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Rio del Mar Elementary

Q: Is Rio del Mar Elementary a good school?

Rio del Mar Elementary ranks 1565 th of 5817 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-6

1565^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,817 California Elementary Schools

Better than 73% of California elementary schools

Summary

Rio del Mar Elementary is a K–6 school in Aptos, California, serving 393 students in Pajaro Valley Unified. In 2025–26, its students scored above the state and district in ELA, math and science. The clearest strength is math: Rio ranked first among nearby schools with reported scores and was 15 points above the state.

Rio’s results are strong across subjects, though its lead is smaller in science. ELA proficiency was 57%, 8 points above the state and 29 above the district; Rio ranked third among 11 schools, compared with a nearby-school average of 38%. Math proficiency was 53%, versus 38% statewide and 18% in the district, and was 22 points above the nearby-school average. Science proficiency was 43%, 7 points above the state and 24 above the district, but only 11 points above the nearby average; Rio ranked fourth among 11 schools. Grade results are less even: sixth graders had the school’s highest ELA and math results, while fourth-grade math was 37%, 5 points below the state.

Scores have moved in different directions since 2022–23: ELA fell 2 points to 57%, math rose 3 points to 53%, and science fell 13 points to 43%, including a 15-point drop from the prior year. Attendance improved: chronic absenteeism fell from 27% in 2021–22 to 11% in 2025–26, below the state’s 18% and the district’s 21%. SchoolDigger gives Rio four stars and a 73rd-percentile statewide rank, compared with one star and the 17th percentile for the district. Rio’s 2024–25 student-teacher ratio was 20.5, and 22% of students were free/reduced lunch eligible. SchoolDigger’s subgroup measure shows a notable difference: Rio ranked at the 45th percentile for White Students in 2025–26, compared with the 73rd percentile overall; its ranking for Special Education Students rose from the 71st percentile in 2023–24 to the 87th in 2025–26. These subgroup rankings describe SchoolDigger’s measure of how well the school serves each group.

393

Students ?

20.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$22,203

Per pupil spending ?

22.1%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

All students in California receive free school meals.

96%

Kindergartners with all required immunizations (2024-25)

Exemptions: 0% (any vaccine)

819 Pinehurst Dr.
Aptos, CA 95003-5737

(831) 728-7838

District: Pajaro Valley Unified

Students who attend Rio del Mar Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Aptos Junior High
High:	Aptos High

Racial breakdown:

White:

63.4%

Hispanic:

22.4%

Two or more races:

9.9%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Rio del Mar Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 87th percentile in 2015 → 73rd in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the California average (54% vs 42% meeting standards)

✓Among the top-ranked schools in Pajaro Valley Unified

✓Above the California median (73rd percentile)

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 14 percentile points since 2015

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

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school54%

District avg22%

California avg42%

1,565^th of 5,817

California public elementary schools ?

Top 27%▼ down 17 pts since 2016

From top 10% (2016) to top 27% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 19Elementary Schools in the Pajaro Valley Unified

1255^th of 1,530Pajaro Valley 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	70.3	1565 of 5817	73.1%	★★★★☆
2025	74.9	1374 of 5857	76.5%	★★★★☆
2024	69.3	1621 of 5869	72.4%	★★★★☆
2023	77.0	1277 of 5859	78.2%	★★★★☆
2022	76.4	1344 of 5883	77.2%	★★★★☆
2019	81.7	1093 of 5789	81.1%	★★★★☆
2018	87.1	791 of 5662	86.0%	★★★★☆
2017	84.9	919 of 5692	83.9%	★★★★☆
2016	91.1	548 of 5614	90.2%	★★★★★
2015	88.2	709 of 5611	87.4%	★★★★☆
2013	85.1	754 of 5530	86.4%	★★★★☆
2012	86.1	671 of 5390	87.6%	★★★★☆
2011	89.7	454 of 5377	91.6%	★★★★★
2010	87.7	589 of 5314	88.9%	★★★★☆
2009	90.6	450 of 5193	91.3%	★★★★★
2008	91.9	374 of 5113	92.7%	★★★★★
2007	93.1	339 of 5113	93.4%	★★★★★
2006	89.1	527 of 4818	89.1%	★★★★☆
2005	91.7	403 of 4822	91.6%	★★★★★
2004	94.3	267 of 4809	94.4%	★★★★★

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	55.9	686 of 2227	69.2%	★★★☆☆
2019	84.1	278 of 2585	89.2%	★★★★☆
2018	95.3	85 of 2128	96.0%	★★★★★

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	71.3	1428 of 5581	74.4%	★★★★☆
2025	79.6	1096 of 5597	80.4%	★★★★☆
2024	70.6	1469 of 5612	73.8%	★★★★☆
2023	77.8	1184 of 5609	78.9%	★★★★☆
2022	78.1	1198 of 5635	78.7%	★★★★☆
2019	79.3	1115 of 5492	79.7%	★★★★☆
2018	88.8	629 of 5413	88.4%	★★★★☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	70.7	1168 of 5094	77.1%	★★★★☆
2025	63.8	1514 of 5107	70.4%	★★★★☆
2024	80.4	709 of 5107	86.1%	★★★★☆
2023	64.6	1418 of 5087	72.1%	★★★★☆
2022	72.7	1037 of 5084	79.6%	★★★★☆
2019	83.1	589 of 4963	88.1%	★★★★☆
2018	89.8	314 of 4830	93.5%	★★★★★

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	69.0	1348 of 5423	75.1%	★★★★☆
2025	52.5	2277 of 5460	58.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	58.0	1918 of 5517	65.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	64.7	1488 of 5363	72.3%	★★★★☆
2022	63.0	1513 of 5264	71.3%	★★★★☆
2019	52.9	2209 of 5173	57.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	63.8	1527 of 5084	70.0%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	67.0	1641 of 5603	70.7%	★★★★☆
2025	66.7	1665 of 5628	70.4%	★★★★☆
2024	64.4	1772 of 5643	68.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	73.0	1371 of 5638	75.7%	★★★★☆
2022	72.6	1409 of 5663	75.1%	★★★★☆
2019	80.7	1037 of 5510	81.2%	★★★★☆
2018	82.5	959 of 5431	82.3%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	80.1	368 of 2927	87.4%	★★★★☆
2025	61.1	764 of 2847	73.2%	★★★★☆
2024	57.7	771 of 2635	70.7%	★★★★☆
2023	76.1	367 of 2420	84.8%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	49.5	1405 of 2536	44.6%	★★☆☆☆
2025	52.4	1343 of 2598	48.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	44.5	1578 of 2651	40.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	54.6	1301 of 2661	51.1%	★★★☆☆
2022	57.6	1232 of 2726	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	59.8	1219 of 2834	57.0%	★★★☆☆
2018	68.7	871 of 2737	68.2%	★★★☆☆

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 (2026)87th percentile+14 vs school

Hispanic (2026)77th percentile+4 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)75th percentile~ school

Female (2026)74th percentile~ school

Male (2026)71st percentile~ school

Disabled (2022)69th percentile-8 vs school

White (2026)45th percentile-28 vs school

By subject vs California (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy57%+8 vs state

Mathematics53%+15 vs state

Science43%+7 vs state

★

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Schools Near Rio del Mar 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)				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	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 7th 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 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
Rio del Mar Elementary	Public	K-6	819 Pinehurst Dr.	Aptos	95003	Santa Cruz County	Pajaro Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 728-7838	393	19	20.5	22.1%	249 (63.4%)	2 (0.5%)	88 (22.4%)	13 (3.3%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	39 (9.9%)	70.3	1565^th of 5817 public elementary schools	73.1%		74.9	1374^th of 5857 public elementary schools	76.5%	191	43.1	43.1	44.7	51.0	54.9	74.2		57.4	56.5	37.3	51.0	66.1		53.3	96%	0%	$22,203	$1,849	$20,354
Valencia Elementary	Public	K-6	250 Aptos School Rd.	Aptos	95003	Santa Cruz County	Pajaro Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 728-7836	487	24	20.2	37.0%	303 (62.2%)	0 (0.0%)	148 (30.4%)	3 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	32 (6.6%)	75.9	1333^rd of 5817 public elementary schools	77.1%		78.3	1225^th of 5857 public elementary schools	79.1%	108	57.8	57.8	42.9	61.9	67.2	69.2		61.8	41.7	50.8	47.6	62.3		51.8	≥ 98%		$21,470	$2,003	$19,467
Mar Vista Elementary	Public	K-7	6860 Soquel Dr.	Aptos	95003	Santa Cruz County	Pajaro Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 761-6177	270	15	17.8	54.1%	136 (50.4%)	1 (0.4%)	102 (37.8%)	9 (3.3%)	1 (0.4%)	3 (1.1%)	18 (6.7%)	39.7	3251^st of 5817 public elementary schools	44.1%		39.2	3271^st of 5857 public elementary schools	44.2%	20	31.3	31.3	38.5	40.0	43.8	46.2		43.5	35.9	17.5	31.3	44.0		31.3	≥ 95%		$24,443	$2,747	$21,696
Bradley Elementary	Public	K-6	321 Corralitos Rd.	Watsonville	95076	Santa Cruz County	Pajaro Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 728-6366	520	25	21.0	54.2%	193 (37.1%)	1 (0.2%)	296 (56.9%)	5 (1.0%)	3 (0.6%)	1 (0.2%)	20 (3.8%)	31.3	3886^th of 5817 public elementary schools	33.2%		30.7	3903^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	33.4%	17	28.4	28.4	19.1	38.7	42.5	41.4		35.9	25.4	27.6	28.8	22.9		26.2	≥ 98%		$22,767	$2,268	$20,499
Calabasas Elementary	Public	K-6	202 Calabasas Rd.	Watsonville	95076	Santa Cruz County	Pajaro Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 728-6368	512	23	22.0	97.1%	23 (4.5%)	0 (0.0%)	482 (94.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	4 (0.8%)	13.5	5359^th of 5817 public elementary schools	7.9%		9.6	5652^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	3.5%	293	10.2	10.2	22.2	18.3	11.9	34.5		21.5	28.6	12.5	6.7	15.5		15.8	≥ 98%		$23,092	$2,713	$20,379
Soquel Elementary	Public	K-5	2700 Porter St.	Soquel	95073	Santa Cruz County	Soquel Union Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 464-5655	337	15	22.0	40.1%	132 (39.2%)	6 (1.8%)	160 (47.5%)	14 (4.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.6%)	22 (6.5%)	43.4	3025^th of 5817 public elementary schools	48.0%		49.7	2611^th of 5857 public elementary schools	55.4%	414	26.9	26.9	51.5	43.1	36.5			44.4	45.5	36.5	23.1			35.9	94%	0%	$12,225	$585	$11,640
Main Street Elementary	Public	K-5	3400 North Main St.	Soquel	95073	Santa Cruz County	Soquel Union Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 464-5650	383	17	23.2	24.8%	234 (61.1%)	3 (0.8%)	105 (27.4%)	8 (2.1%)	2 (0.5%)	2 (0.5%)	29 (7.6%)	74.6	1382^nd of 5817 public elementary schools	76.2%		66	1788^th of 5857 public elementary schools	69.5%	406	57.1	57.1	63.6	54.2	64.3			60.2	56.8	48.6	47.1			50.0	90%	0%	$11,189	$466	$10,723
Freedom Elementary	Public	K-5	25 Holly Dr.	Freedom	95019	Santa Cruz County	Pajaro Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 728-6260	479	20	24.5	91.4%	19 (4.0%)	1 (0.2%)	456 (95.2%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11.4	5511^th of 5817 public elementary schools	5.3%		9.3	5669^th of 5857 public elementary schools	3.2%	158	12.0	12.0	9.0	12.6	29.3			16.7	15.4	17.4	17.6			16.8	≥ 98%		$22,243	$2,496	$19,747
Live Oak Elementary	Public	K-5	1916 Capitola Rd.	Santa Cruz	95062	Santa Cruz County	Live Oak Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 475-2000	362	15	24.1	58.6%	90 (24.9%)	5 (1.4%)	252 (69.6%)	7 (1.9%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.7%)	46.2	2841^st of 5817 public elementary schools	51.2%		35.7	3527^th of 5857 public elementary schools	39.8%	686	32.3	32.3	58.0	40.8	38.5			45.1	68.0	28.6	20.0			37.2	≥ 98%
Del Mar Elementary	Public	K-5	1959 Merrill St.	Santa Cruz	95062	Santa Cruz County	Live Oak Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 477-2063	322	14	23.0	62.4%	109 (33.9%)	7 (2.2%)	189 (58.7%)	7 (2.2%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.8%)	53.8	2395^th of 5817 public elementary schools	58.8%		42.3	3048^th of 5857 public elementary schools	48.0%	653	50.0	50.0	47.0	36.9	55.8			45.9	42.7	38.5	40.4			40.5	≥ 98%

Frequently Asked Questions about Rio del Mar Elementary

Is Rio del Mar Elementary a good school?

Rio del Mar Elementary ranks 1565^th of 5817 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What schools do graduates of Rio del Mar Elementary attend?

Students who attend Rio del Mar Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Aptos Junior High
High : Aptos High

How many students attend Rio del Mar Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 393 students attended Rio del Mar Elementary.

What district is Rio del Mar Elementary in?

Pajaro Valley Unified

What is the racial makeup of Rio del Mar Elementary?

Students at Rio del Mar Elementary are 63% White, 22% Hispanic, 10% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

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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.