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Carl E. Gilbert Elementary

Public Grades K-5

5174^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 12% of California elementary schools

Summary

Carl E. Gilbert Elementary is a K-5 public school serving 490 students in the Buena Park Elementary district, but it faces significant academic challenges, ranking in the bottom 12% of all California elementary schools.

The school's academic performance is substantially lower than other schools in the area, with only about 20% of students proficient in English and Math, compared to over 60% at nearby Charles G. Emery Elementary and over 70% at Buena Terra Elementary. A major concern is chronic absenteeism, with 24% of students missing significant school time, which is much higher than the district average and far above rates at top-performing schools like Cerritos Elementary (3.9%). The school also has a very high student-teacher ratio of 27-to-1 and serves a student population where 94% are economically disadvantaged.

Notably, the school's performance has declined over the past decade, and it spends more per student than some higher-achieving schools. This shows that factors beyond just funding, such as attendance, classroom size, and instructional practices, are critical. While the school serves a community with significant needs, other schools with similar challenges in different districts, like Raymond Temple Elementary in the Centralia Elementary district, achieve stronger results, indicating that improvement is possible with focused strategies.

490

Students ?

27.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

$20,809

Per pupil spending ?

93.9%

Free/discounted lunch ?

7255 Eighth St.
Buena Park, CA 90621-2203

(714) 522-7281

District: Buena Park Elementary

Students who attend Carl E. Gilbert Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Buena Park Middle
High:	Buena Park High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

87.6%

African American:

3.9%

Asian:

3.5%

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At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 27th percentile in 2013 → 12th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (20% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (12th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 15 percentile points since 2013

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school20%

District avg38%

California avg41%

5,174^th of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Bottom 12%▼ down 9 pts since 2015

From bottom 20% (2015) to bottom 12% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^th of 5Elementary Schools in the Buena Park Elementary

855^th of 1,543Buena Park Elementary 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	16.1	5174 of 5857	11.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.7	4962 of 5869	15.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.6	4487 of 5859	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	25.6	4284 of 5883	27.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	31.3	3828 of 5789	33.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	30.9	3760 of 5662	33.6%	★★☆☆☆
2017	28.6	3942 of 5692	30.7%	★★☆☆☆
2016	30.9	3704 of 5614	34.0%	★★☆☆☆
2015	21.4	4479 of 5611	20.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	30.3	4018 of 5530	27.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	30.1	3944 of 5390	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	29.4	4037 of 5377	24.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	42.7	3007 of 5314	43.4%	★★☆☆☆
2009	46.3	2691 of 5193	48.2%	★★☆☆☆
2008	33.7	3352 of 5113	34.4%	★★☆☆☆
2007	36.1	3163 of 5113	38.1%	★★☆☆☆
2006	37.5	2856 of 4818	40.7%	★★☆☆☆
2005	30.0	3273 of 4822	32.1%	★★☆☆☆
2004	36.7	2829 of 4809	41.2%	★★☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	20.8	1976 of 2227	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	37.1	2031 of 3162	35.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	62.5	691 of 3245	78.7%	★★★★☆
2022	46.9	1369 of 3311	58.7%	★★★☆☆
2019	61.7	768 of 3275	76.5%	★★★★☆
2018	63.6	737 of 3246	77.3%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	16.5	4981 of 5597	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	19.7	4735 of 5612	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	22.2	4510 of 5609	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	29.0	3825 of 5635	32.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	29.7	3848 of 5492	29.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	26.6	4043 of 5413	25.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	21.3	4366 of 5107	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	24.6	4139 of 5107	19.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	32.8	3476 of 5087	31.7%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.5	3482 of 5084	31.5%	★★☆☆☆
2019	40.1	2954 of 4963	40.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	40.1	2859 of 4830	40.8%	★★☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	44.8	226 of 429	47.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	21.1	330 of 364	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	23.0	4517 of 5460	17.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	25.1	4374 of 5517	20.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	35.5	3418 of 5363	36.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	34.3	3497 of 5264	33.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	44.6	2771 of 5173	46.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	44.0	2752 of 5084	45.9%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	17.2	4939 of 5628	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	19.0	4815 of 5643	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	25.8	4157 of 5638	26.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	23.5	4367 of 5663	22.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	33.5	3503 of 5510	36.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	35.3	3322 of 5431	38.8%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	38.0	1425 of 2635	45.9%	★★☆☆☆

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)

Homeless (2025)47th percentile+36 vs school

Special Education (2024)46th percentile+30 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)36th percentile+20 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)17th percentile+6 vs school

Hispanic (2025)15th percentile+3 vs school

Male (2025)12th percentile~ school

Disabled (2022)11th percentile-16 vs school

Female (2025)11th percentile~ school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

Mathematics22%-15 vs state

English Language Arts/Literacy20%-29 vs state

Science16%-16 vs state

★

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Schools Near Carl E. Gilbert Elementary

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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 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)	% Varicella (2022)	% DTP (2022)	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	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	% Varicella KG	% DTP KG	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Carl E. Gilbert Elementary	Public	K-5	7255 Eighth St.	Buena Park	90621	Orange County	Buena Park Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 522-7281	490	18	27.0	93.9%	4 (0.8%)	19 (3.9%)	429 (87.6%)	17 (3.5%)	1 (0.2%)	5 (1.0%)	15 (3.1%)	16.1	5174^th of 5857 public elementary schools	11.7%		18.7	4962^nd of 5869 public elementary schools	15.5%	212	16.3	16.3	16.0	21.5	21.3		19.7	26.3	21.8	19.0		22.3	98.1		98.1	$20,809	$19,576	$1,233
Mabel L. Pendleton Elementary	Public	K-5	7101 Stanton Ave.	Buena Park	90621	Orange County	Buena Park Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 521-8568	365	19	19.7	87.7%	12 (3.3%)	13 (3.6%)	285 (78.1%)	37 (10.1%)	1 (0.3%)	3 (0.8%)	14 (3.8%)	33.9	3656^th of 5857 public elementary schools	37.6%		34.6	3558^th of 5869 public elementary schools	39.4%	98	10.9	10.9	24.3	47.3	28.9		35.0	27.0	58.2	13.0		34.8				$21,002	$19,782	$1,220
Arthur F. Corey Elementary	Public	K-5	7351 Holder St.	Buena Park	90620	Orange County	Buena Park Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 522-8389	341	14	24.3	73.9%	34 (10.0%)	18 (5.3%)	201 (58.9%)	69 (20.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	18 (5.3%)	60.5	2035^th of 5857 public elementary schools	65.3%		67	1730^th of 5869 public elementary schools	70.5%	305	25.4	25.4	49.0	50.9	50.8		50.3	56.9	58.5	43.3		52.1				$23,134	$21,916	$1,218
James A. Whitaker Elementary	Public	K-5	8401 Montana St.	Buena Park	90621	Orange County	Buena Park Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 521-9770	559	27	20.7	91.9%	26 (4.7%)	17 (3.0%)	453 (81.0%)	42 (7.5%)	2 (0.4%)	5 (0.9%)	14 (2.5%)	21.5	4709^th of 5857 public elementary schools	19.6%		23.4	4543^rd of 5869 public elementary schools	22.6%	166	15.5	15.5	17.8	28.6	27.8		25.2	25.4	30.1	24.7		26.7	96.5	98.3	97.4	$19,541	$18,322	$1,219
Raymond Temple Elementary	Public	K-6	7800 Holder St.	Buena Park	90620	Orange County	Centralia Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 228-3290	431	18	23.9	78.2%	37 (8.6%)	8 (1.9%)	267 (61.9%)	83 (19.3%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.2%)	31 (7.2%)	60.1	2066^th of 5857 public elementary schools	64.7%		70	1594^th of 5869 public elementary schools	72.8%	472	28.8	28.8	55.9	49.1	38.6	53.6	49.3	60.0	47.4	42.4	42.9	48.3				$26,889	$24,928	$1,961
Glen H. Dysinger Senior Elementary	Public	K-6	7770 Camellia Dr.	Buena Park	90620	Orange County	Centralia Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 228-3240	468	19	24.6	65.8%	78 (16.7%)	7 (1.5%)	256 (54.7%)	87 (18.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (8.5%)	57	2211^th of 5857 public elementary schools	62.3%		60.5	2046^th of 5869 public elementary schools	65.1%	165	40.5	40.5	48.0	40.7	51.4	46.2	47.0	55.3	44.4	31.1	42.4	43.3				$23,961	$22,118	$1,843
Charles G. Emery Elementary	Public	K-5	8600 Somerset St.	Buena Park	90621	Orange County	Buena Park Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 521-5134	646	25	26.3	55.3%	31 (4.8%)	7 (1.1%)	201 (31.1%)	368 (57.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	38 (5.9%)	83.1	1013^th of 5857 public elementary schools	82.7%		88.6	772^nd of 5869 public elementary schools	86.8%	241	54.4	54.4	50.5	64.2	73.5		62.8	58.9	69.1	65.8		64.8				$19,941	$18,806	$1,135
Escalona Elementary	Public	K-5	15135 Escalona Rd.	La Mirada	90638	Los Angeles County	Norwalk-La Mirada Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(562) 210-2745	424	19	22.3	51.7%	58 (13.7%)	5 (1.2%)	304 (71.7%)	35 (8.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (5.2%)	66.4	1769^th of 5857 public elementary schools	69.8%		72.9	1455^th of 5869 public elementary schools	75.2%	314	46.3	46.3	46.4	55.6	64.8		54.8	56.5	42.6	40.7		47.5				$28,887	$28,398	$489
Buena Terra Elementary	Public	K-6	8299 Holder St.	Buena Park	90620	Orange County	Centralia Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 228-3220	627	24	26.1	56.0%	105 (16.7%)	13 (2.1%)	242 (38.6%)	214 (34.1%)	1 (0.2%)	5 (0.8%)	47 (7.5%)	93.2	460^th of 5857 public elementary schools	92.1%		94.3	408^th of 5869 public elementary schools	93.0%	52	57.0	57.0	62.9	82.8	82.8	72.1	74.7	75.3	81.3	76.3	76.7	77.1	96.7			$22,149	$20,310	$1,839
Valencia Park Elementary	Public	K-6	3441 West Valencia Dr.	Fullerton	92833	Orange County	Fullerton Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 447-7755	398	13	30.6	85.4%	9 (2.3%)	5 (1.3%)	359 (90.2%)	13 (3.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (2.8%)	23.4	4552^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	22.3%		19.7	4895^th of 5869 public elementary schools	16.6%	343	18.0	18.0	25.0	33.3	36.7	29.6	31.3	22.5	24.2	30.0	10.7	21.7				$16,692	$15,710	$982

Frequently Asked Questions about Carl E. Gilbert Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Carl E. Gilbert Elementary?

Students at Carl E. Gilbert Elementary are 88% Hispanic, 4% African American, 3% Asian, 3% Two or more races, 1% Pacific Islander.

How many students attend Carl E. Gilbert Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 490 students attended Carl E. Gilbert Elementary.

What schools do graduates of Carl E. Gilbert Elementary attend?

Students who attend Carl E. Gilbert Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Buena Park Middle
High : Buena Park High

Is Carl E. Gilbert Elementary a good school?

Carl E. Gilbert Elementary ranks in the bottom 11.7% of California elementary schools.

What district is Carl E. Gilbert Elementary in?

Buena Park Elementary

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Latest California data All new data »

2024–25 school spending dataJul 1, 2026

2024–25 attendance dataMar 13, 2026

2024–25 CSA Spanish test scoresDec 22, 2025

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesNov 14, 2025

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.