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Cielo Vista Elementary

Q: Is Cielo Vista Elementary a good school?

Cielo Vista Elementary ranks 2899 th of 5857 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-6

2899^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 51% of California elementary schools

Summary

Cielo Vista Elementary is a K-6 public school serving 487 students in Rancho Santa Margarita, California, as part of the Saddleback Valley Unified school district, and it currently holds a middle-of-the-road state ranking while serving a student population with significant economic needs.

Academically, the school's proficiency rates in English, math, and science are notably lower than the district average and significantly trail those of high-performing neighbors like Portola Hills Elementary and Philip J. Reilly Elementary. A key differentiator is that over 65% of Cielo Vista's students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a rate much higher than nearby schools such as Trabuco Mesa Elementary (37%). The school also faces a challenge with chronic student absenteeism, which, while improving, remains higher than the district average and far above rates at top local schools.

Despite receiving more funding per student than several higher-ranked schools in the area, Cielo Vista's statewide ranking has gradually declined over the past decade. Its performance is most similar to Del Lago Elementary, which serves a less economically disadvantaged population. The data suggests the school is working to address these challenges, including a historical strength in supporting English Language Learners, but it continues to navigate a substantial performance gap within its own community and district.

487

Students ?

23.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$19,174

Per pupil spending ?

65.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

21811 Avenida De Los Fundadore
Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688-5444

(949) 589-7456

District: Saddleback Valley Unified

Students who attend Cielo Vista Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Rancho Santa Margarita Intermediate
High:	Trabuco Hills High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

59.3%

White:

23.4%

Asian:

10.5%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Cielo Vista Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 68th percentile in 2013 → 51st in 2025

Strengths

✓Above the California median (51st percentile)

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 17 percentile points since 2013

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

!Near the bottom of Saddleback Valley Unified's ranking

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school38%

District avg54%

California avg41%

2,899^th of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Top 49%▼ down 20 pts since 2015

From top 30% (2015) to top 49% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

20^th of 22Elementary Schools in the Saddleback Valley Unified

377^th of 1,543Saddleback 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
2025	44.8	2899 of 5857	50.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	53.8	2356 of 5869	59.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	48.4	2614 of 5859	55.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	45.1	2787 of 5883	52.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	57.3	2195 of 5789	62.1%	★★★☆☆
2018	57.7	2153 of 5662	62.0%	★★★☆☆
2017	58.1	2111 of 5692	62.9%	★★★☆☆
2016	62.3	1891 of 5614	66.3%	★★★☆☆
2015	65.8	1667 of 5611	70.3%	★★★★☆
2013	66.5	1748 of 5530	68.4%	★★★☆☆
2012	64.4	1822 of 5390	66.2%	★★★☆☆
2011	65.1	1740 of 5377	67.6%	★★★☆☆
2010	59.2	2030 of 5314	61.8%	★★★☆☆
2009	60.0	1917 of 5193	63.1%	★★★☆☆
2008	68.8	1461 of 5113	71.4%	★★★★☆
2007	75.8	1144 of 5113	77.6%	★★★★☆
2006	73.5	1192 of 4818	75.3%	★★★★☆
2005	72.0	1252 of 4822	74.0%	★★★★☆
2004	73.1	1189 of 4809	75.3%	★★★★☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	29.5	1519 of 2227	31.8%	★★☆☆☆
2019	57.7	777 of 2585	69.9%	★★★★☆
2018	55.9	662 of 2128	68.9%	★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	48.8	1254 of 3162	60.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	60.1	772 of 3245	76.2%	★★★★☆
2022	53.6	1017 of 3311	69.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	72.3	475 of 3275	85.5%	★★★★☆
2018	69.7	555 of 3246	82.9%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	46.0	2691 of 5597	51.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	56.8	2091 of 5612	62.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	49.1	2457 of 5609	56.2%	★★★☆☆
2022	45.9	2640 of 5635	53.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	50.3	2477 of 5492	54.9%	★★★☆☆
2018	50.0	2497 of 5413	53.9%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	39.3	3075 of 5107	39.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	40.1	2953 of 5107	42.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	41.1	2821 of 5087	44.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	39.3	2951 of 5084	42.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	49.2	2339 of 4963	52.9%	★★★☆☆
2018	47.0	2407 of 4830	50.2%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	44.7	2823 of 5460	48.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	54.3	2100 of 5517	61.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	57.2	1925 of 5363	64.1%	★★★☆☆
2022	55.7	1939 of 5264	63.2%	★★★☆☆
2019	49.2	2461 of 5173	52.4%	★★★☆☆
2018	45.9	2621 of 5084	48.4%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	43.4	2916 of 5628	48.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	50.3	2452 of 5643	56.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	47.3	2604 of 5638	53.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	44.3	2752 of 5663	51.4%	★★★☆☆
2019	62.5	1851 of 5510	66.4%	★★★☆☆
2018	63.0	1808 of 5431	66.7%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	45.1	1533 of 2598	41.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	64.1	991 of 2651	62.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	50.3	1417 of 2661	46.7%	★★☆☆☆
2022	43.8	1636 of 2726	40.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	55.1	1369 of 2834	51.7%	★★★☆☆
2018	57.7	1271 of 2737	53.6%	★★★☆☆

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)60th percentile~ school

Female (2025)52nd percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)48th percentile~ school

Male (2025)48th percentile~ school

White (2025)41st percentile-10 vs school

Hispanic (2025)40th percentile-11 vs school

Disabled (2022)32nd percentile-21 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy42%-6 vs state

Science37%+4 vs state

Mathematics34%-3 vs state

5.0

1 rating · 1 written review

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What people are saying

by a parent
Wednesday, January 20, 2010

My second grader child has improved so much thank to the great teachers. Close Quote

Schools Near Cielo Vista Elementary

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 (2024)
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 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
Cielo Vista Elementary	Public	K-6	21811 Avenida De Los Fundadore	Rancho Santa Margarita	92688	Orange County	Saddleback Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(949) 589-7456	487	21	23.4	65.3%	114 (23.4%)	2 (0.4%)	289 (59.3%)	51 (10.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (6.4%)	44.8	2899^th of 5857 public elementary schools	50.5%		53.8	2356^th of 5869 public elementary schools	59.9%	543	36.8	36.8	38.1	40.0	45.6	45.0	42.3	39.7	30.0	33.8	31.7	34.0	87.8	90.5		89.8	90.5	90.5	$19,174	$1,680	$17,494
Trabuco Mesa Elementary	Public	K-6	21301 Avenida de los Flores	Rancho Santa Margarita	92688	Orange County	Saddleback Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(949) 858-3339	640	26	25.0	37.2%	285 (44.5%)	5 (0.8%)	184 (28.8%)	89 (13.9%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.2%)	74 (11.6%)	88.1	767^th of 5857 public elementary schools	86.9%		90.6	658^th of 5869 public elementary schools	88.8%	109	58.5	58.5	85.3	67.1	64.2	61.9	69.5	84.2	72.0	58.5	56.7	67.4	94.0	95.0	98.0	95.0	94.0	95.0	$17,230	$1,361	$15,869
Robinson Elementary	Public	K-6	21400 Lindsay Dr.	Trabuco Canyon	92679	Orange County	Saddleback Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(949) 589-2446	486	20	24.1	27.6%	308 (63.4%)	4 (0.8%)	108 (22.2%)	23 (4.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (8.6%)	77.6	1262^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	78.5%		75.8	1342^nd of 5869 public elementary schools	77.1%	80	51.6	51.6	60.3	63.6	50.0	66.1	59.8	65.1	63.6	56.3	39.3	56.6	93.3	96.7		95.0	93.3		$20,050	$1,369	$18,681
Trabuco Elementary	Public	K-6	31052 Trabuco Canyon Rd.	Trabuco Canyon	92679	Orange County	Saddleback Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(949) 858-0343	90	5	18.2	37.8%	45 (50.0%)	1 (1.1%)	26 (28.9%)	2 (2.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (17.8%)	65.7	1811^th of 5857 public elementary schools	69.1%		65.4	1798^th of 5869 public elementary schools	69.4%	13	60.0	60.0	42.9	53.3	50.0		52.7	50.0	33.3	60.0		50.9							$21,965	$1,406	$20,559
Tijeras Creek Elementary	Public	K-5	23072 Avenida Empresa	Rancho Santa Margarita	92688	Orange County	Capistrano Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(949) 234-5300	315	12	26.2	21.6%	159 (50.5%)	2 (0.6%)	59 (18.7%)	40 (12.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	54 (17.1%)	88.8	725^th of 5857 public elementary schools	87.6%		88.6	777^th of 5869 public elementary schools	86.8%	52	50.9	50.9	71.6	77.1	70.7		72.8	77.0	77.1	50.9		68.5	96.0			97.3			$18,156	$1,489	$16,667
Melinda Heights Elementary	Public	K-6	21001 Rancho Trabuco	Rancho Santa Margarita	92688	Orange County	Saddleback Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(949) 888-7311	950	34	28.1	27.8%	487 (51.3%)	7 (0.7%)	226 (23.8%)	130 (13.7%)	3 (0.3%)	1 (0.1%)	96 (10.1%)	78.6	1209^th of 5857 public elementary schools	79.4%		80.3	1139^th of 5869 public elementary schools	80.6%	70	51.4	51.4	54.2	48.6	65.5	63.6	58.0	62.6	57.6	58.4	60.5	59.9	97.3	98.0		97.3	98.0	98.0	$17,918	$1,361	$16,557
Arroyo Vista Elementary	Public	K-5	23371 Arroyo Vista	Rancho Santa Margarita	92688	Orange County	Capistrano Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(949) 234-5951	508	21	24.1	28.0%	285 (56.1%)	2 (0.4%)	75 (14.8%)	55 (10.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	91 (17.9%)	89.7	677^th of 5857 public elementary schools	88.4%		88.7	771^st of 5869 public elementary schools	86.9%	94	55.8	55.8	67.2	70.3	77.9		72.5	76.1	63.7	63.5		66.8	94.3				96.2		$17,781	$1,165	$16,616
Portola Hills Elementary	Public	K-6	19422 Saddleback Ranch Rd.	Trabuco Canyon	92679	Orange County	Saddleback Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(949) 459-9370	809	31	26.3	19.9%	354 (43.8%)	8 (1.0%)	126 (15.6%)	195 (24.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	125 (15.5%)	95.9	249^th of 5857 public elementary schools	95.7%		92.1	562^nd of 5869 public elementary schools	90.4%	313	80.4	80.4	74.3	74.4	87.7	85.9	80.2	76.2	76.8	77.6	73.7	76.2							$17,858	$1,362	$16,496
Philip J. Reilly Elementary	Public	K-5	24171 Pavion	Mission Viejo	92692	Orange County	Capistrano Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(949) 454-1590	421	19	22.1	27.3%	215 (51.1%)	10 (2.4%)	71 (16.9%)	32 (7.6%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	90 (21.4%)	96.3	209^th of 5857 public elementary schools	96.4%		96.3	236^th of 5869 public elementary schools	96.0%	27	64.6	64.6	84.2	87.3	76.9		82.9	82.5	85.9	73.9		80.8							$19,358	$1,257	$18,101
Del Lago Elementary	Public	K-6	27181 Entidad St.	Mission Viejo	92691	Orange County	Saddleback Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(949) 855-1125	362	18	20.0	49.2%	118 (32.6%)	7 (1.9%)	151 (41.7%)	46 (12.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (11.0%)	46.4	2805^th of 5857 public elementary schools	52.1%		39.3	3218^th of 5869 public elementary schools	45.2%	413	40.4	40.4	46.3	38.5	48.9	36.1	42.9	39.0	35.9	31.9	30.6	34.4							$18,945	$1,361	$17,584

Frequently Asked Questions about Cielo Vista Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Cielo Vista Elementary?

Students at Cielo Vista Elementary are 59% Hispanic, 23% White, 10% Asian, 6% Two or more races.

Is Cielo Vista Elementary a good school?

Cielo Vista Elementary ranks 2899^th of 5857 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

What district is Cielo Vista Elementary in?

Saddleback Valley Unified

What schools do graduates of Cielo Vista Elementary attend?

Students who attend Cielo Vista Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Rancho Santa Margarita Intermediate
High : Trabuco Hills High

How many students attend Cielo Vista Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 487 students attended Cielo Vista Elementary.

Rate Cielo Vista Elementary!

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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.