Is Jefferson Elementary a good school?

Jefferson Elementary ranks 3099 th of 5862 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Jefferson Elementary?

In the 2023-24 school year, 336 students attended Jefferson Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Jefferson Elementary?

Students at Jefferson Elementary are 89% Hispanic, 7% African American, 2% Asian, 1% Pacific Islander.

What schools do graduates of Jefferson Elementary attend?

Students who attend Jefferson Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Alondra Middle High : Paramount High

Jefferson Elementary

Summary:

Jefferson Elementary is a public elementary school in Paramount, CA, serving 366 students in grades K-5. The school is part of the Paramount Unified School District, which is ranked 961 out of 1,568 districts in California and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Jefferson Elementary faces significant challenges, particularly in the areas of chronic absenteeism and academic performance. The school has seen a sharp increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from 8.4% in 2017-2018 to 49.7% in 2021-2022, before dropping to 28.0% in 2022-2023 - notably higher than the district and state averages. Academically, the school's proficiency rates in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science are consistently lower than the Paramount Unified and California state averages. However, the school performs relatively well for Hispanic students and English Language Learners, suggesting that effective strategies may be in place to support these populations.

When compared to other nearby schools in the Paramount Unified district, such as Howard Tanner and Abraham Lincoln, Jefferson Elementary generally performs at a similar or slightly lower level in terms of test scores and other metrics. The school's high rates of poverty and economic disadvantage, with 86.59% to 92.35% of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, may be contributing to its challenges. Targeted interventions and support, particularly for Special Education and Disabled students, could help address these issues and drive overall school improvement.

Detail:

Public K-5

8600 Jefferson St.
Paramount, CA 90723-4378

(562) 602-8024

District: Paramount Unified

SchoolDigger Rank:
3099^th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $4,427

Students who attend Jefferson Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Alondra Middle
High:	Paramount High

Student/teacher ratio: 18.6

Number of students: 336

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

88.7%

African American:

6.5%

Asian:

2.1%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 92.6%

See top rated California elementary schools

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Performance Trends

Compare Details Jefferson Elementary ranks worse than 52.9% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 4^th among 11 ranked elementary schools in the Paramount Unified School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 41.31. (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 Jefferson Elementary has the smallest elementary school student body size in the Paramount Unified School District. Racial makeup is: Hispanic (88.7%), African American (6.5%), Asian (2.1%). (See more...)

Compare Details 92.6% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Jefferson Elementary is 18.6, which is the lowest among 11 elementary schools in the Paramount Unified School District! (See more...)

Compare Jefferson Elementary employs 18 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Jefferson Elementary is $4,427, which is the 5^th highest among 11 elementary schools in the Paramount Unified School District.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Jefferson Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Jefferson Elementary 3099^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Jefferson Elementary in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Special Education students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Male students:

Hispanic students:

Paramount Unified:

SchoolDigger ranks Paramount Unified 961^st of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Jefferson Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Jefferson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	25.09	3561^st	4809	26.0%
2005	28.43	3378^th	4822	29.9%
2006	27.57	3482^nd	4818	27.7%
2007	39.76	2918^th	5113	42.9%
2008	37.57	3094^th	5113	39.5%
2009	45.98	2709^th	5193	47.8%
2010	39.85	3179^th	5314	40.2%
2011	48.53	2688^th	5377	50.0%
2012	43.39	3045^th	5390	43.5%
2013	51.28	2605^th	5530	52.9%
2015	30.83	3635^th	5611	35.2%
2016	43.52	2870^th	5614	48.9%
2017	52.29	2417^th	5692	57.5%
2018	57.22	2176^th	5662	61.6%
2019	44.62	2896^th	5789	50.0%
2021	17.02	1237^th	1417	12.7%
2022	28.16	4029^th	5883	31.5%
2023	36.13	3421^st	5874	41.8%
2024	41.31	3099^th	5862	47.1%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Jefferson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	77.80	392^nd	3246	87.9%
2019	75.79	394^th	3275	88.0%
2021	27.63	520^th	602	13.6%
2022	55.32	955^th	3311	71.2%
2023	66.47	595^th	3250	81.7%

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

Rank History for Special Education students at Jefferson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	20.70	2160^th	2420	10.7%
2024	19.73	2410^th	2634	8.5%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Jefferson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	73.89	990^th	5084	80.5%
2019	62.49	1601^st	5173	69.1%
2021	27.07	869^th	1110	21.7%
2022	41.91	2841^st	5264	46.0%
2023	49.35	2412^th	5374	55.1%
2024	50.26	2376^th	5511	56.9%

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

Rank History for Female students at Jefferson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	54.49	2262^nd	5413	58.2%
2019	50.71	2450^th	5492	55.4%
2021	22.86	973^rd	1267	23.2%
2022	30.48	3688^th	5635	34.6%
2023	37.06	3217^th	5617	42.7%
2024	47.69	2540^th	5605	54.7%

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

Rank History for Disabled students at Jefferson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	33.47	1286^th	2128	39.6%
2019	30.04	1797^th	2585	30.5%
2021	23.20	238^th	293	18.8%

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

Rank History for Male students at Jefferson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	58.40	2006^th	5431	63.1%
2019	40.97	2978^th	5510	46.0%
2021	13.74	1180^th	1272	7.2%
2022	27.19	4034^th	5663	28.8%
2023	35.80	3355^th	5650	40.6%
2024	35.52	3370^th	5636	40.2%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Jefferson Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	74.78	911^th	4830	81.1%
2019	61.84	1588^th	4963	68.0%
2022	39.21	2959^th	5084	41.8%
2023	54.65	1967^th	5098	61.4%
2024	56.09	1886^th	5102	63.0%

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 Jefferson Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
2001	29	40	24	643	3	n/a	n/a	0	739
2002	28	33	21	675	2	n/a	n/a	0	759
2003	28	33	21	675	2	n/a	n/a	0	759
2004	23	38	19	659	1	n/a	n/a	0	740
2005	22	48	16	620	2	n/a	n/a	0	708
2006	11	35	11	540	1	n/a	n/a	0	598
2007	14	44	17	500	1	n/a	n/a	1	577
2008	17	38	10	502	1	n/a	n/a	0	568
2009	10	42	7	502	3	2	0	0	566
2010	9	35	7	417	0	4	6	0	478
2011	5	36	10	407	0	2	5	0	465
2012	8	40	7	441	0	0	4	0	500
2013	7	41	3	420	0	2	3	0	476
2014	6	35	7	421	0	3	4	0	476
2015	5	30	7	419	0	1	4	0	466
2016	5	35	13	396	0	1	4	0	454
2017	3	31	10	372	0	0	7	0	423
2018	2	25	7	356	1	0	5	0	396
2019	1	33	8	326	3	0	4	0	375
2020	3	24	6	294	2	0	4	0	333
2021	4	25	5	301	2	2	4	0	343
2022	3	17	3	280	1	1	6	0	311
2023	3	23	5	321	2	8	4	0	366
2024	2	22	7	298	1	5	1	0	336

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 Jefferson Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2001	739	33.0	22.4	70.6
2002	759	33.0	23.0	84.8
2003	759	33.0	23.0	84.8
2004	740	32.0	23.1	82.3
2005	708	31.0	22.8	0
2006	598	27.0	22.1	86
2007	577	26.0	22.2	76
2008	568	28.0	20.3	85.6
2009	566	24.0	21.0	85.3
2010	478	24.0	19.9	89.3
2011	465	n/a	n/a	91.6
2012	500	17.0	29.4	n/a
2013	476	16.5	28.8	22.7
2014	476	18.0	26.4	89.3
2015	466	18.0	25.8	94.6
2016	454	21.0	21.6	93
2017	423	19.0	22.2	92.9
2018	396	18.0	22.0	90.7
2019	375	18.0	20.8	96.8
2020	333	n/a	n/a	94
2021	343	17.0	20.1	86.6
2022	311	18.0	17.2	90
2023	366	20.0	18.3	92.3
2024	336	18.0	18.6	92.6

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 Jefferson Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2001	739	33.0	22.4	70.6
2002	759	33.0	23.0	84.8
2003	759	33.0	23.0	84.8
2004	740	32.0	23.1	82.3
2005	708	31.0	22.8	0
2006	598	27.0	22.1	86
2007	577	26.0	22.2	76
2008	568	28.0	20.3	85.6
2009	566	24.0	21.0	85.3
2010	478	24.0	19.9	89.3
2011	465	n/a	n/a	91.6
2012	500	17.0	29.4	n/a
2013	476	16.5	28.8	22.7
2014	476	18.0	26.4	89.3
2015	466	18.0	25.8	94.6
2016	454	21.0	21.6	93
2017	423	19.0	22.2	92.9
2018	396	18.0	22.0	90.7
2019	375	18.0	20.8	96.8
2020	333	n/a	n/a	94
2021	343	17.0	20.1	86.6
2022	311	18.0	17.2	90
2023	366	20.0	18.3	92.3
2024	336	18.0	18.6	92.6

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