57.5

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.

Kindergarten Immunization Rates

Walden Academy

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Year	Completely Immunized	Medical Exemption	Conditional	Polio	Hepatitis B	Varicella	DTP	MMR
2021	71.0%	0.0%	0.0%	77.4%	87.1%	87.1%	77.4%	83.9%

Data source: California Department of Public Health

Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Walden Academy

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 5464^th of 5789 Elementary schools	Ranks 3699^th of 5874 Elementary schools	31.4%

Test Scores

	% proficient Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)	% proficient Post pandemic (2022-2023)	Change (%)
3rd Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (Walden Academy)	20.8	25	4.2%
3rd Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (California)	48.5	43	5.6%
3rd Grade Mathematics (Walden Academy)	25	18.8	6.3%
3rd Grade Mathematics (California)	50.2	45.1	5.1%
4th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (Walden Academy)	21.7	26.3	4.6%
4th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (California)	49.5	43.7	5.7%
4th Grade Mathematics (Walden Academy)	21.7	10	11.7%
4th Grade Mathematics (California)	44.9	40.8	4.1%
5th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (Walden Academy)	26.1	40.9	14.8%
5th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (California)	51.7	46.7	5%
5th Grade Mathematics (Walden Academy)	13	27.3	14.2%
5th Grade Mathematics (California)	38	33.4	4.6%
5th Grade Science (Walden Academy)	8.7	27.3	18.6%
5th Grade Science (California)	31.7	31.9	0.1%
7th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (Walden Academy)	9.1	36.4	27.3%
7th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (California)	51.4	47.4	3.9%
7th Grade Mathematics (Walden Academy)	18.2	8.3	9.9%
7th Grade Mathematics (California)	37.9	33.2	4.7%

Student Body

	Number of students Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)	Number of students Post pandemic (2022-2023)	Change (%)
Total Students	183	192	4.9%
African American	1	2	100%
American Indian	5	4	20%
Asian	2	1	50%
Hispanic	65	70	7.7%
Pacific Islander	0	0
White	97	86	11.3%
Two or More Races	13	29	123.1%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	54.6%	55.7%	1.1%

Schools Near Walden Academy

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Immunizations Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2024)				Ranking (2023)				CSA Spanish Reading/Language Arts (2024)					CAST Science (2024)			Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2024)							Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2024)							% Completely Immunized (2022)	% Hepatitis B (2022)	% Varicella (2022)	% DTP (2022)	% MMR (2022)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2018)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	SchoolDigger Rating (2024)	Average Standard Score (2023)	Statewide Rank (2023)	State Percentile (2023)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CSA Spanish Reading/Language Arts 3rd Grade	CSA Spanish Reading/Language Arts 4th Grade	CSA Spanish Reading/Language Arts 5th Grade	CSA Spanish Reading/Language Arts 6th Grade	CSA Spanish Reading/Language Arts End of Course	CAST Science 5th Grade	CAST Science 8th Grade	CAST Science End of Course	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 3rd Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy End of Course	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 3rd Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics End of Course	% Completely Immunized KG	% Hepatitis B KG	% Varicella KG	% DTP KG	% MMR KG	Total
Walden Academy	Public, Charter	K-8	1149 West Wood St.	Willows	95988	Glenn County	Walden Academy District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 361-6480	186	11	16.9	57.5%	75 (40.3%)	1 (0.5%)	72 (38.7%)	3 (1.6%)	2 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	33 (17.7%)	20.6	4798^th of 5862 public elementary schools	18.2%		32.4	3699^th of 5874 public elementary schools	37.0%	1099						27.8	9.1	20.7	10.5	23.8	38.9	26.7	35.7	9.1	24.5	15.8	9.5	16.7	20.0	28.6	9.1	16.3
Murdock Elementary	Public	K-5	655 West French St.	Willows	95988	Glenn County	Willows Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 934-6640	592	28	21.0	78.2%	218 (36.8%)	6 (1.0%)	314 (53.0%)	21 (3.5%)	23 (3.9%)	1 (0.2%)	9 (1.5%)	13	5475^th of 5862 public elementary schools	6.6%		15.3	5296^th of 5874 public elementary schools	9.8%	179						20.4		20.4	9.8	11.6	19.6				13.5	9.8	12.4	19.6				13.8						$8,995
Princeton Elementary	Public	K-8	428 Norman Rd.	Princeton	95970	Colusa County	Princeton Joint Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 439-2501	71	6	12.7	76.1%	28 (39.4%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (52.1%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (5.6%)								(n/a)										18.2			36.4		32.7		18.2			9.1		18.4
Plaza Elementary	Public	K-8	7322 County Road 24	Orland	95963	Glenn County	Plaza Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 865-1250	194	9	21.5	45.4%	106 (54.6%)	0 (0.0%)	77 (39.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (5.2%)	76.5	1314^th of 5862 public elementary schools	77.6%		76.1	1321^st of 5874 public elementary schools	77.5%	7						23.8	23.5	23.7	86.4	78.3	33.3	66.7	57.1	70.6	65.6	90.9	73.9	38.1	57.1	61.9	41.2	61.6
Fairview Elementary	Public	3-5	1308 Fairview St.	Orland	95963	Glenn County	Orland Joint Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 865-1235	440	21	20.9	87.5%	104 (23.6%)	0 (0.0%)	313 (71.1%)	8 (1.8%)	7 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.6%)	13	5472^nd of 5862 public elementary schools	6.7%		16.3	5208^th of 5874 public elementary schools	11.3%	264						9.9		9.9	18.4	22.0	22.7				21.0	15.2	17.2	8.4				13.6						$10,805
Mill Street Elementary	Public	K-2	102 Second St.	Orland	95963	Glenn County	Orland Joint Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 865-1240	510	23	22.2	87.5%	125 (24.5%)	3 (0.6%)	352 (69.0%)	9 (1.8%)	10 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (2.2%)								(n/a)																							93.6	98.4	94.7	97.9	98.4	$10,805
Maxwell Elementary	Public	K-5	146 North St.	Maxwell	95955	Colusa County	Maxwell Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 438-2401	139	7	19.8	59.7%	60 (43.2%)	0 (0.0%)	73 (52.5%)	1 (0.7%)	4 (2.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.7%)	37.5	3329^th of 5862 public elementary schools	43.2%		41.6	3029^th of 5874 public elementary schools	48.4%	300						9.5		9.5	50.0	36.8	23.8				35.7	37.5	68.4	10.0				38.2	91.7				91.7	$6,459
Lake Elementary	Public	K-8	4672 County Road North	Orland	95963	Glenn County	Lake Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 865-1255	194	9	21.5	40.7%	123 (63.4%)	1 (0.5%)	65 (33.5%)	2 (1.0%)	2 (1.0%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	69.9	1599^th of 5862 public elementary schools	72.7%		58	2143^rd of 5874 public elementary schools	63.5%	544						50.0	5.0	27.5	59.1	50.0	70.0	70.0	89.5	55.0	64.8	86.4	29.2	42.1	25.0	47.4	30.0	43.6
Hamilton Elementary	Public	K-8	277 Capay Ave.	Hamilton City	95951	Glenn County	Hamilton Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 826-3474	405	21	19.5	93.6%	8 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	379 (93.6%)	8 (2.0%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.0%)	20.6	4791^st of 5862 public elementary schools	18.3%		17	5150^th of 5874 public elementary schools	12.3%	359	0.0	0.0	0.0	8.3	1.9	26.1	9.1	16.8	14.0	11.4	30.4	27.9	22.0	11.3	19.1	28.9	13.3	15.2	23.3	4.8	7.3	15.6						$9,797
Elk Creek Elementary	Public	K-4	3430 County Road 309	Elk Creek	95939	Glenn County	Stony Creek Joint Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 968-5288	23	3	7.6	65.2%	6 (26.1%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (13.0%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (60.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)																												$19,070

Frequently Asked Questions about Walden Academy

Is Walden Academy a good school?

Walden Academy ranks in the bottom 18.2% of California elementary schools.

What is the racial makeup of Walden Academy?

Students at Walden Academy are 40% White, 39% Hispanic, 18% Two or more races, 2% Asian, 1% American Indian.

What district is Walden Academy in?

Walden Academy District

How many students attend Walden Academy?

In the 2023-24 school year, 186 students attended Walden Academy.

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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.