Is Gardena Elementary a good school?

Gardena Elementary ranks 3998 th of 5862 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Gardena Elementary?

In the 2023-24 school year, 463 students attended Gardena Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Gardena Elementary?

Students at Gardena Elementary are 88% Hispanic, 9% African American, 2% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Gardena Elementary attend?

Students who attend Gardena Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Robert E. Peary Middle High : Gardena Senior High

Gardena Elementary

Summary:

Gardena Elementary is a public elementary school located in Gardena, California, serving 469 students in grades K-5. The school is part of the Los Angeles Unified School District, which is ranked 871 out of 1,568 districts in the state.

Gardena Elementary faces significant challenges in academic performance, with consistently lower test scores compared to the district and state averages across all grade levels. In the 2023-2024 school year, only 31.47% of Gardena Elementary students were proficient or better in English Language Arts/Literacy, compared to 43.06% for the district and 47.04% for the state. In Mathematics, only 28.57% of Gardena Elementary students were proficient or better, compared to 32.83% for the district and 35.54% for the state. The school also struggles in Science, with only 15.58% of students proficient or better, compared to 23.96% for the district and 30.7% for the state. Additionally, Gardena Elementary has experienced a significant increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from 9.9% in 2017-2018 to 33.0% in 2022-2023, notably higher than the district's rate of 21.9%.

Nearby schools, such as Chapman Elementary, One Hundred Fifty-Sixth Street Elementary, and Denker Avenue Elementary, consistently outperform Gardena Elementary in test scores and have lower chronic absenteeism rates. Gardena Elementary also faces challenges with its high percentage of students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, with 94.24% qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, significantly higher than the district's average of 70.81%. Addressing these issues will require a comprehensive approach to improve educational outcomes for the students of Gardena Elementary.

Detail:

Public K-5

647 West Gardena Blvd.
Gardena, CA 90247-5021

(310) 324-6967

District: Los Angeles Unified

SchoolDigger Rank:
3998^th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $9,668

Students who attend Gardena Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Robert E. Peary Middle
High:	Gardena Senior High

Student/teacher ratio: 19.2

Number of students: 463

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

87.7%

African American:

8.6%

Two or more races:

2.4%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 95.5%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Gardena Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Gardena Elementary ranks worse than 68.2% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 344^th among 486 ranked elementary schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 29.13. (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: Hispanic (87.7%), African American (8.6%), two or more races (2.4%). (See more...)

Compare Details 95.5% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Gardena Elementary is 19.2, which is the 181^st best among 486 elementary schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Gardena Elementary employs 24 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Gardena Elementary is $9,668. 429 elementary schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District spend more per student.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Gardena Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Gardena Elementary 3998^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Gardena 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:

Los Angeles Unified:

SchoolDigger ranks Los Angeles Unified 871^st of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

What do you think?

Your rating for Gardena Elementary?

(Ranking FAQ)

Rank History for Gardena Elementary

Compare

Rank History for all students at Gardena Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	34.39	2977^th	4809	38.1%
2005	32.40	3135^th	4822	35.0%
2006	35.54	2964^th	4818	38.5%
2007	37.23	3092^nd	5113	39.5%
2008	28.22	3729^th	5113	27.1%
2009	22.04	4279^th	5193	17.6%
2010	12.23	5047^th	5314	5.0%
2011	37.69	3411^th	5377	36.6%
2012	47.49	2772^nd	5390	48.6%
2013	44.43	3047^th	5530	44.9%
2015	36.68	3220^th	5611	42.6%
2016	31.86	3619^th	5614	35.5%
2017	31.07	3751^st	5692	34.1%
2018	26.65	4113^th	5662	27.4%
2019	28.66	4047^th	5789	30.1%
2022	29.63	3899^th	5883	33.7%
2023	25.30	4336^th	5874	26.2%
2024	29.13	3998^th	5862	31.8%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Gardena Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	15.34	3222^nd	3246	0.7%
2019	29.60	2526^th	3275	22.9%
2022	25.58	2902^nd	3311	12.4%
2023	17.27	3222^nd	3250	0.9%
2024	52.23	1064^th	3160	66.3%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Gardena Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	37.98	3167^th	5084	37.7%
2019	43.63	2849^th	5173	44.9%
2022	43.32	2738^th	5264	48.0%
2023	35.52	3425^th	5374	36.3%
2024	36.66	3390^th	5511	38.5%

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

Rank History for Female students at Gardena Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	30.97	3691^st	5413	31.8%
2019	28.27	3960^th	5492	27.9%
2022	37.12	3191^st	5635	43.4%
2023	28.11	3956^th	5617	29.6%
2024	33.61	3516^th	5605	37.3%

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

Rank History for Male students at Gardena Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	25.24	4086^th	5431	24.8%
2019	31.99	3622^nd	5510	34.3%
2022	23.35	4393^rd	5663	22.4%
2023	23.68	4387^th	5650	22.4%
2024	26.06	4175^th	5636	25.9%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Gardena Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	36.85	3088^th	4830	36.1%
2019	43.20	2741^st	4963	44.8%
2022	43.87	2601^st	5084	48.8%
2023	33.69	3420^th	5098	32.9%
2024	43.46	2713^th	5102	46.8%

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

We're sorry, but no reviews have been submitted for Gardena Elementary.

If you have first-hand knowledge about Gardena Elementary, submit a rating!

Reviews:
No reviews have been submitted!

Enrollment information for Gardena Elementary

Compare

Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	51	113	63	465	0	n/a	n/a	0	692
1989	39	126	56	487	0	n/a	n/a	0	708
1990	35	108	52	508	0	n/a	n/a	0	703
1991	22	136	66	558	0	n/a	n/a	0	782
1992	14	112	50	542	1	n/a	n/a	0	719
1993	15	123	45	557	0	n/a	n/a	0	740
1994	16	112	45	571	0	n/a	n/a	0	744
1995	11	109	37	621	1	n/a	n/a	0	779
1996	11	109	37	621	1	n/a	n/a	0	779
1997	12	96	29	634	0	n/a	n/a	0	771
1998	20	110	30	643	0	n/a	n/a	0	803
1999	16	115	44	648	0	n/a	n/a	0	823
2000	26	94	42	703	1	n/a	n/a	0	866
2001	15	94	38	715	0	n/a	n/a	0	862
2002	8	88	30	735	1	n/a	n/a	0	862
2003	8	88	30	735	1	n/a	n/a	0	862
2004	6	88	47	719	0	n/a	n/a	0	860
2005	5	73	43	691	4	n/a	n/a	0	816
2006	4	69	42	703	2	n/a	n/a	0	820
2007	4	59	35	702	5	n/a	n/a	2	807
2008	3	53	29	714	4	n/a	n/a	0	803
2009	8	53	23	632	1	7	7	0	731
2010	5	40	21	603	1	6	4	0	680
2011	3	41	21	563	2	5	2	0	637
2012	4	51	16	540	0	5	1	0	617
2013	3	37	15	528	0	8	0	0	591
2014	2	21	12	497	0	7	0	0	539
2015	7	24	9	509	0	6	4	0	559
2016	11	24	12	509	0	5	13	0	574
2017	19	23	9	520	0	4	18	0	593
2018	9	32	12	499	0	1	21	0	574
2019	10	36	9	473	0	2	15	0	545
2020	9	38	11	457	0	0	19	0	534
2021	5	35	7	447	0	0	19	0	513
2022	4	33	5	395	0	0	12	0	449
2023	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	469	469
2024	2	40	4	406	0	0	11	0	463

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 Gardena Elementary

Compare

Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	692	27.0	25.6	n/a
1989	708	27.0	26.2	n/a
1990	703	27.0	26.0	n/a
1991	782	28.0	27.9	n/a
1992	719	28.5	25.2	95
1993	740	28.0	26.4	92.7
1994	744	27.0	27.6	92.1
1995	779	30.0	26.0	95
1996	779	30.0	26.0	95
1997	771	30.0	25.7	94.9
1998	803	36.0	22.3	94.8
1999	823	42.3	19.5	92.6
2000	866	41.8	20.7	86.8
2001	862	45.0	19.2	98.4
2002	862	45.5	18.9	91.2
2003	862	45.5	18.9	91.2
2004	860	45.0	19.1	91.7
2005	816	42.0	19.4	94.2
2006	820	39.0	21.0	89.5
2007	807	41.0	19.7	91.9
2008	803	45.0	17.8	90.9
2009	731	39.0	17.4	92.9
2010	680	31.0	21.9	89
2011	637	n/a	n/a	44.9
2012	617	23.5	26.2	n/a
2013	591	26.0	22.7	47.7
2014	539	22.0	24.5	86.8
2015	559	21.0	26.6	82.6
2016	574	22.0	26.0	91.8
2017	593	24.0	24.7	86.2
2018	574	24.0	23.9	92.5
2019	545	23.5	23.1	89.4
2020	534	n/a	n/a	89.7
2021	513	23.0	22.2	92
2022	449	20.0	22.4	92.2
2023	469	20.5	22.8	94.2
2024	463	24.0	19.2	95.5

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 Gardena Elementary

Compare

Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	692	27.0	25.6	n/a
1989	708	27.0	26.2	n/a
1990	703	27.0	26.0	n/a
1991	782	28.0	27.9	n/a
1992	719	28.5	25.2	95
1993	740	28.0	26.4	92.7
1994	744	27.0	27.6	92.1
1995	779	30.0	26.0	95
1996	779	30.0	26.0	95
1997	771	30.0	25.7	94.9
1998	803	36.0	22.3	94.8
1999	823	42.3	19.5	92.6
2000	866	41.8	20.7	86.8
2001	862	45.0	19.2	98.4
2002	862	45.5	18.9	91.2
2003	862	45.5	18.9	91.2
2004	860	45.0	19.1	91.7
2005	816	42.0	19.4	94.2
2006	820	39.0	21.0	89.5
2007	807	41.0	19.7	91.9
2008	803	45.0	17.8	90.9
2009	731	39.0	17.4	92.9
2010	680	31.0	21.9	89
2011	637	n/a	n/a	44.9
2012	617	23.5	26.2	n/a
2013	591	26.0	22.7	47.7
2014	539	22.0	24.5	86.8
2015	559	21.0	26.6	82.6
2016	574	22.0	26.0	91.8
2017	593	24.0	24.7	86.2
2018	574	24.0	23.9	92.5
2019	545	23.5	23.1	89.4
2020	534	n/a	n/a	89.7
2021	513	23.0	22.2	92
2022	449	20.0	22.4	92.2
2023	469	20.5	22.8	94.2
2024	463	24.0	19.2	95.5

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