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Lange (Dorothea) Elementary

Q: Is Lange (Dorothea) Elementary a good school?

Lange (Dorothea) Elementary ranks 2630 th of 5817 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-6

2630^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,817 California Elementary Schools

Better than 55% of California elementary schools

Summary

Lange (Dorothea) Elementary is a K–6 school in Nipomo, California, serving 577 students in the Lucia Mar Unified district. Its strongest distinction is clear: in 2025–2026, it had the highest all-grades proficiency rates among nine nearby K–6 schools in English language arts (ELA), math, and science.

Lange leads nearby schools by a wide margin, but it remains below state and district results in all three subjects. Its proficiency was 47% in ELA, 38% in math, and 34% in science, compared with nearby-school averages of 24%, 19%, and 15%. Its closest competitor, Ontiveros (Juan Pacifico) Elementary, trailed by 7 points in ELA, 7 in math, and 13 in science. Math is closest to the benchmarks: Lange was less than 1 point below the state and 1 point below the district. ELA shows the largest gap, at 3 points below the state and 8 below the district; science was 2 points below the state and 3 below the district.

Across the four supplied years, ELA rose 4 points and math rose 7, while science fell 10 points overall, despite rebounding 11 points in the latest year. SchoolDigger’s rating improved from 2 stars and the 47th percentile in 2023–2024 to 3 stars and the 55th percentile in 2025–2026. Its subgroup rankings highlight concerns: SchoolDigger placed Lange at the 2nd percentile for effectiveness with Special Education Students in 2025–2026, compared with the school’s overall 55th percentile; its latest supplied English Language Learner Students ranking was the 9th percentile in 2023–2024, versus the school’s overall 47th percentile that year. The 2024–2025 student–teacher ratio was 22.4 to 1, among the highest nearby. That year, 67% of students were reported as free/reduced lunch eligible; California is identified as a statewide-free-meals state, so this eligibility measure is context, not a measure of who receives free meals.

577

Students ?

22.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$17,841

Per pupil spending ?

67.2%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

All students in California receive free school meals.

94%

Kindergartners with all required immunizations (2024-25)

Exemptions: 0% (any vaccine)

1661 Via Alta Mesa
Nipomo, CA 93444-9344

(805) 474-3670

District: Lucia Mar Unified

Students who attend Lange (Dorothea) Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Mesa Middle
High:	Central Coast New Technical High
	Nipomo High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

58.9%

White:

36.2%

Two or more races:

4.3%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Lange (Dorothea) Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 58th percentile in 2015 → 55th in 2026

Strengths

✓Above the California median (55th percentile)

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 (2025-2026) ?

This school41%

District avg45%

California avg42%

2,630^th of 5,817

California public elementary schools ?

Top 45%▼ down 3 pts since 2016

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

6^th of 11Elementary Schools in the Lucia Mar Unified

584^th of 1,530Lucia Mar 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	49.7	2630 of 5817	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2025	46.7	2781 of 5857	52.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	41.3	3102 of 5869	47.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	46.9	2700 of 5859	53.9%	★★★☆☆
2022	41.7	2975 of 5883	49.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	44.6	2904 of 5789	49.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	39.5	3189 of 5662	43.7%	★★☆☆☆
2017	45.3	2785 of 5692	51.1%	★★★☆☆
2016	52.2	2382 of 5614	57.6%	★★★☆☆
2015	51.3	2371 of 5611	57.7%	★★★☆☆
2013	50.0	2692 of 5530	51.3%	★★★☆☆
2012	56.9	2215 of 5390	58.9%	★★★☆☆
2011	51.9	2486 of 5377	53.8%	★★★☆☆
2010	39.2	3218 of 5314	39.4%	★★☆☆☆
2009	48.8	2557 of 5193	50.8%	★★★☆☆
2008	37.2	3117 of 5113	39.0%	★★☆☆☆
2007	59.5	1851 of 5113	63.8%	★★★☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2018	38.5	1080 of 2128	49.2%	★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	24.4	2880 of 3162	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	33.5	2278 of 3245	29.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	46.8	1376 of 3311	58.4%	★★★☆☆
2019	29.6	2522 of 3275	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	49.7	2521 of 5581	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2025	49.7	2478 of 5597	55.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	43.1	2851 of 5612	49.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	50.2	2397 of 5609	57.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	47.4	2557 of 5635	54.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	47.4	2648 of 5492	51.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	32.1	3600 of 5413	33.5%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	48.2	2437 of 5094	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2025	39.8	3041 of 5107	40.5%	★★☆☆☆
2024	32.5	3543 of 5107	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	32.1	3531 of 5087	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	35.7	3241 of 5084	36.3%	★★☆☆☆
2019	34.8	3332 of 4963	32.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	29.6	3582 of 4830	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	43.3	204 of 366	44.3%	★★☆☆☆
2025	43.2	246 of 429	42.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	44.2	196 of 364	46.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	43.9	180 of 335	46.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	50.7	141 of 356	60.4%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	48.8	2529 of 5423	53.4%	★★★☆☆
2025	39.4	3227 of 5460	40.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	44.8	2762 of 5517	49.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	42.0	2905 of 5363	45.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	38.9	3102 of 5264	41.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	40.5	3065 of 5173	40.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	37.9	3172 of 5084	37.6%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	49.7	2507 of 5603	55.3%	★★★☆☆
2025	42.7	2943 of 5628	47.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	39.9	3075 of 5643	45.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	42.9	2874 of 5638	49.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	36.3	3244 of 5663	42.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	42.0	2915 of 5510	47.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	46.4	2653 of 5431	51.2%	★★★☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	16.4	2866 of 2927	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	44.6	1264 of 2847	55.6%	★★★☆☆
2024	34.7	1577 of 2635	40.2%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	43.1	1552 of 2536	38.8%	★★☆☆☆
2025	40.7	1668 of 2598	35.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	37.6	1765 of 2651	33.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	50.7	1406 of 2661	47.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	38.6	1780 of 2726	34.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	44.0	1727 of 2834	39.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	42.6	1736 of 2737	36.6%	★★☆☆☆

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)

Male (2026)55th percentile~ school

Female (2026)55th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)53rd percentile~ school

Hispanic (2026)52nd percentile-3 vs school

Disabled (2018)49th percentile+6 vs school

Homeless (2026)44th percentile-11 vs school

White (2026)39th percentile-16 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)9th percentile-38 vs school

Special Education (2026)2nd percentile-53 vs school

By subject vs California (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy47%-3 vs state

Mathematics38%~ state avg

Science34%~ state avg

★

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Schools Near Lange (Dorothea) 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)				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)					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	CSA Spanish Overall 3rd Grade	CSA Spanish Overall All Grades	CSA Spanish Listening 3rd Grade	CSA Spanish Listening All Grades	CSA Spanish Writing 3rd Grade	CSA Spanish Writing All Grades	CSA Spanish Reading 3rd Grade	CSA Spanish Reading All Grades	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	Vaccination: Kindergartners with all required immunizations	Vaccination: Exemption rate	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Lange (Dorothea) Elementary	Public	K-6	1661 Via Alta Mesa	Nipomo	93444	San Luis Obispo County	Lucia Mar Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 474-3670	577	26	22.4	67.2%	209 (36.2%)	0 (0.0%)	340 (58.9%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (4.3%)	49.7	2630^th of 5817 public elementary schools	54.8%		46.7	2781^st of 5857 public elementary schools	52.5%	151									34.1	34.1	38.8	58.3	40.2	47.4	46.6	38.8	57.1	27.6	29.9	37.9	94%	0%	$17,841	$2,792	$15,049
Dana Elementary	Public	K-6	920 West Tefft St.	Nipomo	93444	San Luis Obispo County	Lucia Mar Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 474-3790	612	31	19.9	77.1%	161 (26.3%)	1 (0.2%)	418 (68.3%)	4 (0.7%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (4.2%)	30.6	3950^th of 5817 public elementary schools	32.1%		29.7	3989^th of 5857 public elementary schools	31.9%	39									15.9	15.9	29.2	51.4	36.5	26.6	34.8	30.3	38.6	28.6	23.2	29.7	98%	0%	$17,510	$2,818	$14,692
Nipomo Elementary	Public	K-6	190 East Price St.	Nipomo	93444	San Luis Obispo County	Lucia Mar Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 474-3780	436	22	19.9	83.7%	74 (17.0%)	2 (0.5%)	351 (80.5%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.4%)	18.3	4957^th of 5817 public elementary schools	14.8%		25.1	4388^th of 5857 public elementary schools	25.1%	569									11.9	11.9	20.0	27.1	30.0	36.9	29.0	16.4	25.0	11.9	20.0	18.1	93%	0%	$18,352	$2,865	$15,487
Bonita Elementary	Public	K-6	2715 West Main St.	Santa Maria	93458	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-8290	535	30	18.1	97.8%	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	529 (98.9%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	7.3	5724^th of 5817 public elementary schools	1.6%		11.3	5548^th of 5857 public elementary schools	5.3%	176									10.8	10.8	7.4	10.8	9.4	17.4	11.3	14.9	10.8	10.9	7.3	11.0	≥ 98%		$23,478	$1,745	$21,733
Mary Buren Elementary	Public	K-4	1050 Peralta St.	Guadalupe	93434	Santa Barbara County	Guadalupe Union Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 343-2411	738	39	18.9	90.1%	25 (3.4%)	1 (0.1%)	702 (95.1%)	3 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	5 (0.7%)								(n/a)	7.1	7.1	21.4	21.4	7.1	7.1	4.8	4.8			22.9				22.9	28.6				28.6	≥ 99%		$36,197	$3,199	$32,998
Ontiveros (Juan Pacifico) Elementary	Public	K-6	930 West Rancho Verde	Santa Maria	93458	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-7680	869	35	24.8	94.2%	8 (0.9%)	1 (0.1%)	840 (96.7%)	10 (1.2%)	6 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.5%)	36.1	3493^rd of 5817 public elementary schools	40.0%		40.6	3177^th of 5857 public elementary schools	45.8%	316									21.2	21.2	37.9	34.7	47.1	39.7	39.7	34.7	45.1	26.9	18.2	31.2	≥ 99%		$21,222	$1,678	$19,544
Oakley (Calvin C.) Elementary	Public	K-6	1120 West Harding St.	Santa Maria	93458	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-7620	849	40	21.0	95.9%	4 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	830 (97.8%)	11 (1.3%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.2%)	15	5220^th of 5817 public elementary schools	10.3%		15	5261^st of 5857 public elementary schools	10.2%	41									9.3	9.3	18.1	31.3	14.7	23.0	21.6	19.9	28.7	16.2	15.0	20.0	≥ 99%		$21,494	$1,661	$19,833
Bruce (Robert) Elementary	Public	K-6	601 West Alvin Ave.	Santa Maria	93458	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-6940	1,050	47	22.3	96.1%	10 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1,026 (97.7%)	4 (0.4%)	4 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (0.6%)	11.7	5500^th of 5817 public elementary schools	5.4%		10.8	5583^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	4.7%	83									16.4	16.4	9.2	17.4	25.0	21.2	18.1	16.0	20.7	12.5	10.7	15.0	97%	0%	$20,866	$2,092	$18,774
Fairlawn Elementary	Public	K-6	120 Mary Dr.	Santa Maria	93458	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-7500	716	34	20.8	97.6%	4 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	705 (98.5%)	4 (0.6%)	3 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12.5	5439^th of 5817 public elementary schools	6.5%		14.9	5272^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	10.0%	167									19.5	19.5	15.1	17.6	26.1	19.8	19.5	11.3	14.9	19.3	11.9	14.1	98%	0%	$21,182	$1,650	$19,532
Taylor (Ida Redmond) Elementary	Public	K-6	1921 North Carlotti Dr.	Santa Maria	93454	Santa Barbara County	Santa Maria-Bonita	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 361-6250	849	45	19.0	85.7%	36 (4.2%)	2 (0.2%)	762 (89.8%)	33 (3.9%)	2 (0.2%)	2 (0.2%)	12 (1.4%)	17.8	4992^nd of 5817 public elementary schools	14.2%		17.3	5074^th of 5857 public elementary schools	13.4%	82									15.9	15.9	21.9	18.2	24.1	31.6	24.2	26.3	23.2	15.0	22.7	21.8	≥ 99%		$22,934	$2,671	$20,263

Frequently Asked Questions about Lange (Dorothea) Elementary

How many students attend Lange (Dorothea) Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 577 students attended Lange (Dorothea) Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Lange (Dorothea) Elementary?

Students at Lange (Dorothea) Elementary are 59% Hispanic, 36% White, 4% Two or more races.

What district is Lange (Dorothea) Elementary in?

Lucia Mar Unified

What schools do graduates of Lange (Dorothea) Elementary attend?

Students who attend Lange (Dorothea) Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Mesa Middle
High : Central Coast New Technical High
High : Nipomo High

Is Lange (Dorothea) Elementary a good school?

Lange (Dorothea) Elementary ranks 2630^th of 5817 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Rate Lange (Dorothea) 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.