Is University Park Elementary a good school?

University Park Elementary ranks 4273 rd of 5862 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

How many students attend University Park Elementary?

In the 2023-24 school year, 482 students attended University Park Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of University Park Elementary?

Students at University Park Elementary are 87% Hispanic, 4% White, 3% African American, 3% Two or more races, 2% Asian.

What schools do graduates of University Park Elementary attend?

Students who attend University Park Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Washington Middle High : Salinas High

University Park Elementary

Summary:

University Park Elementary is a public elementary school in Salinas, California, serving 495 students in grades K-6 and part of the Salinas City Elementary District.

University Park Elementary faces significant challenges, consistently ranking in the bottom quartile of California elementary schools over the past decade. The school's academic performance is well below state and district averages, with proficiency rates around 30% in English Language Arts and 24% in Mathematics, compared to state averages of 47% and 36%. University Park also struggles with high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 18.1% to 45.1%, and has a high percentage of students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds, with 65.86% qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. The school's student-teacher ratio is relatively high, ranging from 21.5 to 23.4, which may impact the level of individual attention and support students receive.

While nearby schools in the Salinas City Elementary District, such as Lincoln Elementary, Laurel Wood Elementary, and Boronda Meadows, generally perform better on academic measures, they also face similar challenges with high rates of chronic absenteeism and large percentages of students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds. University Park's performance varies across different student subgroups, with English Language Learners and Homeless students performing relatively better than Special Education students and Male students.

Detail:

Public K-6

833 West Acacia St.
Salinas, CA 93901-1101

(831) 753-5655

District: Salinas City Elementary

SchoolDigger Rank:
4273^rd of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $7,019

Students who attend University Park Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Washington Middle
High:	Salinas High

Student/teacher ratio: 20.9

Number of students: 482

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

87.1%

White:

4.4%

African American:

2.7%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 69.7%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare University Park Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details University Park Elementary ranks worse than 72.9% of elementary schools in California. It also ranks 5^th among 14 ranked elementary schools in the Salinas City Elementary School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 26.09. (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 (87.1%), White (4.4%), African American (2.7%). (See more...)

Compare Details 69.7% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at University Park Elementary is 20.9, which is the 2^nd best among 14 elementary schools in the Salinas City Elementary School District. (See more...)

Compare University Park Elementary employs 23 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at University Park Elementary is $7,019, which is the 3^rd highest among 14 elementary schools in the Salinas City Elementary School District.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

University Park Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks University Park Elementary 4273^rd of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See University Park 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:

Homeless students:

Female students:

Male students:

Hispanic students:

Salinas City Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Salinas City Elementary 1305^th of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for University Park Elementary

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Rank History for all students at University Park Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	54.36	1949^th	4809	59.5%
2005	58.23	1826^th	4822	62.1%
2006	43.15	2545^th	4818	47.2%
2007	47.30	2475^th	5113	51.6%
2008	47.61	2511^th	5113	50.9%
2009	40.30	3038^th	5193	41.5%
2010	37.31	3331^st	5314	37.3%
2011	25.71	4284^th	5377	20.3%
2012	22.62	4475^th	5390	17.0%
2013	13.38	5141^st	5530	7.0%
2015	11.47	5383^rd	5611	4.1%
2016	12.27	5289^th	5614	5.8%
2017	17.96	4867^th	5692	14.5%
2018	14.06	5176^th	5662	8.6%
2019	17.44	5036^th	5789	13.0%
2022	26.33	4217^th	5883	28.3%
2023	30.47	3844^th	5874	34.6%
2024	26.09	4273^rd	5862	27.1%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at University Park Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	35.95	2008^th	3246	38.1%
2019	33.66	2231^st	3275	31.9%
2022	33.30	2338^th	3311	29.4%
2023	51.55	1106^th	3250	66.0%
2024	51.68	1095^th	3160	65.3%

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

Rank History for Special Education students at University Park Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2024	23.71	2187^th	2634	17.0%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at University Park Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	16.86	4663^rd	5084	8.3%
2019	21.35	4471^st	5173	13.6%
2022	27.95	3999^th	5264	24.0%
2023	38.30	3201^st	5374	40.4%
2024	30.92	3856^th	5511	30.0%

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

Rank History for Homeless students at University Park Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	46.51	161^st	336	52.1%
2024	50.55	167^th	364	54.1%

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

Rank History for Female students at University Park Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	13.55	5021^st	5413	7.2%
2019	16.09	4936^th	5492	10.1%
2022	32.54	3531^st	5635	37.3%
2023	32.96	3507^th	5617	37.6%
2024	26.28	4122^nd	5605	26.5%

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

Rank History for Disabled students at University Park Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2019	26.02	2006^th	2585	22.4%

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

Rank History for Male students at University Park Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	16.26	4873^rd	5431	10.3%
2019	20.39	4630^th	5510	16.0%
2022	23.32	4394^th	5663	22.4%
2023	29.20	3847^th	5650	31.9%
2024	28.84	3926^th	5636	30.3%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at University Park Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	16.86	4425^th	4830	8.4%
2019	20.40	4343^rd	4963	12.5%
2022	33.45	3418^th	5084	32.8%
2023	36.54	3183^rd	5098	37.6%
2024	31.47	3619^th	5102	29.1%

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 University Park Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	359	20	53	104	1	n/a	n/a	0	537
1989	403	30	82	162	0	n/a	n/a	0	677
1990	437	37	73	185	1	n/a	n/a	0	733
1991	302	16	39	100	2	n/a	n/a	0	459
1992	288	18	36	87	1	n/a	n/a	0	430
1993	285	15	37	85	4	n/a	n/a	0	426
1994	283	18	31	93	8	n/a	n/a	0	433
1995	274	12	32	184	0	n/a	n/a	0	502
1996	274	12	32	184	0	n/a	n/a	0	502
1997	263	18	41	188	4	n/a	n/a	0	514
1998	265	26	49	258	1	n/a	n/a	0	599
1999	269	24	55	245	2	n/a	n/a	26	621
2000	268	15	54	278	2	n/a	n/a	13	630
2001	254	22	50	279	4	n/a	n/a	20	629
2002	243	34	51	304	4	n/a	n/a	0	636
2003	243	34	51	304	4	n/a	n/a	0	636
2004	196	26	54	306	4	n/a	n/a	12	598
2005	175	28	53	302	4	n/a	n/a	1	563
2006	149	38	47	366	4	n/a	n/a	1	605
2007	148	29	40	360	4	n/a	n/a	1	582
2008	151	24	43	398	4	n/a	n/a	0	620
2009	144	25	44	378	4	1	32	0	628
2010	124	20	45	417	4	1	4	0	615
2011	99	22	36	439	2	2	7	0	607
2012	74	20	31	478	1	1	8	0	613
2013	70	16	25	479	1	1	10	0	602
2014	56	7	23	498	0	1	19	0	604
2015	52	9	20	479	1	0	19	0	580
2016	42	7	19	487	1	0	14	0	570
2017	39	8	15	466	0	0	13	0	541
2018	35	7	12	457	1	2	8	0	522
2019	35	9	14	472	4	3	7	0	544
2020	29	6	13	485	4	3	5	0	545
2021	27	7	13	433	4	3	9	0	496
2022	23	6	11	438	2	4	9	0	493
2023	19	9	10	442	5	1	9	0	495
2024	21	13	10	420	3	2	13	0	482

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 University Park Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	537	21.0	25.5	n/a
1989	677	26.5	25.5	n/a
1990	733	29.7	24.6	n/a
1991	459	18.0	25.5	n/a
1992	430	18.3	23.4	8.6
1993	426	17.0	25.1	13.1
1994	433	17.0	25.5	14.3
1995	502	21.0	23.9	29.9
1996	502	21.0	23.9	29.9
1997	514	22.0	23.4	32.1
1998	599	29.0	20.7	38.9
1999	621	29.5	21.1	38.3
2000	630	29.0	21.7	43.1
2001	629	30.0	21.0	39.6
2002	636	31.0	20.5	43.1
2003	636	31.0	20.5	43.1
2004	598	28.5	21.0	38.1
2005	563	25.5	22.1	40.6
2006	605	25.0	24.2	49.7
2007	582	24.0	24.3	50.8
2008	620	28.0	22.1	54.7
2009	628	28.0	20.9	55.4
2010	615	27.0	22.7	62.1
2011	607	n/a	n/a	65.7
2012	613	22.0	27.8	n/a
2013	602	21.0	28.6	70.4
2014	604	22.5	26.8	73.5
2015	580	23.0	25.2	75.9
2016	570	22.0	25.9	77.9
2017	541	24.0	22.5	76.5
2018	522	24.0	21.7	78.4
2019	544	25.0	21.7	79.4
2020	545	n/a	n/a	76.1
2021	496	23.0	21.5	72.8
2022	493	21.0	23.4	65.9
2023	495	22.6	21.8	65.9
2024	482	23.0	20.9	69.7

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 University Park Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	537	21.0	25.5	n/a
1989	677	26.5	25.5	n/a
1990	733	29.7	24.6	n/a
1991	459	18.0	25.5	n/a
1992	430	18.3	23.4	8.6
1993	426	17.0	25.1	13.1
1994	433	17.0	25.5	14.3
1995	502	21.0	23.9	29.9
1996	502	21.0	23.9	29.9
1997	514	22.0	23.4	32.1
1998	599	29.0	20.7	38.9
1999	621	29.5	21.1	38.3
2000	630	29.0	21.7	43.1
2001	629	30.0	21.0	39.6
2002	636	31.0	20.5	43.1
2003	636	31.0	20.5	43.1
2004	598	28.5	21.0	38.1
2005	563	25.5	22.1	40.6
2006	605	25.0	24.2	49.7
2007	582	24.0	24.3	50.8
2008	620	28.0	22.1	54.7
2009	628	28.0	20.9	55.4
2010	615	27.0	22.7	62.1
2011	607	n/a	n/a	65.7
2012	613	22.0	27.8	n/a
2013	602	21.0	28.6	70.4
2014	604	22.5	26.8	73.5
2015	580	23.0	25.2	75.9
2016	570	22.0	25.9	77.9
2017	541	24.0	22.5	76.5
2018	522	24.0	21.7	78.4
2019	544	25.0	21.7	79.4
2020	545	n/a	n/a	76.1
2021	496	23.0	21.5	72.8
2022	493	21.0	23.4	65.9
2023	495	22.6	21.8	65.9
2024	482	23.0	20.9	69.7

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