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Test scores delayed: 2026 rankings for Arizona do not yet include the AzSCI Science tests, which have not yet been released by the Arizona Department of Education

Salk Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-6

741^st

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 900 Arizona Elementary Schools

Better than 18% of Arizona elementary schools

Summary

Salk Elementary School serves 494 students in prekindergarten through sixth grade in Mesa, within Mesa Unified District. Its most important concern is low performance in both core subjects: in 2025–26, 20% of students were proficient in English language arts (ELA) and 16% in math, the lowest results among eight nearby Mesa Unified schools with comparable grade spans.

Salk’s results are below district and state levels in both subjects: ELA proficiency was 20%, compared with 39% in the district and 41% statewide; math was 16%, compared with 31% and 33%. The other nearby schools averaged 45% in ELA and 44% in math, putting Salk 25 and 28 percentage points below those averages. Third-grade ELA is a relative bright spot at 29%, though still below the district’s 38% and the state’s 39%; it was the second-lowest result among nearby schools with reported scores. Fifth-grade science was also low in 2022–23: 17%, versus 32% in the district and 34% statewide. All-grade trends cannot be assessed from the single supplied year, several grade scores are suppressed, science is from 2022–23, and subgroup ranking comparisons cover different numbers of schools.

SchoolDigger places Salk at the 18th percentile statewide with 1 star in 2025–26. That is up from the 13th percentile the prior year, but down 19 points from the 37th percentile in 2022–23. Its student-teacher ratio was 15.9 in 2024–25, below the 16.3 average at the nearby district schools, even as its ratio rose from 13.6 in 2022–23; the lower ratio does not coincide with stronger test results in this comparison. Salk’s reported free/reduced-lunch rate was 69% in 2022–23. One notable subgroup change in SchoolDigger’s statewide ranking of how well the school serves students: African American students’ ranking fell from the 49th percentile in 2020–21 to the 2nd in 2021–22, then rose to the 39th in 2022–23, close to the school’s overall 37th percentile that year.

494

Students ?

15.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

$11,461

Per pupil spending ?

60.3%

Directly certified for free meals (2024-25) ?

95.7%

Kindergartners fully immunized against measles (MMR) (2025-26)

Exemptions: 6.4% (any vaccine)

7029 E Brown Rd
Mesa, AZ 85207-3707

(480) 472-8400

District: Mesa Unified District

Students who attend Salk Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Fremont Junior High School
High:	Red Mountain High School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

51.2%

White:

28.3%

African American:

8.9%

See top rated Arizona elementary schools

Compare Salk Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 24th percentile in 2016 → 18th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Arizona average (18% vs 37% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (18th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 6 percentile points since 2016

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school18%

District avg35%

Arizona avg37%

741^st of 900

Arizona public elementary schools ?

Bottom 18%▼ down 7 pts since 2016

From bottom 24% (2016) to bottom 18% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Arizona Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

42^nd of 50Elementary Schools in the Mesa Unified District

157^th of 267Mesa Unified District among Arizona 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	Arizona percentile	Rating
2026	17.7	741 of 900	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	14.9	788 of 909	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.8	725 of 912	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	32.0	785 of 1245	36.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	12.8	885 of 1000	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.5	861 of 1226	29.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	16.8	882 of 1039	15.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.2	905 of 1109	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	22.7	860 of 1106	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	25.0	815 of 1079	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	22.3	731 of 955	23.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	47.8	567 of 1079	47.5%	★★☆☆☆
2013	51.7	571 of 1158	50.7%	★★★☆☆
2012	52.4	540 of 1141	52.7%	★★★☆☆
2011	49.9	525 of 1075	51.2%	★★★☆☆
2010	54.5	487 of 1090	55.3%	★★★☆☆
2009	55.3	480 of 1062	54.8%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	40.4	369 of 607	39.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	8.6	283 of 289	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	41.3	458 of 895	48.8%	★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	36.6	226 of 451	49.9%	★★★☆☆
2021	39.3	545 of 975	44.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	28.8	830 of 1219	31.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	28.5	846 of 1219	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	18.9	706 of 862	18.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	17.6	890 of 1023	13.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Foster Care

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	52.5	76 of 306	75.2%	★★★★☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	32.1	786 of 1170	32.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	25.5	942 of 1198	21.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	22.3	577 of 709	18.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	22.8	761 of 911	16.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	45.3	168 of 423	60.3%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2024	27.3	408 of 556	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	42.7	605 of 1116	45.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	19.9	534 of 618	13.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.0	693 of 820	15.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	33.5	760 of 1216	37.5%	★★☆☆☆
2021	27.0	860 of 1220	29.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	13.9	757 of 850	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.0	803 of 1032	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Migrant

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	41.8	20 of 37	45.9%	★★★☆☆
2021	28.4	58 of 60	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	22.1	553 of 617	10.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	23.5	873 of 1027	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	27.7	628 of 654	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Pacific Islander

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	22.0	146 of 171	14.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	22.2	714 of 820	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	35.6	747 of 1201	37.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	27.2	315 of 417	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	19.7	890 of 1024	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	33.0	819 of 1161	29.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	10.3	566 of 595	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	12.2	670 of 720	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

Foster Care (2021)75th percentile+45 vs school

Homeless (2021)60th percentile+31 vs school

English Language Learner (2023)50th percentile+13 vs school

Migrant (2023)46th percentile+9 vs school

African American (2023)39th percentile~ school

Male (2023)38th percentile~ school

Hispanic (2023)33rd percentile-4 vs school

Female (2023)32nd percentile-5 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2024)27th percentile+6 vs school

Pacific Islander (2021)15th percentile-15 vs school

White (2023)13th percentile-24 vs school

Special Education (2023)13th percentile-24 vs school

Multi-racial (2023)10th percentile-27 vs school

Native American (2021)4th percentile-26 vs school

By subject vs Arizona (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts20%-21 vs state

Mathematics16%-17 vs state

3.0

2 ratings · 2 written reviews

5★1

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★1

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What people are saying

by a parent
Thursday, May 11, 2017

My kids get bullied and nothing is done glad they didn't go the whole year here Close Quote

by a parent
Tuesday, November 15, 2016

What these numbers do not reveal is that the previous school administration "cooked the books" by actively excluding special needs children from the way test scores were reported. The apparent down-tick in scores in the plot provided actually represents a recent improvement in the performance of students across the board. Close Quote

Schools Near Salk Elementary School

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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 Vaccination Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				AASA English Language Arts (2026)							AASA Mathematics (2026)							Vaccination (2025-26)		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	Directly certified (2024-25)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	AASA English Language Arts 3rd Grade	AASA English Language Arts 4th Grade	AASA English Language Arts 5th Grade	AASA English Language Arts 6th Grade	AASA English Language Arts 7th Grade	AASA English Language Arts 8th Grade	AASA English Language Arts All Grades	AASA Mathematics 3rd Grade	AASA Mathematics 4th Grade	AASA Mathematics 5th Grade	AASA Mathematics 6th Grade	AASA Mathematics 7th Grade	AASA Mathematics 8th Grade	AASA Mathematics All Grades	Vaccination: Kindergartners fully immunized against measles (MMR)	Vaccination: Exemption rate	Per Pupil Expenditures: Total	Personnel Spending from Federal Funds	Non-Personnel Spending from Federal Funds	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Personnel Spending from State and Local Funds	Non-Personnel from State and Local Funds	Sub-total Spending from State and Local Funds
Salk Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	7029 E Brown Rd	Mesa	85207	Maricopa County	Mesa Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 472-8400	494	31	15.9	60.3%	140 (28.3%)	44 (8.9%)	253 (51.2%)	7 (1.4%)	15 (3.0%)	2 (0.4%)	33 (6.7%)	17.7	741^st of 900 public elementary schools	17.7%		14.9	788^th of 909 public elementary schools	13.3%	47	29.0		21.0	25.0			20.0	31.0						16.0	95.7%	6.4%	$11,461	$1,338	$684	$2,022	$9,682		$9,439
Falcon Hill Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	1645 N Sterling	Mesa	85207	Maricopa County	Mesa Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 472-8600	544	34	16.2	41.2%	307 (56.4%)	12 (2.2%)	173 (31.8%)	5 (0.9%)	9 (1.7%)	6 (1.1%)	32 (5.9%)	40.1	468^th of 900 public elementary schools	48.0%		39.7	472^nd of 909 public elementary schools	48.1%	4	43.0	50.0	20.0	53.0			41.0	46.0	45.0	24.0	27.0			35.0	82.1%	17.9%	$10,413	$958	$505	$1,463	$8,740	$210	$8,950
Mendoza Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	5831 E McLellan Rd	Mesa	85205	Maricopa County	Mesa Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 472-2000	402	25	15.9	36.3%	242 (60.2%)	12 (3.0%)	117 (29.1%)	3 (0.7%)	3 (0.7%)	3 (0.7%)	22 (5.5%)	57.6	331^st of 900 public elementary schools	63.2%		45.3	432^nd of 909 public elementary schools	52.5%	101	67.0	59.0	32.0	47.0			50.0	78.0	39.0	40.0	37.0			47.0	90.2%	7.3%	$11,162	$1,309	$15	$1,324	$9,419	$420	$9,839
Jefferson Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	120 S Jefferson Ave	Mesa	85208	Maricopa County	Mesa Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 472-8700	554	33	16.8	60.5%	91 (16.4%)	28 (5.1%)	409 (73.8%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (3.6%)	24	637^th of 900 public elementary schools	29.2%		17.3	744^th of 909 public elementary schools	18.2%	107	18.0	43.0	28.0	24.0			28.0	16.0	38.0	45.0	21.0			30.0	98.3%	1.7%	$9,591	$844	$630	$1,474	$8,333		$8,117
Pathfinder Academy	Public, Charter	K-8	2906 N Boulder Canyon	Mesa	85207	Maricopa County	Edkey Inc. - Pathfinder Academy	Yes	(n/a)	No	No	(480) 986-7071	554	30	18.4	—	473 (85.4%)	2 (0.4%)	54 (9.7%)	3 (0.5%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (3.4%)	85.3	107^th of 900 public elementary schools	88.1%		85.4	113^th of 909 public elementary schools	87.6%	6	73.0	75.0	63.0	64.0	60.0	68.0	69.0	58.0	68.0	58.0	53.0	43.0	68.0	59.0	69.4%	31.9%	$8,561	$109	$114	$223	$6,951	$1,386	$8,338
Las Sendas Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	3120 N Red Mtn	Mesa	85207	Maricopa County	Mesa Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(480) 472-8750	645	37	17.2	10.2%	486 (75.3%)	6 (0.9%)	112 (17.4%)	10 (1.6%)	3 (0.5%)	3 (0.5%)	25 (3.9%)	92.6	50^th of 900 public elementary schools	94.4%		93.5	46^th of 909 public elementary schools	94.9%	4	65.0	79.0	69.0	68.0			71.0	66.0	74.0	82.0	67.0			72.0	87.1%	12.9%	$7,989	$26	$09	$35	$7,807	$148	$7,955
Bush Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	4925 E Ingram St	Mesa	85205	Maricopa County	Mesa Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 472-8500	524	35	15.1	29.8%	353 (67.4%)	9 (1.7%)	122 (23.3%)	7 (1.3%)	5 (1.0%)	1 (0.2%)	27 (5.2%)	60.8	312^th of 900 public elementary schools	65.3%		60.1	320^th of 909 public elementary schools	64.8%	8	39.0	57.0	44.0	46.0			47.0	51.0	51.0	58.0	47.0			52.0	94.1%	5.9%	$11,627	$1,119	$258	$1,377	$9,732	$518	$10,250
O'Connor Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	4840 E Adobe St	Mesa	85205	Maricopa County	Mesa Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 472-7850	386	22	17.5	48.4%	173 (44.8%)	17 (4.4%)	158 (40.9%)	7 (1.8%)	5 (1.3%)	3 (0.8%)	23 (6.0%)	30.1	551^st of 900 public elementary schools	38.8%		22.9	658^th of 909 public elementary schools	27.6%	107		36.0	30.0				30.0			41.0				22.0	97.1%	2.9%	$11,596	$1,482	$38	$1,520	$9,858	$217	$10,076
Cambridge Academy East	Public, Charter	K-8	9412 E Brown Rd	Mesa	85207	Maricopa County	Cambridge Academy East Inc	Yes	(n/a)	No	No	(480) 641-2828	242	10	24.2	—	157 (64.9%)	8 (3.3%)	69 (28.5%)	1 (0.4%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.5%)								(n/a)		46.0					34.0							15.0	87%	13%	$10,303	$117		$117	$6,435	$3,751	$10,186
Madison Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	849 S Sunnyvale	Mesa	85206	Maricopa County	Mesa Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 472-8800	374	28	13.3	47.1%	159 (42.5%)	22 (5.9%)	168 (44.9%)	1 (0.3%)	9 (2.4%)	2 (0.5%)	13 (3.5%)	41.4	457^th of 900 public elementary schools	49.2%		35.5	507^th of 909 public elementary schools	44.2%	50		37.0	47.0	31.0			34.0	24.0	37.0	66.0	40.0			41.0	91.7%	8.3%	$12,952	$1,490	$242	$1,731	$10,582	$639	$11,221

Frequently Asked Questions about Salk Elementary School

What schools do graduates of Salk Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Salk Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Fremont Junior High School
High : Red Mountain High School

What district is Salk Elementary School in?

Mesa Unified District

How many students attend Salk Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 494 students attended Salk Elementary School.

Is Salk Elementary School a good school?

Salk Elementary School ranks in the bottom 17.7% of Arizona elementary schools.

What is the racial makeup of Salk Elementary School?

Students at Salk Elementary School are 51% Hispanic, 28% White, 9% African American, 7% Two or more races, 3% American Indian, 1% Asian.

Rate Salk Elementary School!

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Latest Arizona data All new data »

2022–23 through 2024–25 school spending dataNewNov 2, 2026

2018–19 through 2021–22 school spending data (updated)NewNov 2, 2026

2015–16 through 2025–26 immunization rates (updated)Oct 19, 2026

2025–26 AASA test scoresOct 13, 2026

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Arizona 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.