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Bakersfield City


At a glance
863rdof 968 California districts▲ 494
Better than 10% of California districts
1300 Baker St.
Bakersfield, CA 93305-4326
·(661) 631-4600·All California district rankings →
Statewide performance 2017–2026
2026: better than 10.9% of districts
45
Schools
28,365
Students
Top rankedDowntown Elementary1239th of 5,804 California elementary schools
▲
Biggest riser
Harding Elementary up 1,089 spots statewide this year
◉
Smallest classes
William Penn Elementary 16.7 students per teacher
SchoolDigger ratings
2★
1★
0★
2 schools without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)
Summary:

The supplied list covers 44 schools in Bakersfield City: 34 elementary schools and 10 middle schools. Across the schools, average proficiency was 30% in English language arts (ELA), 17% in math, and 19% in science, compared with state rates of 49%, 38%, and 36%. These are unweighted school averages, and schools serve different grade spans, so same-grade comparisons are more useful when available. The most important finding for families is how uneven results are across the area: a few schools stand out, while others are far below the state and local averages.

Downtown Elementary leads the list in all three subjects, with 64% in ELA, 54% in math, and 57% in science—15, 16, and 21 percentage points above the state, respectively. Its grade 7 results are also strong: 82% in ELA and 62% in math, compared with state rates of 51% and 38%. Paul L. Cato Middle and Cesar E. Chavez Elementary also stand out: Cato reached 55% in ELA and 40% in science, while Chavez scored 53% in ELA and 37% in math. At the low end, Rafer Johnson recorded 9% in ELA and 0% in science; Abraham Lincoln Junior High had the lowest math result, at 3%.

Average results improved from 2024–25 to 2025–26 by 2 percentage points in ELA, 1 point in math, and 3 points in science, but schools moved in different directions. Harding Elementary gained 9 points in math and 22 in science, while Dr. Douglas K. Fletcher Elementary fell 14 points in science. SchoolDigger ranks Downtown in the 79th percentile with 4 stars and Cato in the 66th percentile with 3 stars. Context measures do not follow a simple performance pattern: in 2024–25, free/reduced lunch eligible rates were 81% at Harding, 66% at Chavez, and 54% at Cato, all schools with notable results in at least one subject.

Ranking:
Map legend
E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private




Districts nearby

See the top CA California districts
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.

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