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Buena Vista Elementary

Q: Is Buena Vista Elementary a good school?

Buena Vista Elementary ranks 1388 th of 5817 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-6

1388^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,817 California Elementary Schools

Better than 76% of California elementary schools

Summary

Buena Vista Elementary serves 713 students in grades K–6 in Bakersfield, California, in the Panama-Buena Vista Union district. Its 2025–26 results show a clear local strength in English language arts (ELA) and math, while science is a relative weakness: among eight nearby K–6 schools, Buena Vista ranks third in ELA and math, and fourth in science.

Buena Vista’s ELA proficiency was 64% and math proficiency was 52%—both above the nearby K–6 averages of 53% and 42%, respectively. Those results were also well above the district’s 49% in ELA and 32% in math, and the state’s 49% and 38%. Science proficiency was 36%, about level with the state’s 36% and below the nearby K–6 average of 38%; it was above the district’s 31%. So, the school’s strongest comparisons are in math and ELA, while science stands out as the clearest opportunity to improve relative to nearby schools.

Scores have risen overall since 2022–23: ELA increased 8 percentage points, math 5 points and science 5 points, though science has fluctuated and its lead over the state narrowed by 1 point. SchoolDigger places Buena Vista at the 76th statewide percentile, with 4 stars, in 2025–26, up 5 percentile points from the prior year; the district is at the 48th percentile and 2 stars. In 2024–25, the school had 25.9 students per teacher and 71% of students were free/reduced lunch eligible. SchoolDigger’s statewide ranking for effectiveness with African American students was notably high: the group ranked at the 95th percentile in 2024–25, compared with the school’s overall 71st percentile. Its ranking for effectiveness with disabled students was much lower in 2021–22, at the 18th percentile versus the school’s overall 74th percentile that year.

713

Students ?

25.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,504

Per pupil spending ?

70.8%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

All students in California receive free school meals.

96%

Kindergartners with all required immunizations (2024-25)

Exemptions: 0% (any vaccine)

6547 Buena Vista Rd.
Bakersfield, CA 93311-9792

(661) 831-0818

District: Panama-Buena Vista Union

Students who attend Buena Vista Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Earl Warren Junior High
High:	Independence High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

51.8%

White:

18.2%

Asian:

17.4%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Buena Vista Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 58th percentile in 2015 → 76th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the California average (55% vs 42% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 24% of California elementary schools

✓Ranking is trending up — up 18 percentile points since 2015

Worth a look

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

!Large classes — about 26 students per teacher

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school55%

District avg39%

California avg42%

1,388^th of 5,817

California public elementary schools ?

Top 24%▲ up 7 pts since 2016

From top 30% (2016) to top 24% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 20Elementary Schools in the Panama-Buena Vista Union

799^th of 1,530Panama-Buena Vista Union 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
2026	74.4	1388 of 5817	76.1%	★★★★☆
2025	68.4	1670 of 5857	71.5%	★★★★☆
2024	67.3	1716 of 5869	70.8%	★★★★☆
2023	68.4	1653 of 5859	71.8%	★★★★☆
2022	71.9	1537 of 5883	73.9%	★★★★☆
2019	62.2	1960 of 5789	66.1%	★★★☆☆
2018	57.0	2185 of 5662	61.4%	★★★☆☆
2017	55.3	2260 of 5692	60.3%	★★★☆☆
2016	66.1	1712 of 5614	69.5%	★★★☆☆
2015	51.8	2355 of 5611	58.0%	★★★☆☆
2013	46.1	2918 of 5530	47.2%	★★☆☆☆
2012	48.5	2714 of 5390	49.6%	★★☆☆☆
2011	52.6	2443 of 5377	54.6%	★★★☆☆
2010	51.6	2485 of 5314	53.2%	★★★☆☆
2009	56.4	2103 of 5193	59.5%	★★★☆☆
2008	44.6	2682 of 5113	47.5%	★★☆☆☆
2007	59.6	1847 of 5113	63.9%	★★★☆☆
2006	59.7	1751 of 4818	63.7%	★★★☆☆
2005	76.4	1078 of 4822	77.6%	★★★★☆
2004	76.9	1037 of 4809	78.4%	★★★★☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	92.7	28 of 569	95.1%	★★★★★
2024	83.4	61 of 593	89.7%	★★★★☆
2018	62.1	205 of 700	70.7%	★★★★☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	50.1	744 of 1210	38.5%	★★☆☆☆
2025	67.7	452 of 1203	62.4%	★★★☆☆
2024	62.1	578 of 1205	52.0%	★★★☆☆
2023	50.8	738 of 1190	38.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	46.5	758 of 1154	34.3%	★★☆☆☆
2019	49.3	714 of 1149	37.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	54.4	619 of 1071	42.2%	★★☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	23.7	1819 of 2227	18.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	53.7	878 of 2585	66.0%	★★★☆☆
2018	49.1	797 of 2128	62.5%	★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	91.2	150 of 3311	95.5%	★★★★★
2018	60.3	837 of 3246	74.2%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	69.6	1508 of 5581	73.0%	★★★★☆
2025	63.8	1786 of 5597	68.1%	★★★☆☆
2024	69.0	1535 of 5612	72.6%	★★★★☆
2023	68.2	1583 of 5609	71.8%	★★★★☆
2022	71.8	1447 of 5635	74.3%	★★★★☆
2019	67.6	1625 of 5492	70.4%	★★★★☆
2018	61.1	1925 of 5413	64.4%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	77.7	809 of 5094	84.1%	★★★★☆
2025	73.9	1012 of 5107	80.2%	★★★★☆
2024	76.5	875 of 5107	82.9%	★★★★☆
2023	78.1	828 of 5087	83.7%	★★★★☆
2022	81.4	689 of 5084	86.4%	★★★★☆
2019	68.4	1239 of 4963	75.0%	★★★★☆
2018	60.5	1599 of 4830	66.9%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	82.9	649 of 5423	88.0%	★★★★☆
2025	80.6	747 of 5460	86.3%	★★★★☆
2024	72.9	1142 of 5517	79.3%	★★★★☆
2023	79.1	804 of 5363	85.0%	★★★★☆
2022	84.3	584 of 5264	88.9%	★★★★☆
2019	68.9	1242 of 5173	76.0%	★★★★☆
2018	55.2	2021 of 5084	60.2%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	75.9	1239 of 5603	77.9%	★★★★☆
2025	69.9	1516 of 5628	73.1%	★★★★☆
2024	62.8	1859 of 5643	67.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	66.0	1679 of 5638	70.2%	★★★★☆
2022	69.4	1562 of 5663	72.4%	★★★★☆
2019	54.3	2243 of 5510	59.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	51.9	2341 of 5431	56.9%	★★★☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	48.2	1126 of 2847	60.4%	★★★☆☆
2024	48.1	1020 of 2635	61.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	37.1	1325 of 2420	45.2%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	56.1	1211 of 2536	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2025	43.2	1590 of 2598	38.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	43.9	1596 of 2651	39.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	38.8	1754 of 2661	34.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	48.5	1507 of 2726	44.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	46.1	1674 of 2834	40.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	42.1	1759 of 2737	35.7%	★★☆☆☆

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)

English Language Learner (2022)95th percentile+22 vs school

African American (2025)95th percentile+24 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)88th percentile+12 vs school

Hispanic (2026)84th percentile+8 vs school

Male (2026)78th percentile~ school

Female (2026)73rd percentile-3 vs school

Special Education (2025)60th percentile-11 vs school

White (2026)52nd percentile-24 vs school

Asian (2026)39th percentile-38 vs school

Disabled (2022)18th percentile-56 vs school

By subject vs California (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy64%+14 vs state

Mathematics52%+14 vs state

Science36%~ state avg

5.0

1 rating

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4★0

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2★0

1★0

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Schools Near Buena Vista 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 Vaccination Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				CAST Science (2026)			Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2026)							Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2026)							Vaccination (2024-25)		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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CAST Science 5th Grade	CAST Science 8th 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 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 8th 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 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics All Grades	Vaccination: Kindergartners with all required immunizations	Vaccination: Exemption rate	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Buena Vista Elementary	Public	K-6	6547 Buena Vista Rd.	Bakersfield	93311	Kern County	Panama-Buena Vista Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 831-0818	713	28	25.9	70.8%	130 (18.2%)	64 (9.0%)	369 (51.8%)	124 (17.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	25 (3.5%)	74.4	1388^th of 5817 public elementary schools	76.1%		68.4	1670^th of 5857 public elementary schools	71.5%	282	36.1		36.1	62.8	62.0	65.0	64.4			63.5	62.3	58.4	37.1	51.0			51.9	96%	0%	$16,504	$1,203	$15,301
Grow Public Schools	Public, Charter	K-8	4800 Corporate Ct.	Bakersfield	93311	Kern County	Grow Public Schools District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 527-5000	1,446	64	22.4	85.2%	93 (6.4%)	14 (1.0%)	1,314 (90.9%)	6 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (1.2%)	48.9	2668^th of 5817 public elementary schools	54.1%					(n/a)	33.7	31.7	32.7	41.2	43.9	42.4	52.6	46.2	44.3	45.1	46.1	40.2	33.7	34.1	26.3	34.2	35.8	≥ 99%		$21,337	$2,220	$19,117
Old River Elementary	Public	K-6	9815 Campus Park Dr.	Bakersfield	93311	Kern County	Panama-Buena Vista Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 664-7009	795	32	24.8	76.0%	153 (19.2%)	53 (6.7%)	446 (56.1%)	86 (10.8%)	3 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	53 (6.7%)	47.6	2741^st of 5817 public elementary schools	52.9%		58.6	2138^th of 5857 public elementary schools	63.5%	603	25.6		25.6	36.9	45.5	53.9	55.6			48.2	33.3	37.0	25.6	46.2			35.5	96%	0%	$16,269	$1,060	$15,209
Sing Lum Elementary	Public	K-6	4600 Chaney Ln.	Bakersfield	93311	Kern County	Panama-Buena Vista Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 664-1611	809	32	25.4	77.1%	145 (17.9%)	64 (7.9%)	521 (64.4%)	39 (4.8%)	3 (0.4%)	4 (0.5%)	33 (4.1%)	47.3	2767^th of 5817 public elementary schools	52.4%		41.8	3083^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	47.4%	316	37.5		37.5	43.2	41.2	52.7	48.8			46.8	40.7	36.3	28.6	29.3			33.1	97%	0%	$15,670	$991	$14,679
Donald E. Suburu	Public	K-5	7315 Harris Rd.	Bakersfield	93313	Kern County	Lakeside Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 665-8190	803	36	22.3	69.7%	93 (11.6%)	53 (6.6%)	529 (65.9%)	81 (10.1%)	5 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (5.2%)	20.8	4738^th of 5817 public elementary schools	18.5%		17.6	5046^th of 5857 public elementary schools	13.8%	308	18.8		18.8	36.8	27.0	30.1				31.1	34.2	13.5	11.3				19.0	96%	0%	$22,236	$1,236	$21,000
Leo B. Hart Elementary	Public	K-6	9501 Ridge Oak Dr.	Bakersfield	93311	Kern County	Panama-Buena Vista Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 664-1296	705	27	26.4	71.6%	133 (18.9%)	63 (8.9%)	395 (56.0%)	74 (10.5%)	4 (0.6%)	2 (0.3%)	34 (4.8%)	62.1	1977^th of 5817 public elementary schools	66.0%		63.1	1920^th of 5857 public elementary schools	67.2%	57	31.9		31.9	51.1	57.8	50.6	68.6			57.4	50.0	46.2	30.8	45.1			43.1	93%	0%	$16,140	$1,042	$15,098
Christa McAuliffe Elementary	Public	K-6	8900 Westwold Dr.	Bakersfield	93311	Kern County	Panama-Buena Vista Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 665-9471	524	25	21.3	77.9%	106 (20.2%)	44 (8.4%)	301 (57.4%)	29 (5.5%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	43 (8.2%)	36.5	3470^th of 5817 public elementary schools	40.3%		44.8	2898^th of 5857 public elementary schools	50.5%	572	40.0		40.0	23.2	38.5	49.1	46.0			39.3	28.6	32.3	23.6	22.2			26.8	92%	0%	$19,839	$1,159	$18,680
Highgate Elementary	Public	K-6	13401 Pemberley Passage Ave.	Bakersfield	93311	Kern County	Panama-Buena Vista Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 501-1617	732	29	25.2	44.8%	132 (18.0%)	32 (4.4%)	258 (35.2%)	224 (30.6%)	2 (0.3%)	3 (0.4%)	81 (11.1%)	92.7	496^th of 5817 public elementary schools	91.5%		92.3	527^th of 5857 public elementary schools	91.0%	31	66.1		66.1	74.4	71.1	87.6	72.3			77.0	72.0	63.3	74.8	63.8			68.8	97%	1%	$16,066	$1,000	$15,066
Laurelglen Elementary	Public	K-6	2601 El Portal Dr.	Bakersfield	93309	Kern County	Panama-Buena Vista Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 831-4444	574	25	23.1	75.8%	78 (13.6%)	48 (8.4%)	320 (55.7%)	14 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	112 (19.5%)	32.8	3751^st of 5817 public elementary schools	35.5%		29.6	3990^th of 5857 public elementary schools	31.9%	239	20.5		20.5	35.2	36.1	37.4	52.8			41.1	30.9	26.7	10.8	30.8			24.4	97%	0%	$18,179	$1,217	$16,962
Ronald Reagan Elementary	Public	K-6	10800 Rosslyn Ln.	Bakersfield	93311	Kern County	Panama-Buena Vista Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 665-8099	831	33	24.9	42.7%	229 (27.6%)	31 (3.7%)	272 (32.7%)	231 (27.8%)	3 (0.4%)	4 (0.5%)	61 (7.3%)	86.7	819^th of 5817 public elementary schools	85.9%		84.1	954^th of 5857 public elementary schools	83.7%	135	54.4		54.4	69.5	65.0	70.8	68.1			68.4	73.3	60.7	59.9	58.0			62.6	98%	0%	$17,294	$1,083	$16,211

Frequently Asked Questions about Buena Vista Elementary

How many students attend Buena Vista Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 713 students attended Buena Vista Elementary.

Is Buena Vista Elementary a good school?

Buena Vista Elementary ranks 1388^th of 5817 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What district is Buena Vista Elementary in?

Panama-Buena Vista Union

What schools do graduates of Buena Vista Elementary attend?

Students who attend Buena Vista Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Earl Warren Junior High
High : Independence High

What is the racial makeup of Buena Vista Elementary?

Students at Buena Vista Elementary are 52% Hispanic, 18% White, 17% Asian, 9% African American, 4% Two or more races.

Rate Buena Vista Elementary!

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Latest California data All new data »

2024–25 school spending data (updated)NewNov 2, 2026

2013–14 through 2024–25 immunization rates (updated)Oct 19, 2026

2025–26 attendance data, dropout rates & graduation ratesOct 15, 2026

2025–26 CAST, CSA Spanish & Smarter Balanced Assessments scoresOct 15, 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.