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Independence Elementary

Q: Is Independence Elementary a good school?

Independence Elementary ranks 3533 rd of 5857 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-5

3533^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 40% of California elementary schools

Summary

Independence Elementary is a K-5 public school serving 418 students in South Gate, part of the Los Angeles Unified school district, with academic performance that has varied in recent years and currently sits in the middle range compared to other local elementary schools.

The school shows notable strengths in supporting specific groups of students, performing particularly well for students in Special Education and Hispanic students compared to similar groups across the state. It has also made impressive progress in improving student attendance, significantly reducing chronic absenteeism since the pandemic. However, overall test scores in English, Math, and Science are below both district and state averages, and the school's statewide ranking has been inconsistent, dropping from the previous year. An interesting point is that the school spends more per student than most nearby Independence Elementary but achieves middle-of-the-pack results, while schools like Victoria Avenue Elementary and Stanford Avenue Elementary get higher rankings with similar or lower funding.

When looking at nearby schools, Independence outperforms some, like Hope Street Elementary and San Gabriel Avenue Elementary, but lags behind higher-performing ones like Willow Elementary. Its performance is similar to the nearby KIPP Corazon Academy, which operates under a different model. A key area for attention is a noticeable drop in math scores between 4th and 5th grade, which is more pronounced here than at some comparison schools.

418

Students ?

19.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

$50,252

Per pupil spending ?

94.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

8435 Victoria Ave.
South Gate, CA 90280-2353

(323) 249-9559

District: Los Angeles Unified

Students who attend Independence Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	South Gate Middle
High:	International Studies Learning Center at Legacy High School Complex
	Sci Technical Engr Arts and Math at Legacy High School Complex
	South East High
	South Gate Senior High
	More...
	Visual and Performing Arts at Legacy High School Complex

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

98.1%

Two or more races:

1.2%

White:

0.5%

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Compare Independence Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 38th percentile in 2013 → 40th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (33% vs 41% meeting standards)

!Science scores 11 pts below the California average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school33%

District avg39%

California avg41%

3,533^rd of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Bottom 40%▼ down 3 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

302^nd of 487Elementary Schools in the Los Angeles Unified

791^st of 1,543Los Angeles 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	35.6	3533 of 5857	39.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	46.7	2751 of 5869	53.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	39.5	3164 of 5859	46.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	45.1	2791 of 5883	52.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	33.8	3629 of 5789	37.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	28.3	3965 of 5662	30.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	29.8	3846 of 5692	32.4%	★★☆☆☆
2016	29.7	3799 of 5614	32.3%	★★☆☆☆
2015	36.5	3232 of 5611	42.4%	★★☆☆☆
2013	38.2	3445 of 5530	37.7%	★★☆☆☆
2012	41.2	3193 of 5390	40.8%	★★☆☆☆
2011	44.0	2952 of 5377	45.1%	★★☆☆☆
2010	26.9	4087 of 5314	23.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	23.2	4190 of 5193	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	22.7	4149 of 5113	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	22.6	4080 of 5113	20.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	15.5	4324 of 4818	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	16.5	4212 of 4822	12.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	15.0	4342 of 4809	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	40.1	1070 of 2227	52.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	26.7	1973 of 2585	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	26.5	1617 of 2128	24.0%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	48.0	1299 of 3162	58.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	27.5	2708 of 3245	16.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	31.7	2474 of 3311	25.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	30.0	2494 of 3275	23.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	18.1	3139 of 3246	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	33.0	3623 of 5597	35.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	45.7	2677 of 5612	52.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	48.6	2481 of 5609	55.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	50.4	2393 of 5635	57.5%	★★★☆☆
2019	29.4	3867 of 5492	29.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	25.8	4108 of 5413	24.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	50.2	2275 of 5107	55.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	64.6	1443 of 5107	71.7%	★★★★☆
2023	57.5	1794 of 5087	64.7%	★★★☆☆
2022	64.5	1402 of 5084	72.4%	★★★★☆
2019	47.5	2447 of 4963	50.7%	★★★☆☆
2018	39.1	2926 of 4830	39.4%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	48.1	2578 of 5460	52.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	59.2	1851 of 5517	66.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	58.0	1870 of 5363	65.1%	★★★☆☆
2022	68.8	1223 of 5264	76.8%	★★★★☆
2019	46.8	2619 of 5173	49.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	42.0	2891 of 5084	43.1%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	38.5	3228 of 5628	42.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	47.5	2606 of 5643	53.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	29.7	3805 of 5638	32.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	38.6	3094 of 5663	45.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	38.7	3130 of 5510	43.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	31.3	3599 of 5431	33.7%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	63.5	705 of 2847	75.2%	★★★★☆
2023	31.8	1556 of 2420	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)

Special Education (2025)75th percentile+36 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)59th percentile+6 vs school

Hispanic (2025)55th percentile+16 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)53rd percentile+13 vs school

Disabled (2022)52nd percentile~ school

Male (2025)43rd percentile+3 vs school

Female (2025)35th percentile-4 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy39%-10 vs state

Mathematics31%-6 vs state

Science22%-11 vs state

★

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Schools Near Independence 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)	% 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	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
Independence Elementary	Public	K-5	8435 Victoria Ave.	South Gate	90280	Los Angeles County	Los Angeles Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(323) 249-9559	418	22	19.0	94.7%	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	410 (98.1%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.2%)	35.6	3533^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	39.7%		46.7	2751^st of 5869 public elementary schools	53.1%	782	22.0		22.0	42.3	34.0	40.0				39.3	33.8	41.5	23.9				31.5							$50,252	$47,132	$3,120
State Street Elementary	Public	K-5	3211 Santa Ana St.	South Gate	90280	Los Angeles County	Los Angeles Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(323) 582-7358	396	19	20.8	95.2%	6 (1.5%)	1 (0.3%)	382 (96.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.8%)	34.9	3592^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	38.7%		25.6	4316^th of 5869 public elementary schools	26.5%	724	33.9		33.9	23.1	26.6	54.6				34.5	21.2	29.2	35.7				28.9	95.0			95.0	96.3	96.3	$47,777	$43,552	$4,225
San Gabriel Avenue Elementary	Public	K-5	8628 San Gabriel Ave.	South Gate	90280	Los Angeles County	Los Angeles Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(323) 567-1488	432	22	19.6	95.6%	12 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	417 (96.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	22.8	4609^th of 5857 public elementary schools	21.3%		27.5	4157^th of 5869 public elementary schools	29.2%	452	17.2		17.2	27.4	29.1	29.7				28.8	35.5	23.1	18.8				25.5							$43,629	$40,908	$2,721
Hope Street Elementary	Public	K-5	7560 State St.	Huntington Park	90255	Los Angeles County	Los Angeles Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(323) 586-5700	338	16	21.1	93.2%	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	329 (97.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (2.1%)	24.5	4455^th of 5857 public elementary schools	23.9%		27.4	4168^th of 5869 public elementary schools	29.0%	287	16.7		16.7	27.3	31.6	37.5				32.2	27.3	26.3	20.8				24.8	89.9	97.1	97.1	92.8	97.1	92.8	$41,472	$38,858	$2,614
KIPP Corazon Academy	Public, Charter	K-8	8616 Long Beach Blvd.	South Gate	90280	Los Angeles County	KIPP Corazon Academy District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(323) 457-5051	1,070	44	24.3	87.4%	5 (0.5%)	6 (0.6%)	1,041 (97.3%)	9 (0.8%)	3 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (0.6%)	39	3284^th of 5857 public elementary schools	43.9%		45.1	2858^th of 5869 public elementary schools	51.3%	426	33.3	28.7	31.3	21.6	39.3	44.5	39.2	44.4	48.5	39.6	34.2	45.5	31.0	23.6	31.3	25.7	31.8
Liberty Boulevard Elementary	Public	K-5	2728 Liberty Blvd.	South Gate	90280	Los Angeles County	Los Angeles Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(323) 583-4196	410	22	18.6	96.8%	6 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	402 (98.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	39	3283^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	43.9%		36.3	3417^th of 5869 public elementary schools	41.8%	134	24.6		24.6	39.4	34.6	36.9				37.1	51.5	29.8	29.2				37.4	94.2	94.2	98.1	97.1	96.1	97.1	$46,154	$43,104	$3,050
Willow Elementary	Public	K-5	2777 Willow Pl.	South Gate	90280	Los Angeles County	Los Angeles Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(323) 568-5760	420	21	20.0	93.3%	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	410 (97.6%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.7%)	52	2498^th of 5857 public elementary schools	57.4%		52.2	2440^th of 5869 public elementary schools	58.4%	58	22.6		22.6	41.4	48.6	59.7				49.5	37.1	55.7	32.3				42.1							$41,125	$37,972	$3,153
Stanford Avenue Elementary	Public	1-5	2833 Illinois Ave.	South Gate	90280	Los Angeles County	Los Angeles Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(323) 569-8117	329	16	20.5	96.7%	4 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	319 (97.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.5%)	61.3	2000^th of 5857 public elementary schools	65.9%		48.4	2646^th of 5869 public elementary schools	54.9%	646	25.4		25.4	49.2	57.7	49.2				52.5	60.3	57.7	32.8				50.5							$43,053	$39,690	$3,363
Stanford Primary Center	Public	K	3020 Kansas Ave.	South Gate	90280	Los Angeles County	Los Angeles Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(323) 563-9208	112	6	18.6	96.4%	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.9%)	109 (97.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.8%)								(n/a)																		97.2	97.9		97.9	97.2		$82,063	$78,610	$3,453
Victoria Avenue Elementary	Public	K-5	3320 Missouri Ave.	South Gate	90280	Los Angeles County	Los Angeles Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(323) 567-1261	272	15	18.1	97.4%	5 (1.8%)	1 (0.4%)	256 (94.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (3.7%)	63.4	1906^th of 5857 public elementary schools	67.5%		53.4	2377^th of 5869 public elementary schools	59.5%	471	28.6		28.6	60.5	53.9	50.0				54.4	65.8	48.1	40.8				50.4	97.1						$51,366	$47,762	$3,604

Frequently Asked Questions about Independence Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Independence Elementary?

Students at Independence Elementary are 98% Hispanic, 1% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Independence Elementary attend?

Students who attend Independence Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : South Gate Middle
High : International Studies Learning Center at Legacy High School Complex
High : Sci Technical Engr Arts and Math at Legacy High School Complex
High : South East High
High : South Gate Senior High
High : Visual and Performing Arts at Legacy High School Complex

How many students attend Independence Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 418 students attended Independence Elementary.

Is Independence Elementary a good school?

Independence Elementary ranks 3533^rd of 5857 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What district is Independence Elementary in?

Los Angeles Unified

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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.