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Nelson Elementary

Public Grades K-5

5073^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,804 California Elementary Schools

Better than 13% of California elementary schools

Summary

Nelson Elementary is a K–5 school serving 291 students in La Puente, within the Hacienda La Puente Unified district. Its clearest strength is a low student–teacher ratio, but test results are a serious concern: in 2025–2026, proficiency was 27% in ELA, 20% in math, and 12% in science, below both the district and California in all three subjects. The most important finding is that Nelson’s proficiency trails state and district results across every reported subject.

Compared with nearby K–5 schools, Nelson is near the bottom in achievement: it has the second-lowest ELA result, third-lowest math result, and lowest science result among seven schools. Nearby K–5 averages were 35% in ELA, 26% in math, and 18% in science. Math is the school’s strongest subject relative to these peers, while science is its weakest relative to both peers and the state. Fifth grade stands out as a particular challenge: Nelson had the lowest fifth-grade results among nearby schools reporting that grade in ELA, math, and science. A contrasting strength is its 2024–2025 student–teacher ratio of 18.1, the lowest reported locally; nearby schools averaged 23 students per teacher.

Results have weakened over time: from 2022–2023 to 2025–2026, proficiency fell 2 points in ELA, 2 in math, and 4 in science, while the state gaps widened by 5, 6, and 10 points, respectively. Chronic absenteeism improved from 49% in 2021–2022 to 27% in 2025–2026, but remains above the district’s 17% and state’s 18%. SchoolDigger ranks Nelson in the 13th percentile statewide, with 1 star; its standing fell from the 36th percentile in 2021–2022. The 2024–2025 free/reduced-lunch-eligible share was 76%, tied for second-lowest among nearby schools. California provides free school meals to all students through Community Eligibility, so this eligibility figure is context, not a measure of meal access. SchoolDigger’s statewide measure of how well the school serves students receiving special education fell from the 39th percentile in 2023–2024 to the 4th in 2024–2025. Its measure for female students also dropped, from the 33rd percentile in 2024–2025 to the 13th in 2025–2026, matching the school’s overall percentile.

291

Students ?

18.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$28,275

Per pupil spending ?

76.3%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

All students in California receive free school meals.

330 North California Ave.
La Puente, CA 91744-3718

(626) 933-8400

District: Hacienda la Puente Unified

Students who attend Nelson Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Sparks Middle
High:	La Puente High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

91.8%

Asian:

4.8%

Two or more races:

3.4%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Nelson Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 40th percentile in 2015 → 13th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (22% vs 42% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (13th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (27% vs 18% California)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school22%

District avg44%

California avg42%

5,073^rd of 5,804

California public elementary schools ?

Bottom 13%▼ down 28 pts since 2016

From bottom 41% (2016) to bottom 13% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

16^th of 17Elementary Schools in the Hacienda la Puente Unified

500^th of 968Hacienda la Puente 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
2026	16.8	5073 of 5804	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	18.4	4973 of 5857	15.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	26.5	4253 of 5869	27.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	25.8	4275 of 5859	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	31.2	3773 of 5883	35.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	22.9	4544 of 5789	21.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	35.5	3432 of 5662	39.4%	★★☆☆☆
2017	33.3	3574 of 5692	37.2%	★★☆☆☆
2016	36.3	3310 of 5614	41.0%	★★☆☆☆
2015	34.8	3344 of 5611	40.4%	★★☆☆☆
2013	37.2	3518 of 5530	36.4%	★★☆☆☆
2012	30.7	3890 of 5390	27.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	42.9	3034 of 5377	43.6%	★★☆☆☆
2010	33.4	3592 of 5314	32.4%	★★☆☆☆
2009	35.7	3326 of 5193	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2008	34.8	3283 of 5113	35.8%	★★☆☆☆
2007	20.4	4260 of 5113	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	23.2	3790 of 4818	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	27.0	3478 of 4822	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	29.3	3284 of 4809	31.7%	★★☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	22.9	1868 of 2227	16.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.1	2441 of 2585	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	36.9	2050 of 3311	38.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	27.6	2555 of 3246	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	17.5	4863 of 5569	12.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	31.0	3774 of 5597	32.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	35.7	3363 of 5612	40.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	35.2	3345 of 5609	40.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	36.4	3238 of 5635	42.5%	★★☆☆☆
2019	26.0	4148 of 5492	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	36.6	3306 of 5413	38.9%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	22.6	4236 of 5085	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	21.4	4361 of 5107	14.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	32.8	3516 of 5107	31.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	33.8	3399 of 5087	33.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	39.7	2924 of 5084	42.5%	★★☆☆☆
2019	30.2	3682 of 4963	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	46.5	2439 of 4830	49.5%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	20.6	4634 of 5412	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	22.2	4578 of 5460	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	33.1	3696 of 5517	33.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	31.9	3741 of 5363	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	38.8	3105 of 5264	41.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	26.8	4110 of 5173	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	43.5	2784 of 5084	45.2%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	18.9	4777 of 5590	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	11.0	5378 of 5628	4.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	21.3	4584 of 5643	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	22.9	4453 of 5638	21.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	30.0	3787 of 5663	33.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	21.9	4481 of 5510	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	35.4	3317 of 5431	38.9%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	16.2	2747 of 2847	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	34.1	1612 of 2635	38.8%	★★☆☆☆

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)38th percentile~ school

Hispanic (2026)17th percentile+4 vs school

Disabled (2022)16th percentile-20 vs school

Male (2026)15th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)14th percentile~ school

Female (2026)13th percentile~ school

Special Education (2025)4th percentile-12 vs school

By subject vs California (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy27%-23 vs state

Mathematics20%-18 vs state

Science12%-24 vs state

★

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Schools Near Nelson 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 (2026)				Ranking (2025)				CSA Spanish Overall (2026)			CSA Spanish Listening (2026)			CSA Spanish Writing (2026)			CSA Spanish Reading (2026)			CAST Science (2026)			Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2026)							Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2026)							% 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/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	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
Nelson Elementary	Public	K-5	330 North California Ave.	La Puente	91744	Los Angeles County	Hacienda la Puente Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 933-8400	291	16	18.1	76.3%	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	267 (91.8%)	14 (4.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (3.4%)	16.8	5073^rd of 5804 public elementary schools	12.6%		18.4	4973^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	15.1%	100													11.8		11.8	23.5	30.8	26.5				26.6	23.1	26.3	8.8				20.2	89.7	92.3		89.7	92.3	89.7	$28,275	$26,364	$1,911
Sparks Elementary	Public	K-5	15151 East Temple Ave.	La Puente	91744	Los Angeles County	Hacienda la Puente Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 933-5100	361	15	24.0	81.4%	6 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	330 (91.4%)	18 (5.0%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.4%)	15.8	5142^nd of 5804 public elementary schools	11.4%		29.3	4015^th of 5857 public elementary schools	31.4%	1127													14.5		14.5	19.2	7.4	32.8				20.4	24.5	7.4	25.8				19.5	97.3			97.3	97.3	97.3	$25,459	$23,476	$1,983
Lassalette	Public	K-5	14333 Lassalette St.	La Puente	91744	Los Angeles County	Hacienda la Puente Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 933-3000	279	12	23.2	77.4%	1 (0.4%)	2 (0.7%)	252 (90.3%)	20 (7.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	3 (1.1%)	22.9	4552^nd of 5804 public elementary schools	21.6%		27	4218^th of 5857 public elementary schools	28.0%	334													22.0		22.0	31.0	28.9	36.0				31.9	28.6	11.5	24.0				20.8	88.9						$28,844	$26,836	$2,008
California Elementary	Public	K-5	1111 California Ave.	La Puente	91744	Los Angeles County	Hacienda la Puente Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 933-5200	317	15	21.1	75.1%	5 (1.6%)	1 (0.3%)	276 (87.1%)	23 (7.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.6%)	10 (3.2%)	35.1	3572^nd of 5804 public elementary schools	38.5%		30.3	3934^th of 5857 public elementary schools	32.8%	362													14.3		14.3	45.8	52.8	28.6				40.7	45.8	33.3	19.6				32.1							$27,791	$25,896	$1,895
Fairgrove Academy	Public	K-8	15540 Fairgrove Ave.	La Puente	91744	Los Angeles County	Hacienda la Puente Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 933-8500	749	31	24.1	85.2%	7 (0.9%)	2 (0.3%)	671 (89.6%)	44 (5.9%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	23 (3.1%)	45.8	2858^th of 5804 public elementary schools	50.8%		47.7	2727^th of 5857 public elementary schools	53.4%	131													18.8	35.6	29.4	54.6	46.8	42.0	40.0	50.4	49.1	47.1	59.1	43.0	23.2	30.0	40.3	34.8	37.6	97.3				97.3		$25,986	$24,012	$1,974
Workman Elementary	Public	K-5	16000 Workman St.	La Puente	91744	Los Angeles County	Hacienda la Puente Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 933-4200	347	15	23.1	82.1%	7 (2.0%)	3 (0.9%)	299 (86.2%)	17 (4.9%)	2 (0.6%)	1 (0.3%)	18 (5.2%)	44.5	2954^th of 5804 public elementary schools	49.1%		55.7	2261^st of 5857 public elementary schools	61.4%	693													22.2		22.2	55.1	55.1	40.7				50.0	42.9	34.7	22.6				33.1	95.3	96.9			95.3		$26,483	$24,634	$1,849
Don Julian Elementary	Public	K-8	13855 Don Julian Rd.	La Puente	91746	Los Angeles County	Bassett Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 931-2900	544	23	23.5	92.5%	8 (1.5%)	7 (1.3%)	492 (90.4%)	34 (6.3%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	36.8	3440^th of 5804 public elementary schools	40.7%		37.5	3382^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	42.3%	58													24.5	33.3	28.9	29.0	43.3	52.8	32.4	39.0	51.0	41.3	30.7	41.7	30.2	19.4	22.0	25.5	29.0	72.5	85.0		82.5	77.5	76.3	$18,426	$14,448	$3,978
Edgewood Academy	Public	K-8	14135 East Fairgrove Ave.	La Puente	91746	Los Angeles County	Bassett Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 931-7800	478	22	21.6	83.9%	1 (0.2%)	6 (1.3%)	421 (88.1%)	49 (10.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	62.9	1930^th of 5804 public elementary schools	66.7%		60	2068^th of 5857 public elementary schools	64.7%	138													16.7	16.7	16.7	55.8	59.2	50.0	56.0	41.4	46.7	51.0	65.1	53.1	33.3	50.0	37.9	26.7	43.2	94.1	95.6			95.6		$17,720	$13,718	$4,002
Sunkist Elementary	Public	K-5	935 Mayland Ave.	La Puente	91746	Los Angeles County	Bassett Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 931-7700	304	14	21.7	93.4%	5 (1.6%)	3 (1.0%)	278 (91.4%)	15 (4.9%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.7%)	1 (0.3%)	19.9	4808^th of 5804 public elementary schools	17.2%		18.6	4960^th of 5857 public elementary schools	15.3%	152	8.3		9.1	58.3		36.4	25.0		22.7	8.3		9.1	15.8		15.8	37.9	23.8	29.8				28.9	48.3	13.6	12.3				19.7	93.4	96.1	97.4	96.1	94.7	96.1	$21,976	$17,942	$4,034
Baldwin Academy	Public	K-5	1616 Griffith Ave.	La Puente	91744	Los Angeles County	Hacienda la Puente Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 933-3700	519	20	25.9	85.2%	12 (2.3%)	4 (0.8%)	443 (85.4%)	45 (8.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (2.7%)	32.2	3797^th of 5804 public elementary schools	34.6%		31.5	3838^th of 5857 public elementary schools	34.5%	41													22.5		22.5	34.8	40.9	37.8				37.8	29.0	36.4	25.5				29.6	93.0	98.3		98.3	98.3	98.3	$25,110	$23,156	$1,954

Frequently Asked Questions about Nelson Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Nelson Elementary?

Students at Nelson Elementary are 92% Hispanic, 5% Asian, 3% Two or more races.

How many students attend Nelson Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 291 students attended Nelson Elementary.

What district is Nelson Elementary in?

Hacienda la Puente Unified

What schools do graduates of Nelson Elementary attend?

Students who attend Nelson Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Sparks Middle
High : La Puente High

Is Nelson Elementary a good school?

Nelson Elementary ranks in the bottom 12.6% of California elementary schools.

Rate Nelson Elementary!

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Latest California data All new data »

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

2025–26 CAST, CSA Spanish & Smarter Balanced Assessments scoresNewOct 15, 2026

2024–25 school spending dataJul 1, 2026

2024–25 attendance dataMar 13, 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.