Is Terra Bella Elementary a good school?

Terra Bella Elementary ranks 3949 th of 5862 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Terra Bella Elementary?

In the 2023-24 school year, 481 students attended Terra Bella Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Terra Bella Elementary?

Students at Terra Bella Elementary are 96% Hispanic, 2% White, 1% Asian.

What schools do graduates of Terra Bella Elementary attend?

Students who attend Terra Bella Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Carl Smith Middle

Terra Bella Elementary

Summary:

Terra Bella Elementary is a public elementary school serving 474 students in grades K-5 in the small town of Terra Bella, CA. The school is part of the Terra Bella Union Elementary School District, which is ranked 1021 out of 1568 districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Terra Bella Elementary has consistently ranked in the bottom half of California elementary schools over the past decade, with a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger for the past 3 school years. The school faces significant challenges, including high chronic absenteeism rates (rising from 7.6% in 2017-2018 to 23.1% in 2022-2023), consistently low test scores across all grade levels and subject areas (with only 33.78% of students proficient or better in ELA and 28.44% in Math in 2023-2024), and subgroups that perform significantly below state averages. Additionally, the school has an extremely high percentage of students (94.3% to 96.65%) receiving free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a high level of economic disadvantage among the student population.

While the nearby schools, such as West Putnam Elementary, Jim Maples Academy, and Saucelito Elementary, also struggle with low performance, they generally outperform Terra Bella Elementary in test scores and other metrics. The school's challenges appear to be deeply rooted in the economic disadvantages faced by its student population, which may require targeted interventions and support to address.

Detail:

Public K-5

9364 Road 238
Terra Bella, CA 93270-9400

(559) 535-4451

District: Terra Bella Union Elementary

SchoolDigger Rank:
3949^th of 5,862 California Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $8,997

Students who attend Terra Bella Elementary usually attend:

Middle:

Carl Smith Middle

Student/teacher ratio: 18.5

Number of students: 481

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

96.5%

White:

2.3%

Asian:

1.0%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 93.6%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Terra Bella Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Terra Bella Elementary ranks worse than 67.4% of elementary schools in California. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 29.64. (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 (96.5%), White (2.3%), Asian (1%). (See more...)

Compare Details 93.6% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Terra Bella Elementary is 18.5. (See more...)

Compare Terra Bella Elementary employs 26 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Terra Bella Elementary is $8,997.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Terra Bella Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Terra Bella Elementary 3949^th of 5862 California public elementary schools. (See Terra Bella 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:

Terra Bella Union Elementary:

SchoolDigger ranks Terra Bella Union Elementary 1021^st of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Terra Bella Elementary

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Rank History for all students at Terra Bella Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2004	12.80	4497^th	4809	6.5%
2005	9.33	4685^th	4822	2.8%
2006	21.14	3913^th	4818	18.8%
2007	18.90	4382^nd	5113	14.3%
2008	12.01	4815^th	5113	5.8%
2009	11.18	4950^th	5193	4.7%
2010	13.09	5011^th	5314	5.7%
2011	20.24	4667^th	5377	13.2%
2012	14.18	5006^th	5390	7.1%
2013	13.62	5129^th	5530	7.3%
2015	12.02	5349^th	5611	4.7%
2016	7.73	5533^rd	5614	1.4%
2017	11.22	5422^nd	5692	4.7%
2018	24.21	4303^rd	5662	24.0%
2019	27.08	4181^st	5789	27.8%
2021	17.95	1207^th	1417	14.8%
2022	28.34	4008^th	5883	31.9%
2023	28.41	4033^rd	5874	31.3%
2024	29.64	3949^th	5862	32.6%

See the entire list of California Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Terra Bella Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	60.17	844^th	3246	74.0%
2019	63.33	726^th	3275	77.8%
2021	57.46	141^st	602	76.6%
2022	74.07	403^rd	3311	87.8%
2023	62.42	697^th	3250	78.6%
2024	68.20	457^th	3160	85.5%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Terra Bella Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	32.60	3580^th	5084	29.6%
2019	37.65	3300^th	5173	36.2%
2021	29.55	824^th	1110	25.8%
2022	40.85	2934^th	5264	44.3%
2023	38.38	3194^th	5374	40.6%
2024	35.97	3451^st	5511	37.4%

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

Rank History for Female students at Terra Bella Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	20.86	4464^th	5413	17.5%
2019	28.94	3913^th	5492	28.8%
2021	20.00	1052^nd	1267	17.0%
2022	23.95	4318^th	5635	23.4%
2023	27.05	4055^th	5617	27.8%
2024	30.30	3767^th	5605	32.8%

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

Rank History for Disabled students at Terra Bella Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2019	20.33	2328^th	2585	9.9%

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

Rank History for Male students at Terra Bella Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	27.96	3861^st	5431	28.9%
2019	26.38	4076^th	5510	26.0%
2021	17.58	1094^th	1272	14.0%
2022	33.34	3511^th	5663	38.0%
2023	30.78	3710^th	5650	34.3%
2024	30.01	3813^th	5636	32.3%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Terra Bella Elementary

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	CA State Percentile
2018	31.76	3438^th	4830	28.8%
2019	36.08	3236^th	4963	34.8%
2022	41.19	2815^th	5084	44.6%
2023	41.34	2808^th	5098	44.9%
2024	42.73	2785^th	5102	45.4%

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 Terra Bella Elementary

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	181	0	25	455	0	n/a	n/a	0	661
1989	161	0	24	481	2	n/a	n/a	0	668
1990	174	0	24	517	9	n/a	n/a	0	724
1991	233	0	19	505	4	n/a	n/a	0	761
1992	221	0	22	581	4	n/a	n/a	0	828
1993	209	1	19	628	7	n/a	n/a	0	864
1994	159	2	27	688	6	n/a	n/a	0	882
1995	91	0	19	498	2	n/a	n/a	0	610
1996	91	0	19	498	2	n/a	n/a	0	610
1997	68	0	16	502	0	n/a	n/a	0	586
1998	57	0	13	501	1	n/a	n/a	0	572
1999	54	1	10	508	1	n/a	n/a	2	576
2000	54	1	9	490	1	n/a	n/a	0	555
2001	42	2	9	501	2	n/a	n/a	1	557
2002	37	2	11	548	2	n/a	n/a	0	600
2003	37	2	11	548	2	n/a	n/a	0	600
2004	35	1	10	581	0	n/a	n/a	0	627
2005	28	2	8	586	2	n/a	n/a	0	626
2006	29	2	4	592	2	n/a	n/a	3	632
2007	23	5	4	618	2	n/a	n/a	6	658
2008	25	1	3	616	1	n/a	n/a	0	646
2009	24	4	5	609	1	0	11	0	654
2010	21	7	5	597	1	0	0	0	631
2011	15	6	4	597	1	0	0	0	623
2012	13	6	3	611	1	0	0	0	634
2013	17	3	1	619	2	0	1	0	643
2014	20	2	3	593	3	0	0	0	621
2015	18	1	5	633	4	0	1	0	662
2016	16	3	8	604	4	0	1	0	636
2017	18	1	8	596	1	0	1	0	625
2018	19	1	8	594	0	0	1	0	623
2019	18	1	5	565	0	0	1	0	590
2020	17	1	6	523	0	0	0	0	547
2021	15	2	5	513	2	0	0	0	537
2022	9	1	4	494	1	0	0	0	509
2023	8	1	5	458	2	0	0	0	474
2024	11	1	5	464	0	0	0	0	481

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 Terra Bella Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	661	30.0	22.0	n/a
1989	668	30.0	22.2	n/a
1990	724	34.9	20.7	n/a
1991	761	32.9	23.1	n/a
1992	828	33.4	24.7	87.7
1993	864	40.5	21.3	84.6
1994	882	42.5	20.8	93.7
1995	610	23.0	26.5	83.6
1996	610	23.0	26.5	83.6
1997	586	28.5	20.6	94.9
1998	572	30.5	18.8	94.9
1999	576	30.0	19.2	92.7
2000	555	30.0	18.5	95.3
2001	557	30.0	18.6	95.1
2002	600	33.0	18.2	94.8
2003	600	33.0	18.2	94.8
2004	627	34.0	18.4	97.4
2005	626	35.5	17.6	94.6
2006	632	35.0	18.1	95.1
2007	658	37.0	17.8	95.2
2008	646	36.5	17.7	96
2009	654	33.0	18.2	94.5
2010	631	31.0	20.3	94.8
2011	623	n/a	n/a	94.4
2012	634	27.0	23.4	n/a
2013	643	28.0	22.9	79.9
2014	621	29.0	21.4	99
2015	662	30.0	22.0	99.5
2016	636	29.0	21.9	95.6
2017	625	30.0	20.8	98.7
2018	623	30.6	20.3	98.6
2019	590	28.0	21.0	90.2
2020	547	n/a	n/a	96.3
2021	537	27.0	19.8	96.6
2022	509	25.0	20.3	94.9
2023	474	26.0	18.2	94.3
2024	481	26.0	18.5	93.6

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 Terra Bella Elementary

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	661	30.0	22.0	n/a
1989	668	30.0	22.2	n/a
1990	724	34.9	20.7	n/a
1991	761	32.9	23.1	n/a
1992	828	33.4	24.7	87.7
1993	864	40.5	21.3	84.6
1994	882	42.5	20.8	93.7
1995	610	23.0	26.5	83.6
1996	610	23.0	26.5	83.6
1997	586	28.5	20.6	94.9
1998	572	30.5	18.8	94.9
1999	576	30.0	19.2	92.7
2000	555	30.0	18.5	95.3
2001	557	30.0	18.6	95.1
2002	600	33.0	18.2	94.8
2003	600	33.0	18.2	94.8
2004	627	34.0	18.4	97.4
2005	626	35.5	17.6	94.6
2006	632	35.0	18.1	95.1
2007	658	37.0	17.8	95.2
2008	646	36.5	17.7	96
2009	654	33.0	18.2	94.5
2010	631	31.0	20.3	94.8
2011	623	n/a	n/a	94.4
2012	634	27.0	23.4	n/a
2013	643	28.0	22.9	79.9
2014	621	29.0	21.4	99
2015	662	30.0	22.0	99.5
2016	636	29.0	21.9	95.6
2017	625	30.0	20.8	98.7
2018	623	30.6	20.3	98.6
2019	590	28.0	21.0	90.2
2020	547	n/a	n/a	96.3
2021	537	27.0	19.8	96.6
2022	509	25.0	20.3	94.9
2023	474	26.0	18.2	94.3
2024	481	26.0	18.5	93.6

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.

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