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Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary

Public Grades K-6

4461^st

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 24% of California elementary schools

Summary

Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary is a large K-6 public school serving 960 students in the Bakersfield City School District, operating in a high-need community where a majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

While the school's academic performance has declined over the past decade and its test scores in English, Math, and Science are below state averages, it performs better than most other elementary schools in its own district. For example, its English Language Arts scores are higher than nearby schools like Myra A. Noble Elementary, Williams Elementary, and College Heights Elementary, and are comparable to Horace Mann Elementary. The school has shown a particular strength in 4th-grade English. It also operates relatively efficiently, achieving these results with lower per-student spending than some district peers like Pioneer Drive Elementary.

Key challenges for the school include mathematics, where scores are especially low in the upper grades, and a high student-teacher ratio compared to other local schools. On a positive note, the school has made significant progress in reducing chronic student absenteeism over the last few years. For parents, this indicates a school that is navigating district-wide challenges and has areas of relative strength, but one where academic improvement, especially in math, remains a critical focus.

960

Students ?

23.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$18,473

Per pupil spending ?

84.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3401 Renegade Ave.
Bakersfield, CA 93306-2054

(661) 631-5400

District: Bakersfield City

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

84.0%

White:

9.8%

African American:

4.0%

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At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 36th percentile in 2013 → 24th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (26% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (24th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 12 percentile points since 2013

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school26%

District avg21%

California avg41%

4,461^st of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Bottom 24%▼ down 20 pts since 2015

From bottom 44% (2015) to bottom 24% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

10^th of 33Elementary Schools in the Bakersfield City

1357^th of 1,543Bakersfield City among California districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	24.4	4461 of 5857	23.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	30.0	3923 of 5869	33.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	35.9	3439 of 5859	41.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.0	3701 of 5883	37.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	34.4	3583 of 5789	38.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	42.7	2983 of 5662	47.3%	★★☆☆☆
2017	48.7	2623 of 5692	53.9%	★★★☆☆
2016	42.5	2925 of 5614	47.9%	★★☆☆☆
2015	37.8	3151 of 5611	43.8%	★★☆☆☆
2013	36.6	3555 of 5530	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2012	35.3	3577 of 5390	33.6%	★★☆☆☆
2011	39.8	3242 of 5377	39.7%	★★☆☆☆
2010	51.7	2477 of 5314	53.4%	★★★☆☆
2009	38.7	3134 of 5193	39.6%	★★☆☆☆
2008	34.6	3295 of 5113	35.6%	★★☆☆☆
2007	35.2	3216 of 5113	37.1%	★★☆☆☆
2006	34.0	3053 of 4818	36.6%	★★☆☆☆
2005	38.2	2823 of 4822	41.5%	★★☆☆☆
2004	30.8	3193 of 4809	33.6%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2019	38.7	438 of 747	41.4%	★★☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	24.7	1751 of 2227	21.4%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	45.1	1475 of 3162	53.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	52.9	1054 of 3245	67.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	49.3	1235 of 3311	62.7%	★★★☆☆
2018	68.8	584 of 3246	82.0%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	24.1	4335 of 5597	22.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	29.7	3827 of 5612	31.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	36.3	3275 of 5609	41.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	29.9	3739 of 5635	33.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	35.3	3386 of 5492	38.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	40.8	3033 of 5413	44.0%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	35.1	3368 of 5107	34.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	42.8	2779 of 5107	45.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	48.8	2307 of 5087	54.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	43.2	2655 of 5084	47.8%	★★☆☆☆
2019	49.4	2321 of 4963	53.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	57.8	1742 of 4830	63.9%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	32.1	3825 of 5460	29.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	37.3	3346 of 5517	39.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	46.2	2604 of 5363	51.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	37.7	3197 of 5264	39.3%	★★☆☆☆
2019	46.7	2627 of 5173	49.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	56.6	1923 of 5084	62.2%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	25.4	4238 of 5628	24.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	31.0	3747 of 5643	33.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	35.9	3341 of 5638	40.7%	★★☆☆☆
2022	34.5	3415 of 5663	39.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	33.1	3537 of 5510	35.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	44.0	2787 of 5431	48.7%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	38.9	1506 of 2847	47.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	34.0	1616 of 2635	38.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	27.6	1769 of 2420	26.9%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	4.2	2536 of 2598	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.6	2391 of 2651	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	20.6	2208 of 2661	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	14.6	2406 of 2726	11.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	19.4	2397 of 2834	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	25.0	2209 of 2737	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

English Language Learner (2024)53rd percentile+20 vs school

Special Education (2025)47th percentile+23 vs school

African American (2019)41st percentile+3 vs school

Hispanic (2025)34th percentile+10 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)30th percentile+6 vs school

Male (2025)25th percentile~ school

Female (2025)23rd percentile~ school

Disabled (2022)21st percentile-16 vs school

White (2025)2nd percentile-21 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy33%-16 vs state

Mathematics21%-16 vs state

Science13%-20 vs state

★

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Schools Near Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				CAST Science (2025)		Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2025)					Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2025)					% Completely Immunized (2022)	% Polio (2022)	% Hepatitis B (2022)	% Varicella (2022)	% DTP (2022)	% MMR (2022)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
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 (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CAST Science 5th Grade	CAST Science All Grades	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 All Grades	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 All Grades	% Completely Immunized KG	% Polio KG	% Hepatitis B KG	% Varicella KG	% DTP KG	% MMR KG	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary	Public	K-6	3401 Renegade Ave.	Bakersfield	93306	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5400	960	41	23.4	84.2%	94 (9.8%)	38 (4.0%)	806 (84.0%)	12 (1.3%)	7 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.3%)	24.4	4461^st of 5857 public elementary schools	23.8%		30	3923^rd of 5869 public elementary schools	33.2%	538	12.7	12.7	36.0	47.0	31.3	22.0	33.1	31.5	32.2	10.5	15.0	21.3	92.4	95.5	98.5	96.2	93.9	96.2	$18,473	$2,514	$15,959
Harding Elementary	Public	K-6	3201 Pico Ave.	Bakersfield	93306	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5300	542	26	20.8	81.2%	71 (13.1%)	20 (3.7%)	436 (80.4%)	6 (1.1%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.1%)	25	4406^th of 5857 public elementary schools	24.8%		26.9	4219^th of 5869 public elementary schools	28.1%	187	18.3	18.3	35.9	41.7	29.8	31.0	33.9	30.4	26.7	13.5	17.1	21.5	94.6			96.7			$19,503	$2,385	$17,118
Henry Eissler Elementary	Public	K-6	2901 Eissler St.	Bakersfield	93306	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5250	529	29	17.9	85.3%	60 (11.3%)	18 (3.4%)	424 (80.2%)	18 (3.4%)	2 (0.4%)	3 (0.6%)	4 (0.8%)	26.9	4228^th of 5857 public elementary schools	27.8%		25.2	4345^th of 5869 public elementary schools	26.0%	117	18.1	18.1	38.1	28.2	31.3	45.7	35.9	34.5	18.1	11.8	22.0	21.7	94.1	94.1					$21,211	$3,581	$17,630
College Heights Elementary	Public	K-6	2551 Sunny Ln.	Bakersfield	93305	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5220	761	36	20.9	94.7%	25 (3.3%)	69 (9.1%)	654 (85.9%)	7 (0.9%)	3 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.4%)	9.2	5672^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	3.2%		10	5688^th of 5869 public elementary schools	3.1%	16	8.3	8.3	10.3	17.1	19.1	23.3	17.8	12.1	11.5	6.3	9.8	9.8	86.5	91.4	94.2	91.4	86.5	91.4	$19,609	$2,706	$16,903
Myra A. Noble Elementary	Public	K-5	1015 Noble Ave.	Bakersfield	93305	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5410	813	40	20.3	90.9%	45 (5.5%)	44 (5.4%)	707 (87.0%)	4 (0.5%)	4 (0.5%)	1 (0.1%)	8 (1.0%)	8.1	5733^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	2.1%		11.1	5611^th of 5869 public elementary schools	4.4%	122	11.9	11.9	14.7	14.3	15.7		14.9	10.9	7.7	6.6		8.3	94.7			97.4	97.4		$19,192	$2,613	$16,579
Horace Mann Elementary	Public	K-6	2710 Niles St.	Bakersfield	93306	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5360	870	41	21.2	95.4%	29 (3.3%)	47 (5.4%)	789 (90.7%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	28.5	4093^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	30.1%		22	4675^th of 5869 public elementary schools	20.3%	582	29.4	29.4	19.0	34.3	45.7	33.3	32.9	19.8	31.3	26.5	16.7	23.3	97.1				97.1		$20,390	$2,959	$17,431
Jefferson Elementary	Public	K-6	816 Lincoln St.	Bakersfield	93305	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5340	510	25	20.4	97.3%	31 (6.1%)	20 (3.9%)	457 (89.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	14.6	5305^th of 5857 public elementary schools	9.4%		12.2	5541^st of 5869 public elementary schools	5.6%	236	10.8	10.8	27.8	21.2	19.2	17.3	21.3	34.7	22.4	5.5	5.2	16.8	91.4		96.3	96.3	92.6		$20,801	$2,730	$18,071
Williams Elementary	Public	K-6	1201 Williams St.	Bakersfield	93305	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5840	452	22	20.5	98.9%	8 (1.8%)	32 (7.1%)	411 (90.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	10	5636^th of 5857 public elementary schools	3.8%		7.9	5781^st of 5869 public elementary schools	1.5%	145	6.5	6.5	17.7	16.2	15.0	27.9	19.4	11.1	8.7	3.2	14.5	9.5	95.2		96.8		95.2		$19,529	$2,785	$16,744
Ramon Garza Elementary	Public	K-5	2901 Center St.	Bakersfield	93306	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5290	658	32	20.3	95.9%	17 (2.6%)	18 (2.7%)	615 (93.5%)	1 (0.2%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.6%)	16	5188^th of 5857 public elementary schools	11.4%		16.1	5210^th of 5869 public elementary schools	11.2%	22	11.7	11.7	26.7	26.1	23.7		25.4	26.2	18.0	11.7		18.3	90.8	92.3	95.4	94.6	90.8	94.6	$19,411	$2,737	$16,674
Dr. Juliet Thorner Elementary	Public	K-6	5501 Thorner St.	Bakersfield	93306	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5490	813	36	22.5	78.1%	91 (11.2%)	50 (6.2%)	627 (77.1%)	18 (2.2%)	2 (0.2%)	1 (0.1%)	24 (3.0%)	16.9	5113^th of 5857 public elementary schools	12.7%		22.5	4635^th of 5869 public elementary schools	21.0%	478	21.5	21.5	18.9	22.8	33.1	25.5	25.3	17.0	15.3	20.6	4.6	14.7	92.9	97.3		98.2	93.8	98.2	$19,166	$2,543	$16,623

Frequently Asked Questions about Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary?

Students at Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary are 84% Hispanic, 10% White, 4% African American, 1% Asian.

How many students attend Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 960 students attended Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary.

What district is Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary in?

Bakersfield City

Is Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary a good school?

Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary ranks in the bottom 23.8% of California elementary schools.

Rate Colonel Howard Nichols Elementary!

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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.