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Bruce (Robert) Elementary

Public Grades K-6

5583^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 5% of California elementary schools

Summary

Bruce (Robert) Elementary is a large K-6 school serving about 1,050 students in the Santa Maria-Bonita district, operating in a high-need community where nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

Academically, the school faces significant challenges, consistently ranking in the bottom 5-10% of all California elementary schools, with proficiency rates in English, math, and science that are well below both district and state averages. However, the school has made impressive progress in one key area: chronic absenteeism has dropped dramatically from over 36% to just 11.9%, which is now better than the district and state averages. It's also notable that the school spends more per student than most other nearby schools in the district.

When compared to other local schools with similar student populations, Bruce's academic performance is at the lower end. For instance, Ontiveros (Juan Pacifico) Elementary achieves proficiency rates more than double Bruce's, showing that improvement is possible within the same community. This contrast, along with the fact that Bruce's increased funding and improved attendance have not yet led to better test scores, suggests the school may need to examine different instructional strategies to help students succeed.

1,050

Students ?

22.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$20,740

Per pupil spending ?

96.1%

Free/discounted lunch ?

601 West Alvin Ave.
Santa Maria, CA 93458-3012

(805) 361-6940

District: Santa Maria-Bonita

Students who attend Bruce (Robert) Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	El Camino Junior High
High:	Pioneer Valley High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

97.7%

White:

1.0%

Two or more races:

0.6%

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At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 5th percentile in 2013 → 5th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (15% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (5th percentile)

!English Language Arts/Literacy scores 32 pts below the California average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school15%

District avg20%

California avg41%

5,583^rd of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Bottom 5%▲ up 2 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

17^th of 17Elementary Schools in the Santa Maria-Bonita

1409^th of 1,543Santa Maria-Bonita 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	10.8	5583 of 5857	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	10.7	5651 of 5869	3.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.1	5636 of 5859	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	12.3	5585 of 5883	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	9.7	5581 of 5789	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	8.3	5516 of 5662	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	8.6	5562 of 5692	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	9.2	5481 of 5614	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	10.6	5442 of 5611	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	10.8	5259 of 5530	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	13.5	5046 of 5390	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	11.5	5148 of 5377	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	9.8	5162 of 5314	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	10.1	4996 of 5193	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	15.4	4634 of 5113	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	24.0	4009 of 5113	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	15.6	4319 of 4818	10.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	16.3	4235 of 4822	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	15.3	4328 of 4809	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	17.9	2166 of 2227	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	19.0	2403 of 2585	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	25.7	1664 of 2128	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	35.1	2177 of 3162	31.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	30.1	2525 of 3245	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	30.8	2547 of 3311	23.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	23.0	3009 of 3275	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	20.4	3022 of 3246	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	10.2	5418 of 5597	3.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	10.7	5443 of 5612	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	10.3	5482 of 5609	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	10.9	5490 of 5635	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	12.8	5160 of 5492	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	8.4	5301 of 5413	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	13.9	4814 of 5107	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.8	4829 of 5107	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.1	4835 of 5087	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	15.5	4770 of 5084	6.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	12.7	4760 of 4963	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	10.4	4717 of 4830	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	34.5	313 of 429	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.7	316 of 364	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	30.5	263 of 335	21.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	32.1	267 of 356	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	13.3	5154 of 5460	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.9	5281 of 5517	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	13.9	5103 of 5363	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	16.3	4892 of 5264	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	12.7	4962 of 5173	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.1	4906 of 5084	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	12.7	5270 of 5628	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.0	5375 of 5643	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	13.4	5276 of 5638	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	14.9	5222 of 5663	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	8.0	5419 of 5510	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.8	5285 of 5431	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Migrant

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	18.6	67 of 74	9.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	31.2	48 of 68	29.4%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	34.0	1769 of 2847	37.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	20.4	2374 of 2635	9.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	24.9	1912 of 2420	21.0%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Special Education (2025)38th percentile+33 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)31st percentile+27 vs school

Homeless (2025)27th percentile+22 vs school

Migrant (2024)9th percentile+6 vs school

Male (2025)6th percentile~ school

Hispanic (2025)6th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)6th percentile~ school

Female (2025)3rd percentile~ school

Disabled (2022)3rd percentile~ school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy17%-32 vs state

Mathematics15%-23 vs state

Science9%-24 vs state

★

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Schools Near Bruce (Robert) Elementary

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 (2024)
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 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 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 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
Bruce (Robert) Elementary	Public	K-6	601 West Alvin Ave.	Santa Maria	93458	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-6940	1,050	47	22.3	96.1%	10 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1,026 (97.7%)	4 (0.4%)	4 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (0.6%)	10.8	5583^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	4.7%		10.7	5651^st of 5869 public elementary schools	3.7%	68	8.6	8.6	12.0	17.1	26.3	11.9	16.5	17.6	20.5	14.2	6.7	14.6	98.1						$20,740	$2,945	$17,795
Fairlawn Elementary	Public	K-6	120 Mary Dr.	Santa Maria	93458	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-7500	716	34	20.8	97.6%	4 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	705 (98.5%)	4 (0.6%)	3 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	14.9	5272^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	10.0%		18.4	4993^rd of 5869 public elementary schools	14.9%	279	11.8	11.8	21.1	22.2	16.8	29.7	22.4	16.5	18.9	14.7	18.5	17.1	96.5			97.4			$20,387	$2,252	$18,135
Alvin Elementary	Public	K-6	301 East Alvin Ave.	Santa Maria	93454	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-6760	998	41	24.2	97.6%	12 (1.2%)	1 (0.1%)	973 (97.5%)	3 (0.3%)	5 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.4%)	12	5502^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	6.1%		14.8	5322^nd of 5869 public elementary schools	9.3%	180	12.8	12.8	17.2	17.4	22.2	15.9	18.1	22.3	16.4	16.7	6.7	15.6	97.2						$19,601	$2,380	$17,221
Oakley (Calvin C.) Elementary	Public	K-6	1120 West Harding St.	Santa Maria	93458	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-7620	849	40	21.0	95.9%	4 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	830 (97.8%)	11 (1.3%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.2%)	15	5261^st of 5857 public elementary schools	10.2%		14.8	5321^st of 5869 public elementary schools	9.3%	60	13.5	13.5	14.2	25.9	20.0	17.2	19.4	18.2	33.0	12.7	11.1	19.0	95.6				96.4		$20,350	$2,560	$17,790
Rice (William) Elementary	Public	K-6	700 East Vickie Ave.	Santa Maria	93454	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-7740	887	40	21.9	95.2%	16 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	847 (95.5%)	3 (0.3%)	7 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (1.6%)	11	5567^th of 5857 public elementary schools	5.0%		13	5480^th of 5869 public elementary schools	6.6%	87	5.1	5.1	19.7	13.0	13.8	25.6	18.1	24.1	13.4	6.8	13.3	14.4							$12,075	$2,455	$9,620
Ontiveros (Juan Pacifico) Elementary	Public	K-6	930 West Rancho Verde	Santa Maria	93458	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-7680	869	35	24.8	94.2%	8 (0.9%)	1 (0.1%)	840 (96.7%)	10 (1.2%)	6 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.5%)	40.6	3177^th of 5857 public elementary schools	45.8%		44.8	2878^th of 5869 public elementary schools	51.0%	299	22.1	22.1	32.5	44.4	40.2	37.7	38.5	49.6	46.3	30.1	22.8	37.2							$20,139	$2,386	$17,753
Taylor (Ida Redmond) Elementary	Public	K-6	1921 North Carlotti Dr.	Santa Maria	93454	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-6250	849	45	19.0	85.7%	36 (4.2%)	2 (0.2%)	762 (89.8%)	33 (3.9%)	2 (0.2%)	2 (0.2%)	12 (1.4%)	17.3	5074^th of 5857 public elementary schools	13.4%		18.2	5009^th of 5869 public elementary schools	14.7%	65	12.4	12.4	17.2	26.3	20.7	30.3	24.3	19.0	21.6	10.7	24.1	19.0	98.3			98.3		98.3	$21,265	$3,299	$17,966
Sanchez (David J.) Elementary	Public	K-6	804 West Liberty St.	Santa Maria	93458	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-4625	654	31	20.8	96.2%	4 (0.6%)	2 (0.3%)	645 (98.6%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24.4	4459^th of 5857 public elementary schools	23.9%		25.2	4353^rd of 5869 public elementary schools	25.8%	106	16.5	16.5	15.1	24.4	23.4	40.2	25.9	34.5	28.4	11.5	33.0	27.3	95.1	95.1	97.0	98.0	96.0	98.0	$20,617	$2,295	$18,322
Miller (Isaac) Elementary	Public	K-6	410 East Camino Colegio	Santa Maria	93454	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-7560	883	40	21.8	94.5%	20 (2.3%)	2 (0.2%)	839 (95.0%)	5 (0.6%)	7 (0.8%)	2 (0.2%)	8 (0.9%)	16	5179^th of 5857 public elementary schools	11.6%		18	5030^th of 5869 public elementary schools	14.3%	149	12.4	12.4	24.1	22.0	26.8	22.9	24.0	27.4	21.6	11.5	14.4	19.0							$19,563	$2,237	$17,326
Tunnell (Martin Luther) Elementary	Public	K-6	1248 East Dena Way	Santa Maria	93454	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-7940	917	42	21.6	84.2%	56 (6.1%)	2 (0.2%)	819 (89.3%)	18 (2.0%)	4 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	17 (1.9%)	17.2	5077^th of 5857 public elementary schools	13.3%		21.8	4701^st of 5869 public elementary schools	19.9%	376	17.7	17.7	27.6	18.4	26.7	19.3	23.3	30.3	15.0	14.0	17.7	19.2	92.3	94.4		93.7	96.5	96.5	$19,107	$2,315	$16,792

Frequently Asked Questions about Bruce (Robert) Elementary

What schools do graduates of Bruce (Robert) Elementary attend?

Students who attend Bruce (Robert) Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : El Camino Junior High
High : Pioneer Valley High

What district is Bruce (Robert) Elementary in?

Santa Maria-Bonita

What is the racial makeup of Bruce (Robert) Elementary?

Students at Bruce (Robert) Elementary are 98% Hispanic.

Is Bruce (Robert) Elementary a good school?

Bruce (Robert) Elementary ranks in the bottom 4.7% of California elementary schools.

How many students attend Bruce (Robert) Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,050 students attended Bruce (Robert) Elementary.

Rate Bruce (Robert) Elementary!

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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.