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Joshua Hills Elementary

Public Grades K-5

5267^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 10% of California elementary schools

Summary

Joshua Hills Elementary is a K-5 public school serving 581 students in Palmdale, California, within the Palmdale Elementary school district, which faces significant academic challenges across the board.

Academically, Joshua Hills is one of the lowest-performing elementary schools in the state, ranking in the bottom 10% with test scores well below California averages; only about 24% of students are proficient in English, 17% in math, and a very low 5% in science. The school also struggles with high chronic absenteeism, with about one-third of students missing too much school, and serves a student population where over 90% qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Performance has declined over the past decade, and students in the upper grades, particularly in 5th-grade math and science, show especially low proficiency rates.

When compared to nearby schools, the data reveals important differences. For instance, Barrel Springs Elementary, located less than a mile away, achieves much stronger results with similar resources, suggesting that school-level practices matter. Other schools like Cimarron Elementary and Innovations Academy of Palmdale also outperform Joshua Hills in key subjects, with Innovations Academy having a much lower chronic absenteeism rate. This comparison indicates that while Joshua Hills faces common district-wide challenges, there are examples of more successful approaches at neighboring schools that could inform efforts to improve student outcomes.

581

Students ?

24.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$26,201

Per pupil spending ?

92.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3030 Fairfield
Palmdale, CA 93550-8300

(661) 265-9992

District: Palmdale Elementary

Students who attend Joshua Hills Elementary usually attend:

High:

Palmdale High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

81.6%

African American:

12.7%

White:

2.2%

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Compare Joshua Hills Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 19th percentile in 2013 → 10th in 2025

Worth a look

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

!In the lower quartile statewide (10th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (34% vs 19% California)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school18%

District avg23%

California avg41%

5,267^th of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Bottom 10%▼ down 16 pts since 2015

From bottom 26% (2015) to bottom 10% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

16^th of 20Elementary Schools in the Palmdale Elementary

1309^th of 1,543Palmdale 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	14.9	5267 of 5857	10.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	12.2	5537 of 5869	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	12.6	5501 of 5859	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	17.1	5146 of 5883	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	16.1	5155 of 5789	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	17.4	4904 of 5662	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	21.0	4590 of 5692	19.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	25.5	4134 of 5614	26.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	24.7	4157 of 5611	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	23.5	4499 of 5530	18.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	27.5	4135 of 5390	23.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	24.7	4356 of 5377	19.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	28.5	3964 of 5314	25.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	37.8	3193 of 5193	38.5%	★★☆☆☆
2008	25.6	3920 of 5113	23.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	28.7	3660 of 5113	28.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	24.8	3666 of 4818	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	26.4	3522 of 4822	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	25.2	3544 of 4809	26.3%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	18.4	517 of 569	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	18.8	543 of 593	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	34.3	408 of 661	38.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	48.8	274 of 663	58.7%	★★★☆☆
2019	31.0	534 of 747	28.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	44.7	346 of 700	50.6%	★★★☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	19.2	2043 of 2227	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	20.8	2309 of 2585	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.6	1946 of 2128	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	33.0	2337 of 3162	26.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	31.5	2424 of 3245	25.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	43.7	1555 of 3311	53.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	25.7	2812 of 3275	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	19.2	3097 of 3246	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	17.1	4930 of 5597	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.6	4916 of 5612	12.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.6	5169 of 5609	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	17.6	4927 of 5635	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	21.0	4538 of 5492	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.8	4467 of 5413	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	22.3	4289 of 5107	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.6	4547 of 5107	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.9	4611 of 5087	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	27.0	3949 of 5084	22.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	24.1	4102 of 4963	17.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	24.2	3963 of 4830	18.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	20.0	4725 of 5460	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	15.5	5112 of 5517	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	16.1	4957 of 5363	7.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	23.8	4349 of 5264	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	20.0	4565 of 5173	11.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	22.1	4324 of 5084	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	14.1	5189 of 5628	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	9.5	5523 of 5643	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	12.1	5364 of 5638	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	18.0	4926 of 5663	13.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	14.9	5060 of 5510	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	16.7	4841 of 5431	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	20.6	2551 of 2847	10.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.1	2283 of 2635	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.9	2334 of 2420	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

English Language Learner (2024)26th percentile+20 vs school

Hispanic (2025)16th percentile+6 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)13th percentile+3 vs school

Female (2025)12th percentile~ school

Special Education (2025)10th percentile~ school

African American (2025)9th percentile~ school

Disabled (2022)8th percentile-4 vs school

Male (2025)8th percentile~ school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy24%-25 vs state

Mathematics17%-20 vs state

Science5%-27 vs state

★

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Schools Near Joshua Hills 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
Joshua Hills Elementary	Public	K-5	3030 Fairfield	Palmdale	93550	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 265-9992	581	24	24.4	92.3%	13 (2.2%)	74 (12.7%)	474 (81.6%)	7 (1.2%)	4 (0.7%)	2 (0.3%)	7 (1.2%)	14.9	5267^th of 5857 public elementary schools	10.1%		12.2	5537^th of 5869 public elementary schools	5.7%	270	5.3		5.3	32.3	25.0	16.8				24.3	28.1	20.4	5.3				17.3							$26,201	$24,918	$1,283
Barrel Springs Elementary	Public	K-5	3636 Ponderosa Way	Palmdale	93550	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 285-9270	627	24	25.7	77.4%	37 (5.9%)	84 (13.4%)	478 (76.2%)	7 (1.1%)	5 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (2.6%)	47.1	2752^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	53.0%		44.4	2900^th of 5869 public elementary schools	50.6%	148	26.6		26.6	41.9	40.7	58.1				46.8	44.8	36.1	29.8				37.2	93.3	97.5	98.3	95.0	96.6	95.8	$25,065	$23,920	$1,145
Innovations Academy of Palmdale	Public, Virtual	K-8	37230 37th St. East	Palmdale	93550	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	Yes	(n/a)	(661) 236-0161	409	15	28.0	87.3%	33 (8.1%)	76 (18.6%)	271 (66.3%)	3 (0.7%)	6 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (4.9%)	24.6	4450^th of 5857 public elementary schools	24.0%		10.2	5677^th of 5869 public elementary schools	3.3%	1227	14.0	21.1	18.4	31.4	30.4	32.6	32.7	32.9	28.2	31.2	37.1	19.6	20.9	23.1	28.6	25.4	25.4							$23,644	$22,720	$924
Desert Rose Elementary	Public	K-8	37730 27th St. East	Palmdale	93550	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 272-0584	614	24	25.4	91.4%	19 (3.1%)	93 (15.1%)	464 (75.6%)	11 (1.8%)	6 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (3.4%)	18.8	4940^th of 5857 public elementary schools	15.7%		13.1	5467^th of 5869 public elementary schools	6.8%	527	21.3		21.3	24.8	21.7	28.7				24.8	31.7	16.0	14.9				20.8	97.0	98.0			97.0		$24,633	$23,632	$1,001
Cimarron Elementary	Public	K-5	36940 45th St. East	Palmdale	93552	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 285-9780	497	20	25.2	77.9%	15 (3.0%)	51 (10.3%)	410 (82.5%)	5 (1.0%)	6 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (2.0%)	24.6	4449^th of 5857 public elementary schools	24.0%		14.2	5377^th of 5869 public elementary schools	8.4%	928	18.4		18.4	36.6	25.0	31.0				31.3	37.8	20.0	14.9				24.4							$27,501	$26,288	$1,213
Mesquite Elementary	Public	K-5	37622 43rd St. East	Palmdale	93552	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 285-8376	582	22	26.7	79.0%	27 (4.6%)	60 (10.3%)	461 (79.2%)	7 (1.2%)	6 (1.0%)	1 (0.2%)	20 (3.4%)	18.8	4939^th of 5857 public elementary schools	15.7%		18.5	4980^th of 5869 public elementary schools	15.1%	41	12.7		12.7	19.8	37.3	27.5				28.1	25.5	23.5	11.0				19.9							$24,410	$23,394	$1,016
Oak Tree Community Day	Public	K-8	38136 35th St. East	Palmdale	93550	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 285-1548	63	8	8.0	100.0%	3 (4.8%)	33 (52.4%)	22 (34.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.6%)	4 (6.3%)								(n/a)		6.7	4.0				0.0	0.0	6.7	1.5				0.0	0.0	6.7	1.5
Yellen Learning Center	Public	K-8	37015 Goldenview Way	Palmdale	93552	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 456-1600	58	11	5.4	86.2%	3 (5.2%)	36 (62.1%)	19 (32.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)		0.0	0.0				5.9		0.0	1.6				6.3		0.0	1.8
Buena Vista Elementary	Public	K-5	37005 Hillcrest Dr.	Palmdale	93552	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 285-4158	573	26	21.8	77.7%	29 (5.1%)	71 (12.4%)	455 (79.4%)	3 (0.5%)	5 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (1.7%)	21.8	4688^th of 5857 public elementary schools	20.0%		17.7	5059^th of 5869 public elementary schools	13.8%	371	16.7		16.7	23.9	29.1	37.2				29.8	25.0	31.4	9.0				22.2							$30,789	$29,508	$1,281
Chaparral Prep Academy	Public	K-5	37500 50th St. East	Palmdale	93552	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 285-9777	594	22	27.0	87.7%	23 (3.9%)	67 (11.3%)	485 (81.6%)	6 (1.0%)	6 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.2%)	23.9	4505^th of 5857 public elementary schools	23.1%		19.2	4927^th of 5869 public elementary schools	16.1%	422	24.5		24.5	22.3	19.5	38.7				26.8	30.2	17.7	27.4				24.8							$25,591	$24,394	$1,197

Frequently Asked Questions about Joshua Hills Elementary

Is Joshua Hills Elementary a good school?

Joshua Hills Elementary ranks in the bottom 10.1% of California elementary schools.

What is the racial makeup of Joshua Hills Elementary?

Students at Joshua Hills Elementary are 82% Hispanic, 13% African American, 2% White, 1% Asian, 1% Two or more races.

How many students attend Joshua Hills Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 581 students attended Joshua Hills Elementary.

What schools do graduates of Joshua Hills Elementary attend?

Students who attend Joshua Hills Elementary usually go on to attend:

High : Palmdale High

What district is Joshua Hills Elementary in?

Palmdale 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.