Best Public Schools in Downey, CA

Summary:

The Downey Unified School District in Downey, California, serves a diverse student population across 21 schools, including 13 elementary schools, 4 middle schools, and 4 high schools. The district's schools exhibit a wide range of academic performance, with some standout institutions like Unsworth (Edith) Elementary and Price (Maude) Elementary ranking among the top in the state, while others like Gauldin (A.L.) Elementary and Ward (E.W.) Elementary struggle to meet academic benchmarks.

The district's high schools, such as Downey High and Warren (Earl) High, boast strong graduation rates, but chronic absenteeism remains a concern, particularly at Columbus (Christopher) High, which has a 63.1% chronic absenteeism rate. Socioeconomic factors also play a role, with a high percentage of students across the district receiving free or reduced-price lunch, suggesting many families face economic challenges that may impact academic outcomes.

Overall, the Downey Unified School District serves a diverse and dynamic community, with a mix of high-performing and underperforming schools. Addressing the disparities in academic achievement, chronic absenteeism, and socioeconomic factors will be crucial for the district to ensure all students have access to a quality education.

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2023)				Ranking (2022)				CAST Science (2023)					Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2023)								Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2023)								% Completely Immunized (2022)	% Polio (2022)	% Hepatitis B (2022)	% Varicella (2022)	% DTP (2022)	% MMR (2022)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2018)
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 (2023)	Statewide Rank (2023)	State Percentile (2023)	SchoolDigger Rating (2023)	Average Standard Score (2022)	Statewide Rank (2022)	State Percentile (2022)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CAST Science 5th Grade	CAST Science 8th Grade	CAST Science 11th Grade	CAST Science 12th Grade	CAST Science End of Course	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 11th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy End of Course	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 11th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics End of Course	% Completely Immunized KG	% Polio KG	% Hepatitis B KG	% Varicella KG	% DTP KG	% MMR KG	Total
Los Angeles County Regional Occupational Program	Public	9-12	9300 Imperial Hwy. Clark Bldg.	Downey	90242	Los Angeles County	Los Angeles County Regional Occupational Program	No	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(562) 922-6850	0				0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Alameda Elementary	Public	K-5	8613 East Alameda St.	Downey	90242	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3589	757	30	25.2	77.4%	32 (4.2%)	24 (3.2%)	672 (88.8%)	23 (3.0%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.4%)	56	2237^th of 5874 public elementary schools	61.9%		46.8	2710^th of 5883 public elementary schools	53.9%	473	30.9				30.9	48.6	52.7	47.8					49.7	34.3	50.0	34.5					39.8	95.6			96.8	97.5	96.8	$17,780
Carpenter (C. C.) Elementary	Public	K-4	9439 East Foster Rd.	Downey	90242	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3588	522	20	26.1	43.9%	31 (5.9%)	16 (3.1%)	466 (89.3%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	4 (0.8%)								(n/a)						44.3							44.3	48.5							48.5							$13,003
Columbus (Christopher) High	Public	10-12	12330 Woodruff Ave.	Downey	90241	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3552	492	28	17.6	79.5%	17 (3.5%)	24 (4.9%)	443 (90.0%)	3 (0.6%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	14	1872^nd of 2348 public high schools	20.3%		16	1766^th of 2123 public high schools	16.8%	106			5.9	12.5	6.6							20.8	20.8							2.6	2.6							$42,443
Downey High	Public	9-12	11040 Brookshire Ave.	Downey	90241	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 869-7301	4,063	175	23.2	68.3%	167 (4.1%)	113 (2.8%)	3,610 (88.9%)	120 (3.0%)	1 (0.0%)	14 (0.3%)	35 (0.9%)	64.7	562^nd of 2348 public high schools	76.1%		58.2	754^th of 2123 public high schools	64.5%	192			27.9	21.1	27.6							65.3	65.3							32.3	32.3							$15,442
Doty (Wendy Lopour) Middle	Public	6-8	10301 South Woodruff Ave.	Downey	90241	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3586	1,327	51	26.2	69.8%	73 (5.5%)	31 (2.3%)	1,164 (87.7%)	41 (3.1%)	2 (0.2%)	3 (0.2%)	13 (1.0%)	56.7	993^rd of 2802 public middle schools	64.6%		45.1	1302^nd of 2740 public middle schools	52.5%	309		34.4			34.4				47.9	49.5	43.2		46.9				34.2	30.4	31.1		32.0							$12,490
Gallatin Elementary	Public	K-5	9513 Brookshire Ave.	Downey	90240	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3583	768	29	26.4	62.4%	74 (9.6%)	15 (2.0%)	636 (82.8%)	33 (4.3%)	2 (0.3%)	3 (0.4%)	5 (0.7%)	57.8	2147^th of 5874 public elementary schools	63.4%		54.7	2314^th of 5883 public elementary schools	60.7%	167	36.4				36.4	48.0	44.0	51.4					47.9	45.5	45.6	35.0					41.8	94.0	94.7	97.7	94.0	95.5	94.0	$11,538
Gauldin (A.L.) Elementary	Public	K-5	9724 Spry St.	Downey	90242	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3582	577	27	21.3	80.8%	28 (4.9%)	27 (4.7%)	501 (86.8%)	10 (1.7%)	3 (0.5%)	4 (0.7%)	4 (0.7%)	33.4	3615^th of 5874 public elementary schools	38.5%		24.2	4424^th of 5883 public elementary schools	24.8%	809	26.6				26.6	28.3	41.5	39.2					35.8	28.3	25.5	24.1					26.2	90.0	90.9	94.6	90.9	90.9	92.7	$12,620
Griffiths (Gordon) Middle	Public	6-8	9633 Tweedy Ln.	Downey	90240	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3580	1,296	50	25.6	68.4%	54 (4.2%)	16 (1.2%)	1,186 (91.5%)	30 (2.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	8 (0.6%)	65	779^th of 2802 public middle schools	72.2%		57.5	956^th of 2740 public middle schools	65.1%	177		38.3			38.3				49.9	48.3	51.7		50.0				40.3	31.8	40.7		37.6							$12,791
Imperial Elementary	Public	K-3	8133 Imperial Hwy.	Downey	90242	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3578	585	26	22.5	69.9%	36 (6.2%)	15 (2.6%)	519 (88.7%)	11 (1.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.7%)								(n/a)						47.6							47.6	46.8							46.8	95.2	95.9		97.2	96.6	97.2	$14,880
Price (Maude) Elementary	Public	K-5	9525 South Tweedy Ln.	Downey	90240	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3575	779	30	25.9	61.7%	55 (7.1%)	15 (1.9%)	678 (87.0%)	27 (3.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.5%)	74.7	1387^th of 5874 public elementary schools	76.4%		70.9	1577^th of 5883 public elementary schools	73.2%	190	39.1				39.1	61.8	62.5	55.1					59.4	62.2	55.5	45.8					53.6	98.4						$11,982
Rio Hondo Elementary	Public	K-5	7731 East Muller St.	Downey	90241	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3568	812	33	24.6	74.0%	38 (4.7%)	19 (2.3%)	735 (90.5%)	15 (1.8%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.5%)	55.6	2249^th of 5874 public elementary schools	61.7%		50.9	2497^th of 5883 public elementary schools	57.6%	248	28.7				28.7	51.6	45.2	51.2					49.3	50.8	38.1	33.3					40.6	93.9	97.0	98.5	96.2	93.9	96.2	$11,937
Rio San Gabriel Elementary	Public	K-5	9338 Gotham St.	Downey	90241	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3567	756	31	24.3	64.2%	60 (7.9%)	12 (1.6%)	656 (86.8%)	20 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	6 (0.8%)	60.1	2052^nd of 5874 public elementary schools	65.1%		58	2123^rd of 5883 public elementary schools	63.9%	71	28.6				28.6	58.9	49.6	46.8					51.3	67.0	40.9	33.3					45.8	91.2	94.7	97.4	95.6	92.9	96.5	$12,067
Sussman (Edward A.) Middle	Public	6-8	12500 Birchdale Ave.	Downey	90242	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3572	1,122	48	23.3	78.7%	29 (2.6%)	45 (4.0%)	1,009 (89.9%)	31 (2.8%)	2 (0.2%)	3 (0.3%)	3 (0.3%)	39.6	1472^nd of 2802 public middle schools	47.5%		41.5	1413^th of 2740 public middle schools	48.4%	59		20.9			20.9				36.4	44.7	37.7		39.9				25.7	24.4	21.1		23.8							$12,312
Ward (E. W.) Elementary	Public	K-5	8851 East Adoree St.	Downey	90242	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3591	576	23	25.0	80.7%	25 (4.3%)	11 (1.9%)	529 (91.8%)	6 (1.0%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.3%)	36.2	3415^th of 5874 public elementary schools	41.9%		29.6	3903^rd of 5883 public elementary schools	33.7%	488	20.9				20.9	33.3	36.7	45.5					39.1	40.7	24.7	21.8					28.1	98.1	98.1			98.1		$15,147
Warren (Earl) High	Public	9-12	8141 De Palma St.	Downey	90241	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 869-7306	3,437	146	23.5	69.6%	133 (3.9%)	134 (3.9%)	3,078 (89.6%)	62 (1.8%)	1 (0.0%)	8 (0.2%)	18 (0.5%)	61.1	632^nd of 2348 public high schools	73.1%		52.1	881^st of 2123 public high schools	58.5%	249			30.2	13.8	29.6							69.4	69.4							21.7	21.7							$15,579
Stauffer (Mary R.) Middle	Public	6-8	11985 Old River School Rd.	Downey	90242	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3565	1,332	55	24.1	74.6%	55 (4.1%)	36 (2.7%)	1,205 (90.5%)	25 (1.9%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.2%)	8 (0.6%)	55.7	1019^th of 2802 public middle schools	63.6%		52	1113^th of 2740 public middle schools	59.4%	94		26.3			26.3				45.0	57.2	44.8		49.1				33.3	37.6	24.8		31.9							$18,059
Williams (Spencer V.) Elementary	Public	K-3	7530 East Arnett St.	Downey	90241	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3564	630	27	23.3	69.8%	35 (5.6%)	11 (1.7%)	561 (89.0%)	18 (2.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	4 (0.6%)								(n/a)						54.4							54.4	54.9							54.9	97.9	98.4		98.4	97.9		$11,515
Unsworth (Edith) Elementary	Public	K-5	9001 Lindsey Ave.	Downey	90240	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3576	645	28	23.0	67.1%	38 (5.9%)	13 (2.0%)	562 (87.1%)	25 (3.9%)	2 (0.3%)	2 (0.3%)	3 (0.5%)	75.9	1332^nd of 5874 public elementary schools	77.3%		72.6	1499^th of 5883 public elementary schools	74.5%	167	39.1				39.1	52.4	56.7	65.1					58.2	60.6	59.6	50.0					56.6	94.4	96.3	98.2	94.4	95.4	94.4	$12,597
Old River Elementary	Public	4-5	11995 Old River School Rd.	Downey	90242	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3561	657	22	29.8	71.1%	32 (4.9%)	15 (2.3%)	587 (89.3%)	14 (2.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	8 (1.2%)	54.1	2329^th of 5874 public elementary schools	60.4%		56.6	2208^th of 5883 public elementary schools	62.5%	121	25.2				25.2		50.5	49.1					49.8		43.5	35.3					39.2							$11,462
Lewis (Ed C.) Elementary	Public	K-5	13220 South Bellflower Blvd.	Downey	90242	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3590	847	33	25.5	67.5%	41 (4.8%)	31 (3.7%)	734 (86.7%)	27 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.2%)	12 (1.4%)	52	2438^th of 5874 public elementary schools	58.5%		49.8	2541^st of 5883 public elementary schools	56.8%	103	25.8				25.8	52.2	46.9	45.7					48.1	62.7	32.4	24.7					38.8	94.3	95.1	95.9	94.3	94.3	95.1	$12,015
Woodruff Academy	Public	7-12	12330 Woodruff Ave.	Downey	90241	Los Angeles County	Downey Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 904-3552	17	1	17.3	76.5%	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (100.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4.2	2330^th of 2348 public high schools	0.8%					(n/a)													0.0								0.0
Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall	Public	6-12	7285 East Quill Dr.	Downey	90242	Los Angeles County	Los Angeles County Office of Education	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 803-6648																			(n/a)

Cities Near Downey

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Norwalk	0.87 mi	22	470^th
Santa Fe Springs	1.46 mi	5	214^th
Pico Rivera	1.98 mi	15	525^th
Bellflower	2.11 mi	12	485^th
Bell Gardens	2.92 mi	7	751^st

See the top CA California cities

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.