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Thomas Paine Elementary

Q: Is Thomas Paine Elementary a good school?

Thomas Paine Elementary ranks 659 th of 5857 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-6

659^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 89% of California elementary schools

Summary

Thomas Paine Elementary is a K-6 public school serving 428 students in the Garden Grove Unified School District, consistently ranking among the top elementary schools in California despite serving a community where a significant majority of students face economic disadvantages.

The school's most impressive achievement is its strong academic performance, which exceeds both district and state averages in English, Math, and Science. This is particularly notable when compared to other local schools with similar student populations, such as Heritage Elementary or James Monroe Elementary, where proficiency rates are often much lower. Thomas Paine has shown remarkable success in supporting English learners and students from low-income families, with these groups ranking in the state's top percentiles. The school has also made excellent progress in improving student attendance since the pandemic.

While schools like Ethan B. Allen Elementary achieve elite rankings, they serve a less economically disadvantaged population, making Thomas Paine a standout model for achieving high results under different circumstances. The school invests more per student than some neighbors, and this investment appears effective, as seen in its stronger outcomes compared to John Marshall Elementary. With strengths in early-grade instruction and science, and a successful post-pandemic recovery, Thomas Paine demonstrates that a supportive school environment can lead to outstanding student success.

428

Students ?

22.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$23,579

Per pupil spending ?

72.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

15792 Ward St.
Garden Grove, CA 92843-5348

(714) 663-6118

District: Garden Grove Unified

Students who attend Thomas Paine Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Sarah McGarvin Intermediate
High:	La Quinta High

Racial breakdown:

Asian:

56.1%

Hispanic:

34.8%

Two or more races:

5.8%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Thomas Paine Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 65th percentile in 2013 → 89th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the California average (69% vs 41% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 11% of California elementary schools

✓Ranking is trending up — up 24 percentile points since 2013

Worth a look

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

!Large classes — about 22 students per teacher

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school69%

District avg53%

California avg41%

659^th of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Top 11%▲ up 14 pts since 2015

From top 26% (2015) to top 11% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

7^th of 44Elementary Schools in the Garden Grove Unified

403^rd of 1,543Garden Grove 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

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	89.9	659 of 5857	88.7%	★★★★☆
2024	86.2	897 of 5869	84.7%	★★★★☆
2023	92.1	562 of 5859	90.4%	★★★★★
2022	88.2	790 of 5883	86.6%	★★★★☆
2019	78.2	1246 of 5789	78.5%	★★★★☆
2018	83.4	967 of 5662	82.9%	★★★★☆
2017	84.1	955 of 5692	83.2%	★★★★☆
2016	85.9	854 of 5614	84.8%	★★★★☆
2015	71.3	1444 of 5611	74.3%	★★★★☆
2013	62.8	1957 of 5530	64.6%	★★★☆☆
2012	64.3	1826 of 5390	66.1%	★★★☆☆
2011	75.8	1218 of 5377	77.3%	★★★★☆
2010	73.0	1331 of 5314	75.0%	★★★★☆
2009	68.0	1534 of 5193	70.5%	★★★★☆
2008	61.4	1788 of 5113	65.0%	★★★☆☆
2007	55.0	2064 of 5113	59.6%	★★★☆☆
2006	67.3	1453 of 4818	69.8%	★★★☆☆
2005	52.7	2061 of 4822	57.3%	★★★☆☆
2004	60.4	1691 of 4809	64.8%	★★★☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	70.8	377 of 1203	68.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	65.9	494 of 1205	59.0%	★★★☆☆
2023	71.2	377 of 1190	68.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	64.8	497 of 1154	56.9%	★★★☆☆
2019	55.8	633 of 1149	44.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	62.6	505 of 1071	52.8%	★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	77.7	269 of 3162	91.5%	★★★★★
2023	94.5	86 of 3245	97.3%	★★★★★
2022	96.3	93 of 3311	97.2%	★★★★★
2019	65.3	668 of 3275	79.6%	★★★★☆
2018	73.2	476 of 3246	85.3%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	86.3	789 of 5597	85.9%	★★★★☆
2024	81.5	1027 of 5612	81.7%	★★★★☆
2023	89.8	639 of 5609	88.6%	★★★★☆
2022	87.0	775 of 5635	86.2%	★★★★☆
2019	84.7	833 of 5492	84.8%	★★★★☆
2018	84.7	838 of 5413	84.5%	★★★★☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	82.8	622 of 5107	87.8%	★★★★☆
2024	74.9	944 of 5107	81.5%	★★★★☆
2023	84.9	552 of 5087	89.1%	★★★★☆
2022	75.6	912 of 5084	82.1%	★★★★☆
2019	72.1	1058 of 4963	78.7%	★★★★☆
2018	73.0	995 of 4830	79.4%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	95.9	147 of 5460	97.3%	★★★★★
2024	92.6	336 of 5517	93.9%	★★★★★
2023	95.4	180 of 5363	96.6%	★★★★★
2022	94.8	192 of 5264	96.4%	★★★★★
2019	85.7	460 of 5173	91.1%	★★★★★
2018	91.2	242 of 5084	95.2%	★★★★★

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	90.3	562 of 5628	90.0%	★★★★★
2024	88.6	682 of 5643	87.9%	★★★★☆
2023	91.7	518 of 5638	90.8%	★★★★★
2022	85.0	870 of 5663	84.6%	★★★★☆
2019	70.3	1504 of 5510	72.7%	★★★★☆
2018	79.5	1082 of 5431	80.1%	★★★★☆

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)

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)97th percentile+9 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)91st percentile+7 vs school

Male (2025)90th percentile~ school

Hispanic (2025)88th percentile~ school

Female (2025)86th percentile-3 vs school

Asian (2025)69th percentile-20 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy72%+23 vs state

Mathematics69%+32 vs state

Science58%+25 vs state

★

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Schools Near Thomas Paine 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)	% 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	% Varicella KG	% DTP KG	% MMR KG	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Thomas Paine Elementary	Public	K-6	15792 Ward St.	Garden Grove	92843	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6118	428	19	22.5	72.2%	8 (1.9%)	4 (0.9%)	149 (34.8%)	240 (56.1%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	25 (5.8%)	89.9	659^th of 5857 public elementary schools	88.7%		86.2	897^th of 5869 public elementary schools	84.7%	238	57.7	57.7	83.0	66.7	75.0	66.7	72.3	83.0	63.5	78.9	54.7	69.3						$23,579	$3,222	$20,357
Susan B. Anthony Elementary	Public	K-6	15320 Pickford St.	Westminster	92683	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6104	332	14	23.6	73.2%	19 (5.7%)	2 (0.6%)	91 (27.4%)	202 (60.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (5.4%)	87.7	789^th of 5857 public elementary schools	86.5%		86.8	874^th of 5869 public elementary schools	85.1%	85	45.2	45.2	73.1	68.8	66.7	73.0	70.7	75.0	73.5	52.4	60.6	65.6						$17,310	$1,635	$15,675
Heritage Elementary	Public	K-6	426 South Andres Pl.	Santa Ana	92704	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6108	376	16	23.5	96.0%	7 (1.9%)	1 (0.3%)	329 (87.5%)	39 (10.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	38.4	3322^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	43.3%		36.2	3426^th of 5869 public elementary schools	41.6%	104	20.4	20.4	44.2	30.4	40.8	47.4	41.0	46.5	23.9	30.6	26.3	31.3						$21,620	$3,611	$18,009
James Monroe Elementary	Public	K-6	16225 Newhope St.	Fountain Valley	92708	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6264	555	23	24.6	69.2%	28 (5.0%)	2 (0.4%)	491 (88.5%)	17 (3.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (3.1%)	60.3	2052^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	65.0%		59.9	2069^th of 5869 public elementary schools	64.7%	17	29.5	29.5	39.7	51.5	50.0	61.0	50.2	50.0	48.5	33.9	64.4	49.0	97.0			97.0		$16,399	$1,473	$14,926
John Marshall Elementary	Public	K-6	15791 Bushard St.	Westminster	92683	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6528	323	15	21.5	80.8%	16 (5.0%)	2 (0.6%)	144 (44.6%)	153 (47.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.5%)	71.6	1527^th of 5857 public elementary schools	73.9%		74.3	1397^th of 5869 public elementary schools	76.2%	130	29.6	29.6	55.9	50.0	52.3	71.4	58.2	76.5	50.0	45.5	59.2	57.0						$26,888	$4,062	$22,826
Newhope Elementary	Public	K-6	4419 West Regent Dr.	Santa Ana	92704	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6581	334	17	19.5	91.9%	3 (0.9%)	4 (1.2%)	263 (78.7%)	54 (16.2%)	1 (0.3%)	4 (1.2%)	5 (1.5%)	41.7	3088^th of 5857 public elementary schools	47.3%		47.2	2725^th of 5869 public elementary schools	53.6%	363	20.0	20.0	21.7	38.9	33.3	61.4	39.2	25.0	43.2	33.3	45.6	36.3						$19,926	$1,704	$18,222
Ethan B. Allen Elementary	Public	K-6	16200 Bushard St.	Fountain Valley	92708	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6228	637	26	24.5	51.5%	25 (3.9%)	0 (0.0%)	64 (10.0%)	496 (77.9%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	50 (7.8%)	98.8	21^st of 5857 public elementary schools	99.6%		98.9	24^th of 5869 public elementary schools	99.6%	3	75.8	75.8	89.9	86.5	92.6	94.3	91.0	90.0	86.5	85.3	92.8	88.9						$16,848	$1,566	$15,282
Leo Carrillo Elementary	Public	K-6	15270 Bushard St.	Westminster	92683	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6230	508	20	25.7	90.2%	42 (8.3%)	2 (0.4%)	304 (59.8%)	143 (28.1%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (3.1%)	37.9	3344^th of 5857 public elementary schools	42.9%		46.8	2750^th of 5869 public elementary schools	53.1%	594	22.8	22.8	38.0	31.9	38.0	42.5	37.8	36.6	34.8	26.6	38.8	34.1	89.9	97.5	97.5	96.2	96.2	$14,812	$1,631	$13,181
Post Elementary	Public	K-6	14641 Ward St.	Westminster	92683	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6354	338	13	25.8	80.8%	4 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	112 (33.1%)	210 (62.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (3.6%)	81.9	1079^th of 5857 public elementary schools	81.6%		84.7	960^th of 5869 public elementary schools	83.6%	119	36.4	36.4	56.5	57.1	59.1	73.4	62.6	67.4	69.4	59.1	70.3	67.0						$18,338	$1,688	$16,650
Mamie L. Northcutt Elementary	Public	K-6	11303 Sandstone St.	Fountain Valley	92708	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6537	400	16	24.9	84.0%	16 (4.0%)	2 (0.5%)	256 (64.0%)	112 (28.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	12 (3.0%)	61.5	1988^th of 5857 public elementary schools	66.1%		56.2	2228^th of 5869 public elementary schools	62.0%	240	35.0	35.0	40.0	55.6	53.3	57.1	51.6	46.0	46.3	38.3	57.1	46.5						$18,200	$1,540	$16,660

Frequently Asked Questions about Thomas Paine Elementary

What schools do graduates of Thomas Paine Elementary attend?

Students who attend Thomas Paine Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Sarah McGarvin Intermediate
High : La Quinta High

What district is Thomas Paine Elementary in?

Garden Grove Unified

How many students attend Thomas Paine Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 428 students attended Thomas Paine Elementary.

Is Thomas Paine Elementary a good school?

Thomas Paine Elementary ranks 659^th of 5857 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Thomas Paine Elementary?

Students at Thomas Paine Elementary are 56% Asian, 35% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races, 2% White.

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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.