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Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch

Public Grades K-5

1270^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 78% of California elementary schools

Summary

Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch is a small, highly-rated alternative public school serving about 114 students in grades K-5 within the Santa Cruz City Elementary district, ranking in the top quarter of all California elementary schools.

Monarch stands out for its exceptional strength in specific subjects, particularly science, where its students significantly outperform both the district and state averages, as well as most nearby schools like Westlake Elementary and De Laveaga Elementary. The school also excels in English Language Arts. However, its mathematics scores, while above the state average, are closer to the district average and present an area for growth compared to some peers. The school operates with a higher student-teacher ratio than some neighboring schools but also benefits from the highest per-student spending in the local comparison.

As an alternative school, Monarch serves a lower percentage of economically disadvantaged students than several area schools, such as Gault Elementary. It has made recent progress in reducing chronic absenteeism, though its rate remains higher than the district average. When compared to other local alternative options like Ocean Alternative Education Center or Tierra Pacifica Charter, Monarch's distinctive profile is defined by its very strong science and ELA results within its educational model.

114

Students ?

22.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

$32,890

Per pupil spending ?

27.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

840 North Branciforte Ave.
Santa Cruz, CA 95062-1028

(831) 429-3898

District: Santa Cruz City Elementary

Racial breakdown:

White:

55.3%

Hispanic:

22.8%

Two or more races:

18.4%

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At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 77th percentile in 2024 → 78th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the California average (60% vs 41% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 22% of California elementary schools

Worth a look

!Large classes — about 23 students per teacher

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school60%

District avg53%

California avg41%

1,270^th of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Top 22%▲ up 2 pts since 2024

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 5Elementary Schools in the Santa Cruz City Elementary

360^th of 1,543Santa Cruz City Elementary 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	77.2	1270 of 5857	78.3%	★★★★☆
2024	75.1	1365 of 5869	76.7%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	69.5	1526 of 5597	72.7%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	77.4	508 of 2598	80.4%	★★★★☆

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)

White (2025)80th percentile~ school

Female (2025)73rd percentile-6 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

Science71%+39 vs state

English Language Arts/Literacy68%+19 vs state

Mathematics48%+10 vs state

★

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Schools Near Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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 (2025)
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
Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch	Public	K-5	840 North Branciforte Ave.	Santa Cruz	95062	Santa Cruz County	Santa Cruz City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 429-3898	114	5	22.8	27.2%	63 (55.3%)	1 (0.9%)	26 (22.8%)	3 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (18.4%)	77.2	1270^th of 5857 public elementary schools	78.3%		75.1	1365^th of 5869 public elementary schools	76.7%	95	71.4		71.4	57.9	68.0	76.2				67.7	36.8	60.0	42.9				47.7							$32,890	$32,316	$574
Gault Elementary	Public	K-5	1320 Seabright Ave.	Santa Cruz	95062	Santa Cruz County	Santa Cruz City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 429-3856	314	14	22.4	48.1%	100 (31.8%)	2 (0.6%)	192 (61.1%)	4 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (5.1%)	50.3	2573^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	56.1%		46.5	2764^th of 5869 public elementary schools	52.9%	191	32.8		32.8	45.5	53.7	44.3				47.1	50.9	41.5	24.6				38.2	97.0						$29,954	$28,478	$1,476
De Laveaga Elementary	Public	K-5	1145 Morrissey Blvd.	Santa Cruz	95065	Santa Cruz County	Santa Cruz City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 429-3807	481	20	23.5	27.7%	221 (45.9%)	6 (1.2%)	200 (41.6%)	19 (4.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	34 (7.1%)	66.6	1761^st of 5857 public elementary schools	69.9%		70.8	1559^th of 5869 public elementary schools	73.4%	202	42.0		42.0	50.0	56.0	62.5				55.9	51.7	50.7	39.5				47.4	96.6	96.6			96.6		$24,104	$23,622	$482
Green Acres Elementary	Public	K-5	966 Bostwick Ln.	Santa Cruz	95062	Santa Cruz County	Live Oak Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 475-0111	262	12	21.8	54.2%	104 (39.7%)	7 (2.7%)	128 (48.9%)	10 (3.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (4.6%)	51.2	2538^th of 5857 public elementary schools	56.7%		56.4	2220^th of 5869 public elementary schools	62.2%	318	25.0		25.0	48.8	52.2	37.2				46.2	53.7	54.4	22.7				43.5	91.7	96.7	95.0		93.3
Ocean Alternative Education Center	Public	K-8	984 Bostwick Ln. Ste. 6	Santa Cruz	95062	Santa Cruz County	Live Oak Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 475-0767	76	4	21.5	47.4%	40 (52.6%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (31.6%)	1 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (14.5%)								(n/a)			60.0							50.0							38.6
Tierra Pacifica Charter	Public, Charter	K-8	986 Bostwick Ln.	Santa Cruz	95062	Santa Cruz County	Live Oak Elementary	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 462-9404	166	9	17.5	28.9%	105 (63.3%)	3 (1.8%)	40 (24.1%)	4 (2.4%)	2 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (7.2%)	58	2171^st of 5857 public elementary schools	62.9%		71	1551^st of 5869 public elementary schools	73.6%	620	35.3	54.6	42.9	52.9	62.5	17.7	53.3	75.0	54.6	52.2	76.5	50.0	5.9	53.3	62.5	72.7	52.2							$28,444	$28,444	$00
Live Oak Elementary	Public	K-5	1916 Capitola Rd.	Santa Cruz	95062	Santa Cruz County	Live Oak Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 475-2000	362	15	24.1	58.6%	90 (24.9%)	5 (1.4%)	252 (69.6%)	7 (1.9%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.7%)	35.7	3527^th of 5857 public elementary schools	39.8%		44.3	2909^th of 5869 public elementary schools	50.4%	618	27.9		27.9	33.3	37.3	51.2				39.1	27.1	27.9	37.2				29.8	93.9	96.3		96.3	95.1
Bay View Elementary	Public	K-5	1231 Bay St.	Santa Cruz	95060	Santa Cruz County	Santa Cruz City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 429-3991	394	21	18.7	45.2%	162 (41.1%)	1 (0.3%)	198 (50.3%)	4 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (7.4%)	64.5	1860^th of 5857 public elementary schools	68.2%		43.4	2972^nd of 5869 public elementary schools	49.4%	1112	38.9		38.9	56.7	50.0	59.3				55.3	56.5	52.5	27.8				46.7	93.3		93.3				$36,370	$33,756	$2,614
Del Mar Elementary	Public	K-5	1959 Merrill St.	Santa Cruz	95062	Santa Cruz County	Live Oak Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 477-2063	322	14	23.0	62.4%	109 (33.9%)	7 (2.2%)	189 (58.7%)	7 (2.2%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.8%)	42.3	3048^th of 5857 public elementary schools	48.0%		51.3	2494^th of 5869 public elementary schools	57.5%	554	22.2		22.2	43.8	46.9	31.5				40.4	52.1	51.0	13.0				37.8	95.8	95.8			97.2
Westlake Elementary	Public	K-5	1000 High St.	Santa Cruz	95060	Santa Cruz County	Santa Cruz City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 429-3878	453	22	20.5	24.5%	277 (61.1%)	5 (1.1%)	101 (22.3%)	24 (5.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	44 (9.7%)	86.7	836^th of 5857 public elementary schools	85.7%		89	752^nd of 5869 public elementary schools	87.2%	84	62.8		62.8	56.9	73.3	68.8				66.8	62.5	67.1	63.6				64.5	92.8					95.2	$28,128	$26,044	$2,084

Frequently Asked Questions about Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch

How many students attend Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch?

In the 2024-25 school year, 114 students attended Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch.

What district is Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch in?

Santa Cruz City Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch?

Students at Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch are 55% White, 23% Hispanic, 18% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

Is Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch a good school?

Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch ranks 1270^th of 5857 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Rate Santa Cruz City Elementary Alternative Education-Monarch!

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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.