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Katherine R. Smith Elementary

Public Grades K-6

4832^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 18% of California elementary schools

Summary

Katherine R. Smith Elementary is a K-6 public school serving 373 students in San Jose's Evergreen Elementary School District, a generally high-performing area where this particular school faces significant academic challenges.

The school's test scores in English, math, and science are consistently and substantially lower than the district averages, with gaps of around 40 percentage points. A major factor is chronic absenteeism, with nearly 29% of students missing significant school, a rate triple the district average and higher than the state. While the school serves a community with high economic need, it performs comparably to some nearby schools like Donald J. Meyer Elementary in the Alum Rock Union Elementary district, yet lags behind others with similar demographics, such as Jeanne R. Meadows Elementary.

Despite these struggles, there are bright spots: the school has shown historical strength in supporting English Language Learners, and performance in upper grades like 6th grade ELA is closer to district norms. The analysis suggests that improving attendance and early foundational skills could be key to closing the gap with other schools in the Evergreen Elementary district, including nearby O. B. Whaley Elementary.

373

Students ?

20.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$18,721

Per pupil spending ?

73.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

2025 Clarice Dr.
San Jose, CA 95122-1204

(408) 270-6751

District: Evergreen Elementary

Students who attend Katherine R. Smith Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	George V. LeyVa Intermediate
High:	William C. Overfelt High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

61.4%

Asian:

27.1%

Two or more races:

4.8%

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Compare Katherine R. Smith Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 3rd percentile in 2013 → 18th in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 15 percentile points since 2013

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (22% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (18th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (29% vs 19% California)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school22%

District avg61%

California avg41%

4,832^nd of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Bottom 18%▲ up 12 pts since 2015

From bottom 6% (2015) to bottom 18% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

12^th of 13Elementary Schools in the Evergreen Elementary

339^th of 1,543Evergreen 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	19.9	4832 of 5857	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.5	4982 of 5869	15.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.9	4364 of 5859	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	18.9	4966 of 5883	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	10.7	5523 of 5789	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	13.0	5258 of 5662	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	9.7	5510 of 5692	3.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	12.5	5269 of 5614	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	12.9	5289 of 5611	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	7.7	5387 of 5530	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	41.2	3191 of 5390	40.8%	★★☆☆☆
2011	26.4	4231 of 5377	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	25.4	4196 of 5314	21.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	23.0	4216 of 5193	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	24.8	3986 of 5113	22.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	35.8	3182 of 5113	37.8%	★★☆☆☆
2006	48.7	2246 of 4818	53.4%	★★★☆☆
2005	46.8	2347 of 4822	51.3%	★★★☆☆
2004	55.7	1891 of 4809	60.7%	★★★☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	21.9	990 of 1203	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	9.5	1079 of 1205	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	13.8	1039 of 1190	12.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	5.1	1078 of 1154	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	1.8	1121 of 1149	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	6.0	1001 of 1071	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	25.6	1716 of 2227	22.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	36.3	1461 of 2585	43.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	41.8	991 of 2128	53.4%	★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	44.5	1512 of 3162	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	65.2	625 of 3245	80.7%	★★★★☆
2022	47.3	1348 of 3311	59.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	37.1	1974 of 3275	39.7%	★★☆☆☆
2018	36.4	1979 of 3246	39.0%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	19.6	4709 of 5597	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.4	4845 of 5612	13.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	31.6	3609 of 5609	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2022	25.2	4192 of 5635	25.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	11.3	5243 of 5492	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	13.1	5056 of 5413	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	15.3	4734 of 5107	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	17.3	4646 of 5107	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	26.2	4010 of 5087	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.9	4512 of 5084	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	9.8	4866 of 4963	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.3	4679 of 4830	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	21.7	4604 of 5460	15.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	25.4	4348 of 5517	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	29.3	3941 of 5363	26.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.5	4612 of 5264	12.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	13.1	4934 of 5173	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	17.7	4618 of 5084	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	21.4	4606 of 5628	18.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	19.8	4744 of 5643	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.8	4542 of 5638	19.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	16.4	5082 of 5663	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	12.2	5239 of 5510	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	15.8	4902 of 5431	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2023	22.6	2058 of 2420	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

English Language Learner (2024)52nd percentile+37 vs school

Disabled (2022)23rd percentile+7 vs school

Male (2025)18th percentile~ school

Asian (2025)18th percentile~ school

Female (2025)16th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)16th percentile~ school

Special Education (2023)15th percentile-11 vs school

Hispanic (2025)7th percentile-10 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy26%-22 vs state

Mathematics21%-17 vs state

Science10%-23 vs state

3.0

2 ratings · 2 written reviews

5★1

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★1

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What people are saying

by a parent
Sunday, June 30, 2019

For the past 6 years this school has experimented with "wall to wall project based learning." Although my child does not attend this school I am concerned with EQUITY i that the school seems to not use textbooks much and you will need to ask this. It is a New Tech Network School and I think, and you will need to check, this school also does not assign much if any homework. You will need to compare using School Digger other schools in the local area. The Katherine R. Smith Elementary school in my opinion has been experimenting with project based learning. The concerns of this school have been brought forth to the school board for many years. I think the best thing for you to do is transfer your child away due to (if true) a radical pedagogy of working wall to wall project based learning which may not work. That will be for you to explore as a parent. Close Quote

by a parent
Saturday, December 15, 2018

This school is amazing! My daughter has been at this school for seven years. She's learned so much. Close Quote

Schools Near Katherine R. Smith 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)				CSA Spanish Overall (2025)			CSA Spanish Listening (2025)			CSA Spanish Writing (2025)			CSA Spanish Reading (2025)			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 (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	CSA Spanish Overall 3rd Grade	CSA Spanish Overall 4th Grade	CSA Spanish Overall All Grades	CSA Spanish Listening 3rd Grade	CSA Spanish Listening 4th Grade	CSA Spanish Listening All Grades	CSA Spanish Writing 3rd Grade	CSA Spanish Writing 4th Grade	CSA Spanish Writing All Grades	CSA Spanish Reading 3rd Grade	CSA Spanish Reading 4th Grade	CSA Spanish Reading All Grades	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	% 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
Katherine R. Smith Elementary	Public	K-6	2025 Clarice Dr.	San Jose	95122	Santa Clara County	Evergreen Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(408) 270-6751	373	18	20.7	73.7%	4 (1.1%)	14 (3.8%)	229 (61.4%)	101 (27.1%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.9%)	18 (4.8%)	19.9	4832^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	17.5%		18.5	4982^nd of 5869 public elementary schools	15.1%	150													10.0		10.0	12.5	16.7	33.3	42.0			26.4	21.3	22.0	11.8	27.5			20.6	90.0	91.7		90.0	90.0	90.0	$18,721	$18,064	$657
Donald J. Meyer Elementary	Public	K-5	1824 Daytona Dr.	San Jose	95122	Santa Clara County	Alum Rock Union Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(408) 928-8200	246	13	18.9	79.7%	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.8%)	195 (79.3%)	45 (18.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	3 (1.2%)	18.1	5004^th of 5857 public elementary schools	14.6%		24.2	4442^nd of 5869 public elementary schools	24.3%	562													10.4		10.4	32.5	24.2	18.8				24.8	40.0	17.7	6.3				20.5	93.9		97.0		97.0		$19,811	$18,858	$953
Alpha: Jose Hernandez	Public, Charter	K-8	1601 Cunningham Ave.	San Jose	95122	Santa Clara County	Alpha: Jose Hernandez District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(408) 780-1551	440	20	22.1	90.9%	2 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	426 (96.8%)	9 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	9.4	5664^th of 5857 public elementary schools	3.3%		7.2	5804^th of 5869 public elementary schools	1.1%	140													8.6	3.9	6.4	13.2	9.8	15.8	9.8	18.5	16.0	13.5	24.5	17.3	12.1	3.9	11.1	6.0	12.7
Alpha: Blanca Alvarado	Public, Charter	K-8	1601 Cunningham Ave.	San Jose	95122	Santa Clara County	Alpha: Blanca Alvarado District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(408) 780-0831	500	19	25.8	60.2%	5 (1.0%)	1 (0.2%)	462 (92.4%)	21 (4.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (2.2%)	13.8	5358^th of 5857 public elementary schools	8.5%		16.6	5155^th of 5869 public elementary schools	12.2%	203													13.6	19.7	16.7	15.5	23.6	19.3	17.7	23.8	28.3	21.5	22.0	27.1	13.6	7.8	25.4	27.9	21.0	96.0			96.0
O. B. Whaley Elementary	Public	K-6	2655 Alvin Ave.	San Jose	95121	Santa Clara County	Evergreen Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(408) 270-6759	268	12	22.3	67.9%	1 (0.4%)	5 (1.9%)	172 (64.2%)	83 (31.0%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.2%)	19.3	4892^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	16.5%		25	4368^th of 5869 public elementary schools	25.6%	524													5.0		5.0	19.6	24.1	35.0	23.7			25.5	26.5	25.8	27.5	15.8			24.1							$19,841	$19,116	$725
O. S. Hubbard Elementary	Public	K-8	1680 Foley Ave.	San Jose	95122	Santa Clara County	Alum Rock Union Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(408) 928-7700	427	19	22.0	85.0%	6 (1.4%)	6 (1.4%)	378 (88.5%)	24 (5.6%)	4 (0.9%)	3 (0.7%)	6 (1.4%)	9.6	5655^th of 5857 public elementary schools	3.4%		13.1	5468^th of 5869 public elementary schools	6.8%	187													0.0	7.8	4.3	12.5	26.7	11.6	7.7	20.8	22.0	17.4	12.5	21.7	0.0	14.6	3.8	5.9	9.5							$19,790	$18,784	$1,006
Jeanne R. Meadows Elementary	Public	K-6	1250 Taper Ln.	San Jose	95122	Santa Clara County	Franklin-McKinley Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(408) 283-6300	422	21	20.0	92.2%	1 (0.2%)	6 (1.4%)	326 (77.3%)	82 (19.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	6 (1.4%)	40.6	3176^th of 5857 public elementary schools	45.8%		43.8	2933^rd of 5869 public elementary schools	50.0%	243	6.9	0.0	3.5	34.5	14.3	24.6	10.3	10.7	10.5	6.9	3.6	5.3	33.3		33.3	32.9	32.0	45.2	40.4			36.4	36.4	29.9	52.4	37.5			37.3							$23,720	$20,816	$2,904
A. J. Dorsa Elementary	Public	K-5	1290 Bal Harbor Dr.	San Jose	95122	Santa Clara County	Alum Rock Union Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(408) 928-7400	284	14	20.2	90.1%	1 (0.4%)	2 (0.7%)	263 (92.6%)	13 (4.6%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.7%)	3 (1.1%)	10.3	5618^th of 5857 public elementary schools	4.1%		11.7	5574^th of 5869 public elementary schools	5.0%	44													3.6		3.6	12.2	22.0	9.3				14.4	26.5	17.7	7.3				16.8	96.1			96.1			$19,812	$18,608	$1,204
Sylvia Cassell Elementary	Public	K-5	1300 Tallahassee Dr.	San Jose	95122	Santa Clara County	Alum Rock Union Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(408) 928-7200	282	14	20.1	87.6%	4 (1.4%)	2 (0.7%)	228 (80.9%)	42 (14.9%)	2 (0.7%)	1 (0.4%)	3 (1.1%)	14.7	5287^th of 5857 public elementary schools	9.7%		11.1	5616^th of 5869 public elementary schools	4.3%	329													18.9		18.9	19.1	23.7	27.0				23.1	20.9	10.5	13.5				15.3	96.8						$17,473	$16,498	$975
Santee Elementary	Public	K-6	1313 Audubon Dr.	San Jose	95122	Santa Clara County	Franklin-McKinley Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(408) 283-6450	318	17	19.2	89.9%	1 (0.3%)	2 (0.6%)	266 (83.6%)	45 (14.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.6%)	2 (0.6%)	12.8	5433^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	7.2%		9.2	5724^th of 5869 public elementary schools	2.5%	291													13.3		13.3	13.9	30.8	29.6	14.8			22.0	10.3	16.7	11.1	9.1			11.6	93.4	95.1	95.1	95.1	93.4	95.1	$29,092	$25,924	$3,168

Frequently Asked Questions about Katherine R. Smith Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Katherine R. Smith Elementary?

Students at Katherine R. Smith Elementary are 61% Hispanic, 27% Asian, 5% Two or more races, 4% African American, 2% Pacific Islander, 1% White.

How many students attend Katherine R. Smith Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 373 students attended Katherine R. Smith Elementary.

Is Katherine R. Smith Elementary a good school?

Katherine R. Smith Elementary ranks in the bottom 17.5% of California elementary schools.

What district is Katherine R. Smith Elementary in?

Evergreen Elementary

What schools do graduates of Katherine R. Smith Elementary attend?

Students who attend Katherine R. Smith Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : George V. LeyVa Intermediate
High : William C. Overfelt High

Rate Katherine R. Smith 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.