Beta You're viewing our redesigned school page. Prefer the classic layout?

Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary

Public Grades K-5
47th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 5,817 California Elementary Schools
Better than 99% of California elementary schools
Summary

Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary serves 469 students in grades K–5 in Manhattan Beach, a coastal South Bay community. Its strongest headline is that it led the nearby K–5 schools with comparable 2025–2026 scores in both ELA and math, with proficiency of 86% and 88%, respectively.

Results are especially strong compared with state averages: ELA proficiency was 86% at Aurelia, versus 49% statewide and 84% in Manhattan Beach Unified; math was 88%, versus 38% statewide and 75% in the district. Aurelia also exceeded nearby-school averages of 77% in ELA and 78% in math. Science is a relative weakness locally, despite remaining well above state and district results: Aurelia scored 77%, compared with a 71% nearby average, and four of eight nearby schools scored higher, including Meadows Avenue Elementary, Opal Robinson Elementary, and Pacific Elementary. Fifth grade is another relative soft spot: ELA proficiency was 84%, 7 points below the district, and math was 79%, 6 points below.

Across the four years reported, ELA and math results were broadly flat, while science rose 4 points overall but fell 13 points in 2025–2026 alone. SchoolDigger ranked Aurelia 47th of 5,804 California schools for 2025–2026, at the 99th percentile with 5 stars. The student-teacher ratio was 23.4 in 2024–2025, and 5% of students were free/reduced lunch eligible that year. Chronic absenteeism was also low, at 2% in 2025–2026, compared with 8% in the district and 18% statewide. One notable subgroup trend: SchoolDigger’s statewide percentile for how well the school serves Multi-racial Students rose from 81 in 2023–2024 to 98 in 2025–2026, close to the school’s overall 99th percentile.

469
Students ?
23.4
Student/teacher ratio ?
$21,415
Per pupil spending ?
4.9%
Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?
All students in California receive free school meals.
≥ 98%
Kindergartners with all required immunizations (2024-25)
 110 South Rowell
       Manhattan Beach, CA  90266-6962

(310) 798-6223

District: Manhattan Beach Unified


Students who attend Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary usually attend:

Middle:    Manhattan Beach Middle
High:    Mira Costa High
Racial breakdown:

White:
44.1%
Asian:
20.5%
Two or more races:
17.5%
more
 See top rated California elementary schools

 Compare Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 97th percentile in 2015 → 99th in 2026
Strengths
✓Test scores above the California average (85% vs 42% meeting standards)
✓Ranks in the top 1% of California elementary schools
✓Among the top-ranked schools in Manhattan Beach Unified
Worth a look
!Large classes — about 23 students per teacher
Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?
This school85%
District avg78%
California avg42%
47th of 5,817
California public elementary schools ?
Top 1%▲ up 2 pts since 2016
See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →
★★★★★
SchoolDigger rating ?
1st of 5Elementary Schools in the Manhattan Beach Unified
17th of 1,530Manhattan Beach 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)
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankCalifornia percentileRating
202698.247 of 581799.2%★★★★★
202598.919 of 585799.7%★★★★★
202497.7105 of 586998.2%★★★★★
202398.187 of 585998.5%★★★★★
202297.4158 of 588397.3%★★★★★
201998.441 of 578999.3%★★★★★
201897.2129 of 566297.7%★★★★★
201797.2154 of 569297.3%★★★★★
201697.0159 of 561497.2%★★★★★
201597.1182 of 561196.8%★★★★★
201394.1173 of 553096.9%★★★★★
201292.6240 of 539095.5%★★★★★
201194.4162 of 537797.0%★★★★★
201095.985 of 531498.4%★★★★★
200997.338 of 519399.3%★★★★★
200897.549 of 511399.0%★★★★★
200798.052 of 511399.0%★★★★★
200698.245 of 481899.1%★★★★★
200598.238 of 482299.2%★★★★★
200498.639 of 480999.2%★★★★★

Asian

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankCalifornia percentileRating
202685.253 of 121095.6%★★★★★
202587.720 of 120398.3%★★★★★
202484.958 of 120595.2%★★★★★
202376.3246 of 119079.3%★★★★☆
202276.4242 of 115479.0%★★★★☆
201978.3172 of 114985.0%★★★★☆
201879.1153 of 107185.7%★★★★☆

Disabled

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankCalifornia percentileRating
202297.171 of 222796.8%★★★★★
201999.810 of 258599.6%★★★★★
201899.68 of 212899.6%★★★★★

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankCalifornia percentileRating
202698.033 of 558199.4%★★★★★
202598.519 of 559799.7%★★★★★
202497.0115 of 561298.0%★★★★★
202397.777 of 560998.6%★★★★★
202296.3203 of 563596.4%★★★★★
201997.369 of 549298.7%★★★★★
201895.0223 of 541395.9%★★★★★

Hispanic

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankCalifornia percentileRating
202692.1255 of 509495.0%★★★★★
202596.4110 of 510797.8%★★★★★
202492.8254 of 510795.0%★★★★★

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankCalifornia percentileRating
202496.2191 of 551796.5%★★★★★

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankCalifornia percentileRating
202697.573 of 560398.7%★★★★★
202598.430 of 562899.5%★★★★★
202497.0120 of 564397.9%★★★★★
202397.5104 of 563898.2%★★★★★
202296.9167 of 566397.1%★★★★★
201998.526 of 551099.5%★★★★★
201897.396 of 543198.2%★★★★★

Multi-racial

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankCalifornia percentileRating
202689.514 of 75398.1%★★★★★
202585.753 of 71892.6%★★★★★
202478.7127 of 67081.0%★★★★☆
202377.2140 of 66979.1%★★★★☆
202266.7225 of 61063.1%★★★☆☆
201984.335 of 44592.1%★★★★★
201881.241 of 33987.9%★★★★☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankCalifornia percentileRating
202697.957 of 292798.1%★★★★★
202597.752 of 284798.2%★★★★★
202497.455 of 263597.9%★★★★★
202395.889 of 242096.3%★★★★★

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankCalifornia percentileRating
202691.265 of 253697.4%★★★★★
202594.89 of 259899.7%★★★★★
202490.092 of 265196.5%★★★★★
202392.832 of 266198.8%★★★★★
202290.884 of 272696.9%★★★★★
201994.511 of 283499.6%★★★★★
201886.4207 of 273792.4%★★★★★
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)
Female (2026)99th percentile~ school
Male (2026)99th percentile~ school
Multi-racial (2026)98th percentile~ school
Special Education (2026)98th percentile~ school
White (2026)97th percentile~ school
Disabled (2022)97th percentile~ school
Low Socio Economic Status (2024)97th percentile~ school
Asian (2026)96th percentile-4 vs school
Hispanic (2026)95th percentile-4 vs school
By subject vs California (2025-2026) ?
Mathematics88%+50 vs state
English Language Arts/Literacy86%+37 vs state
Science77%+41 vs state

★
No ratings yet
Be the first to rate Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary and help other families decide.
Rate Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary
Have first-hand experience? A quick rating - and a sentence or two about what stands out (teachers, academics, safety, communication) - helps other families know what to expect.
Takes about a minute. We email you a link to verify your review - your address is never shown publicly.
Tap a star to rate
Reviews
No written reviews yet. If you know this school, be the first to share what stands out.



Schools Near Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary

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






Frequently Asked Questions about Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary

Students at Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary are 44% White, 20% Asian, 17% Two or more races, 16% Hispanic, 1% African American.

In the 2024-25 school year, 469 students attended Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary.

Yes! Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary is one of the best elementary schools in the state. It ranks 47th of 5817 California elementary schools.

Students who attend Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Manhattan Beach Middle
High : Mira Costa High

Rate Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary!



Sign up for updates!

Be the first to know when there is an update for Aurelia Pennekamp Elementary!


Latest California data All new data »
2013–14 through 2024–25 immunization rates (updated)NewOct 19, 2026
2025–26 attendance data, dropout rates & graduation ratesNewOct 15, 2026
2025–26 CAST, CSA Spanish & Smarter Balanced Assessments scoresNewOct 15, 2026
2024–25 school spending dataJul 1, 2026


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.

Diagnostics