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Coming soon: We're expecting this year's test scores from the California Department of Education any day now — new rankings will be posted the moment they're released!

Coming soon: This year's test scores are expected from the California Department of Education any day now — new rankings will follow the moment they're released!

Don Stowell Elementary

Public Grades K-6

5312^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 9% of California elementary schools

Summary

Don Stowell Elementary is a public K-6 school serving 501 students in the Merced City Elementary district, consistently ranking among the lowest-performing schools in California with exceptionally high economic need among its student population.

Academically, the school's test scores are significantly below state and district averages, with only about 22% of students proficient in English and 16% in math. This performance is notably lower than most nearby schools, including Luther Burbank Elementary in the same district, which achieves better results with similar challenges. While the school struggles overall, it shows a relative strength in serving English Language Learners, performing in the 57th percentile for that group, which suggests some effective programs are in place. Chronic absenteeism, at 25.8%, is higher than the state average and may be one factor affecting outcomes.

Comparisons with schools in the neighboring Weaver Union district, such as Farmdale Elementary, show that schools with similar high-poverty demographics can achieve stronger academic results, indicating potential for improvement. The school's per-student spending is comparable to others, suggesting how resources are used is critical. Persistent low rankings over the past decade point to deep-rooted challenges, though the school's success with ELL students and varying performance by grade level highlight specific areas where targeted strategies could make a difference.

501

Students ?

21.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

$25,622

Per pupil spending ?

96%

Free/discounted lunch ?

251 East 11th St.
Merced, CA 95340-6228

(209) 381-2803

District: Merced City Elementary

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

87.2%

African American:

5.0%

White:

3.4%

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At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 11th percentile in 2013 → 9th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (18% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (9th percentile)

!English Language Arts/Literacy scores 27 pts below the California average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school18%

District avg27%

California avg41%

5,312^th of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Bottom 9%▲ up 6 pts since 2015

From bottom 4% (2015) to bottom 9% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

12^th of 13Elementary Schools in the Merced City Elementary

1221^st of 1,543Merced City 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	14.5	5312 of 5857	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.1	5549 of 5869	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	12.0	5565 of 5859	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	11.0	5670 of 5883	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	14.1	5306 of 5789	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	12.7	5284 of 5662	6.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	10.3	5471 of 5692	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	9.8	5453 of 5614	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	11.2	5405 of 5611	3.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	16.8	4938 of 5530	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	21.2	4574 of 5390	15.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	26.8	4200 of 5377	21.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	21.4	4504 of 5314	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	12.5	4880 of 5193	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	20.5	4307 of 5113	15.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	16.8	4515 of 5113	11.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	22.4	3824 of 4818	20.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	25.4	3605 of 4822	25.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	18.3	4093 of 4809	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	47.2	1345 of 3162	57.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	45.7	1440 of 3245	55.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	29.4	2658 of 3311	19.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	30.6	2442 of 3275	25.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.8	2799 of 3246	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	16.3	5005 of 5597	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	13.0	5289 of 5612	5.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	13.5	5272 of 5609	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	14.2	5247 of 5635	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	15.8	4966 of 5492	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.5	5168 of 5413	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	19.7	4472 of 5107	12.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	16.9	4669 of 5107	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.7	4798 of 5087	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	13.2	4893 of 5084	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	18.0	4505 of 4963	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	15.6	4483 of 4830	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	20.5	4678 of 5460	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	15.5	5111 of 5517	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.7	5058 of 5363	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	13.9	5024 of 5264	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	19.8	4580 of 5173	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	18.0	4595 of 5084	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	14.2	5181 of 5628	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.1	5308 of 5643	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	12.5	5330 of 5638	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	10.1	5547 of 5663	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	14.1	5114 of 5510	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	15.4	4934 of 5431	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	17.9	2501 of 2635	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

English Language Learner (2024)57th percentile+52 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)14th percentile+5 vs school

Hispanic (2025)12th percentile+3 vs school

Female (2025)11th percentile~ school

Male (2025)8th percentile~ school

Special Education (2024)5th percentile~ school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy22%-27 vs state

Mathematics16%-21 vs state

Science13%-19 vs state

★

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Schools Near Don Stowell 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 (2025)	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	% Hepatitis B KG	% Varicella KG	% DTP KG	% MMR KG	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Don Stowell Elementary	Public	K-6	251 East 11th St.	Merced	95340	Merced County	Merced City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 381-2803	501	23	21.8	96.0%	17 (3.4%)	25 (5.0%)	437 (87.2%)	12 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (2.0%)	14.5	5312^th of 5857 public elementary schools	9.3%		12.1	5549^th of 5869 public elementary schools	5.5%	237	13.2	13.2	20.0	16.4	23.7	28.0	22.2	30.8	18.9	10.9	7.9	16.3	92.8		94.2	97.1	94.2		$25,622	$24,630	$992
Charles Wright Elementary	Public	K-6	900 East 20th St.	Merced	95340	Merced County	Merced City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 385-6615	527	24	22.0	80.3%	60 (11.4%)	5 (0.9%)	402 (76.3%)	23 (4.4%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	33 (6.3%)	25.2	4373^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	25.3%		22.3	4653^rd of 5869 public elementary schools	20.7%	280	16.4	16.4	33.8	34.9	30.1	38.0	34.3	36.4	20.3	20.6	8.9	21.5							$26,942	$26,022	$920
Farmdale Elementary	Public	K-5	100 Winder Ave.	Merced	95341	Merced County	Weaver Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 725-7170	919	44	20.7	92.9%	41 (4.5%)	31 (3.4%)	682 (74.2%)	149 (16.2%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	14 (1.5%)	40.8	3162^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	46.0%		28.5	4070^th of 5869 public elementary schools	30.7%	908	12.3	12.3	57.6	38.1	27.8		41.1	68.4	33.1	16.6		39.2	98.2						$24,327	$22,196	$2,131
Alicia Reyes Elementary	Public	K-6	123 South N St.	Merced	95340	Merced County	Merced City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 385-6761	540	22	24.6	96.3%	6 (1.1%)	13 (2.4%)	495 (91.7%)	16 (3.0%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	8 (1.5%)	9.7	5650^th of 5857 public elementary schools	3.5%		16.3	5189^th of 5869 public elementary schools	11.6%	461	12.5	12.5	13.3	14.0	21.9	22.5	17.8	14.7	10.5	11.1	5.6	10.2							$26,382	$25,322	$1,060
John Muir Elementary	Public	K-6	300 West 26th St.	Merced	95340	Merced County	Merced City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 385-6667	613	24	25.6	88.6%	58 (9.5%)	42 (6.9%)	437 (71.3%)	42 (6.9%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	32 (5.2%)	23	4592^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	21.6%		25.1	4356^th of 5869 public elementary schools	25.8%	236	24.4	24.4	17.9	17.9	34.6	35.6	26.4	19.1	15.5	21.8	32.2	22.2	93.1	96.6			93.1	96.6	$22,443	$21,488	$955
Margaret Sheehy Elementary	Public	K-6	1240 West Sixth St.	Merced	95340	Merced County	Merced City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 385-6676	481	20	24.0	94.4%	16 (3.3%)	33 (6.9%)	395 (82.1%)	19 (4.0%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (3.3%)	18.2	4996^th of 5857 public elementary schools	14.7%		13.7	5423^rd of 5869 public elementary schools	7.6%	427	7.6	7.6	28.6	32.1	26.6	18.2	26.2	36.4	22.6	4.6	13.6	19.9	95.6				96.7		$25,676	$24,292	$1,384
John C. Fremont Elementary	Public	K-6	2150 S St.	Merced	95340	Merced County	Merced City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 385-6627	580	23	25.2	84.7%	56 (9.7%)	29 (5.0%)	436 (75.2%)	26 (4.5%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.3%)	30 (5.2%)	29.4	4008^th of 5857 public elementary schools	31.6%		24.9	4374^th of 5869 public elementary schools	25.5%	366	25.4	25.4	32.1	33.8	41.8	15.4	31.0	39.2	31.3	28.4	9.2	27.8	96.8						$22,428	$21,348	$1,080
Ada Givens Elementary	Public	K-6	2900 Green St.	Merced	95340	Merced County	Merced City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 385-6610	579	25	23.2	78.9%	86 (14.9%)	30 (5.2%)	402 (69.4%)	35 (6.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (4.3%)	24.1	4486^th of 5857 public elementary schools	23.4%		34.4	3565^th of 5869 public elementary schools	39.3%	921	17.8	17.8	31.7	33.8	31.5	27.5	31.0	39.0	26.3	17.8	11.0	23.3	96.5	98.2		98.2	97.4	98.2	$25,084	$24,046	$1,038
Leontine Gracey Elementary	Public	K-6	945 West Ave.	Merced	95340	Merced County	Merced City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 385-6710	509	22	23.1	81.7%	25 (4.9%)	14 (2.8%)	419 (82.3%)	31 (6.1%)	6 (1.2%)	1 (0.2%)	13 (2.6%)	23.7	4525^th of 5857 public elementary schools	22.7%		26.4	4260^th of 5869 public elementary schools	27.4%	265	17.0	17.0	15.8	21.9	30.5	52.2	29.5	15.4	16.2	10.2	38.8	20.1							$26,225	$25,220	$1,005
Luther Burbank Elementary	Public	K-6	609 East Alexander Ave.	Merced	95340	Merced County	Merced City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 385-6674	716	28	25.6	70.9%	130 (18.2%)	20 (2.8%)	430 (60.1%)	75 (10.5%)	6 (0.8%)	1 (0.1%)	54 (7.5%)	44.1	2947^th of 5857 public elementary schools	49.7%		45.6	2825^th of 5869 public elementary schools	51.9%	122	37.7	37.7	33.3	41.5	55.3	43.4	43.8	39.4	27.4	28.1	30.0	31.1	95.1		96.3		96.3		$22,307	$21,388	$919

Frequently Asked Questions about Don Stowell Elementary

Is Don Stowell Elementary a good school?

Don Stowell Elementary ranks in the bottom 9.3% of California elementary schools.

What is the racial makeup of Don Stowell Elementary?

Students at Don Stowell Elementary are 87% Hispanic, 5% African American, 3% White, 2% Asian, 2% Two or more races.

How many students attend Don Stowell Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 501 students attended Don Stowell Elementary.

What district is Don Stowell Elementary in?

Merced City 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.