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Sankofa United Elementary

Q: Is Sankofa United Elementary a good school?

Sankofa United Elementary ranks in the bottom 9.5% of California elementary schools.

Q: How many students attend Sankofa United Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 216 students attended Sankofa United Elementary.

Q: What is the racial makeup of Sankofa United Elementary?

Students at Sankofa United Elementary are 42% African American, 21% Hispanic, 17% White, 14% Two or more races, 6% Asian.

Q: What schools do graduates of Sankofa United Elementary attend?

Students who attend Sankofa United Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : Claremont Middle High : Oakland Technical High

Public Grades K-5

5300^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 10% of California elementary schools

Summary

Sankofa United Elementary is a K-5 public school serving 216 students in the Oakland Unified district, located in a diverse urban neighborhood bordering Berkeley.

The school has experienced extreme ups and downs in performance, recently falling to one of the lowest state rankings. Academic proficiency rates in English, math, and science are critically low, at less than half the state average. A major concern is chronic student absenteeism, which at over 40% is more than double the state average and significantly higher than most nearby schools. The school serves a high-need population, with about 76% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch.

Despite having one of the highest per-student spending rates in the area, its outcomes are the lowest among comparison schools. For example, it spends significantly more per student than high-performing neighbors like Peralta Elementary (0.36 miles away) and Chabot Elementary, yet its proficiency gaps with these schools are enormous—over 58 percentage points in English. This creates a stark contrast, as Sankofa is surrounded by some of the region's top schools but has not sustained previous periods of improvement, indicating a need for urgent intervention to support its students.

216

Students ?

18.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$32,817

Per pupil spending ?

75.9%

Free/discounted lunch ?

581 61st St.
Oakland, CA 94609-1248

(510) 879-2194

District: Oakland Unified

Students who attend Sankofa United Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Claremont Middle
High:	Oakland Technical High

Racial breakdown:

African American:

42.1%

Hispanic:

20.8%

White:

16.7%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Sankofa United Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Recently slipping — 57th percentile in 2023 → 10th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (16% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (10th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (40% vs 19% California)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school16%

District avg29%

California avg41%

5,300^th of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Bottom 10%▲ up 9 pts since 2015

From bottom 1% (2015) to bottom 10% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

26^th of 49Elementary Schools in the Oakland Unified

1194^th of 1,543Oakland Unified 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)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	14.6	5300 of 5857	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	42.0	3070 of 5869	47.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	50.2	2523 of 5859	56.9%	★★★☆☆
2022	37.4	3270 of 5883	44.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	4.8	5764 of 5789	0.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	4.5	5634 of 5662	0.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	6.6	5632 of 5692	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	6.6	5564 of 5614	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	7.7	5566 of 5611	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	10.1	5290 of 5530	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	38.5	3356 of 5390	37.7%	★★☆☆☆
2011	37.7	3407 of 5377	36.6%	★★☆☆☆
2010	19.2	4637 of 5314	12.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	14.7	4751 of 5193	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	15.4	4642 of 5113	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	10.4	4900 of 5113	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	7.9	569 of 569	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	22.0	567 of 661	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	32.9	432 of 663	34.8%	★★☆☆☆
2019	17.0	700 of 747	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	22.5	592 of 700	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	12.5	5279 of 5597	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	50.5	2389 of 5612	57.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	31.9	3581 of 5635	36.5%	★★☆☆☆
2019	8.6	5378 of 5492	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	6.9	5415 of 5460	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	24.4	4429 of 5517	19.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	28.8	3986 of 5363	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.9	4660 of 5264	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	5.9	5141 of 5173	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	6.5	5043 of 5084	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	14.4	5162 of 5628	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	41.2	2992 of 5643	47.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	55.1	2173 of 5638	61.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	44.0	2768 of 5663	51.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	4.8	5493 of 5510	0.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2017	5.2	2475 of 2508	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	5.4	2443 of 2497	2.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	7.5	2395 of 2477	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	4.5	1988 of 1999	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

Elementary school

Male (2025)8th percentile~ school

Female (2025)6th percentile-4 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)1st percentile-9 vs school

African American (2025)<1st percentile-10 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy17%-31 vs state

Science15%-17 vs state

Mathematics15%-23 vs state

★

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Schools Near Sankofa United 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 8th 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 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 8th 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 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 8th 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
Sankofa United Elementary	Public	K-5	581 61st St.	Oakland	94609	Alameda County	Oakland Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(510) 879-2194	216	12	18.7	75.9%	36 (16.7%)	91 (42.1%)	45 (20.8%)	12 (5.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (13.9%)	14.6	5300^th of 5857 public elementary schools	9.5%		42	3070^th of 5869 public elementary schools	47.7%	2230	15.4		15.4	0.0	29.0	21.4				17.4	0.0	29.0	7.7				14.7	68.3	68.3	73.2	70.7	70.7	70.7	$32,817	$4,510	$28,307
Peralta Elementary	Public	K-5	460 63rd St.	Oakland	94609	Alameda County	Oakland Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(510) 879-3145	355	12	30.8	30.4%	145 (40.8%)	29 (8.2%)	51 (14.4%)	30 (8.5%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	98 (27.6%)	90.4	635^th of 5857 public elementary schools	89.2%		89.8	714^th of 5869 public elementary schools	87.8%	79	51.9		51.9	71.4	80.0	77.8				75.9	81.0	71.1	53.7				69.1	95.5			95.5		95.5	$23,556	$4,243	$19,313
Malcolm X Elementary	Public	K-5	1731 Prince St.	Berkeley	94703	Alameda County	Berkeley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(510) 644-6313	469	23	20.3	31.6%	198 (42.2%)	74 (15.8%)	71 (15.1%)	39 (8.3%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	83 (17.7%)	86	877^th of 5857 public elementary schools	85.0%		85.7	920^th of 5869 public elementary schools	84.3%	43	56.5		56.5	75.0	65.6	62.4				67.4	76.4	60.3	56.5				64.1							$25,419	$748	$24,671
Sylvia Mendez Elementary	Public	K-5	2840 Ellsworth St.	Berkeley	94705	Alameda County	Berkeley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(510) 644-6290	379	18	21.0	27.4%	88 (23.2%)	29 (7.7%)	230 (60.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (7.9%)	76.2	1325^th of 5857 public elementary schools	77.4%		83.3	1029^th of 5869 public elementary schools	82.5%	296	37.9		37.9	59.6	68.9	65.0				64.3	55.8	62.2	50.0				55.4	93.3	97.3	97.3		97.3		$23,749	$711	$23,038
Berkeley Independent Study K-8	Public	K-8	2701 Martin Luther King Jr Way	Berkeley	94703	Alameda County	Berkeley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(510) 644-6159	19	2	9.4	36.8%	4 (21.1%)	2 (10.5%)	7 (36.8%)	1 (5.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (21.1%)								(n/a)										76.9							46.2							$88,030	$678	$87,352
Emerson Elementary	Public	K-5	4803 Lawton Ave.	Oakland	94609	Alameda County	Oakland Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(510) 879-2115	354	18	19.6	74.3%	95 (26.8%)	103 (29.1%)	78 (22.0%)	12 (3.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	59 (16.7%)	48.3	2682^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	54.2%		27.4	4164^th of 5869 public elementary schools	29.1%	1482	26.2		26.2	70.8	22.2	51.2				48.5	62.5	15.2	31.0				36.8	81.1	85.1	90.5	83.8	83.8	86.5	$26,925	$4,961	$21,964
Aspire Berkley Maynard Academy	Public, Charter	K-8	6200 San Pablo Ave.	Oakland	94608	Alameda County	Aspire Berkley Maynard Academy District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(510) 658-2900	515	23	22.0	86.4%	12 (2.3%)	302 (58.6%)	135 (26.2%)	8 (1.6%)	4 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	54 (10.5%)	22.7	4617^th of 5857 public elementary schools	21.2%		24.5	4417^th of 5869 public elementary schools	24.7%	200	6.0	0.0	3.8	19.4	32.8	18.2	41.7	33.3	31.4	29.1	29.0	29.1	13.0	27.1	12.8	11.1	21.6							$20,876	$2,436	$18,440
Chabot Elementary	Public	K-5	6686 Chabot Rd.	Oakland	94618	Alameda County	Oakland Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(510) 879-2106	576	24	24.0	35.4%	229 (39.8%)	98 (17.0%)	95 (16.5%)	33 (5.7%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	118 (20.5%)	91.7	567^th of 5857 public elementary schools	90.3%		92	569^th of 5869 public elementary schools	90.3%	2	63.6		63.6	71.7	71.8	71.6				71.7	77.8	70.6	63.6				71.0	95.2			98.1	95.2		$24,381	$4,027	$20,354
Anna Yates Elementary	Public	K-8	4727 San Pablo	Emeryville	94608	Alameda County	Emery Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(510) 601-4916	428	23	18.2	71.3%	50 (11.7%)	161 (37.6%)	113 (26.4%)	38 (8.9%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	62 (14.5%)	32.3	3774^th of 5857 public elementary schools	35.6%		33.8	3618^th of 5869 public elementary schools	38.4%	156	20.5	23.1	21.8	35.3	41.5	36.6	27.5	47.7	46.2	38.9	36.4	47.2	23.8	7.8	25.5	2.5	24.1	90.6	94.3		92.5	92.5	92.5	$22,280	$796	$21,484
Emerson Elementary	Public	K-5	2800 Forest Ave.	Berkeley	94705	Alameda County	Berkeley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(510) 644-6890	283	13	21.7	29.7%	128 (45.2%)	47 (16.6%)	42 (14.8%)	21 (7.4%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	43 (15.2%)	89.8	667^th of 5857 public elementary schools	88.6%		92.8	511^th of 5869 public elementary schools	91.3%	156	56.5		56.5	86.7	67.4	73.3				75.9	84.8	55.8	65.2				68.9							$24,973	$820	$24,153

Frequently Asked Questions about Sankofa United Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Sankofa United Elementary?

Students at Sankofa United Elementary are 42% African American, 21% Hispanic, 17% White, 14% Two or more races, 6% Asian.

What schools do graduates of Sankofa United Elementary attend?

Students who attend Sankofa United Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Claremont Middle
High : Oakland Technical High

Is Sankofa United Elementary a good school?

Sankofa United Elementary ranks in the bottom 9.5% of California elementary schools.

What district is Sankofa United Elementary in?

Oakland Unified

How many students attend Sankofa United Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 216 students attended Sankofa United Elementary.

Rate Sankofa United 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.