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Romero-Cruz Academy

Public Grades K-8

5820^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 1% of California elementary schools

Summary

Romero-Cruz Academy is a K-8 public school serving 827 students in the Santa Ana Unified School District, operating in a high-need community where nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

Academic performance at the school is a significant concern, as it ranks in the bottom 1% of all California elementary schools, with proficiency rates in English, math, and science far below both the district and state averages. This underperformance is severe and persistent, affecting all student groups, and the school's challenges are more pronounced than those of other schools in the same district, such as Fremont Elementary or Andrew Jackson Elementary. Interestingly, Romero-Cruz has a relatively low student-teacher ratio and per-student spending that is comparable to some nearby schools, suggesting its struggles are not simply due to class size or funding levels.

When compared to schools in the neighboring Garden Grove Unified district, like R. F. Hazard Elementary, the performance gap is even more striking, as these schools serve similar student populations but achieve much stronger results. The school's K-8 structure is also unusual for the area, and its academic results have not rebounded from a steep pre-pandemic decline, remaining critically low despite recent increases in funding and a slight improvement in chronic absenteeism rates.

827

Students ?

17.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$24,122

Per pupil spending ?

95.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

2701 West Fifth St.
Santa Ana, CA 92703-1821

(714) 480-2200

District: Santa Ana Unified

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

97.1%

Asian:

1.3%

White:

1.0%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Romero-Cruz Academy to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 17th percentile in 2015 → 1st in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (10% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (1st percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 16 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school10%

District avg26%

California avg41%

Elementary school

5,820^th of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Bottom 1%▼ down 17 pts since 2015

From bottom 17% (2015) to bottom 1% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

2,647^th of 2,761

California public middle schools ?

Bottom 4%▲ up 2 pts since 2021

See the entire ranking list of California Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

34^th of 34Elementary Schools in the Santa Ana Unified

1254^th of 1,543Santa Ana 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)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	5.7	5820 of 5857	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	7.2	5802 of 5869	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	9.8	5703 of 5859	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.1	5865 of 5883	0.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	8.3	1401 of 1417	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	22.4	4593 of 5789	20.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.8	4339 of 5662	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	22.1	4505 of 5692	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	15.4	5014 of 5614	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	19.9	4640 of 5611	17.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	28.9	4140 of 5530	25.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	32.5	3767 of 5390	30.1%	★★☆☆☆
2011	41.3	3148 of 5377	41.5%	★★☆☆☆
2010	36.6	3379 of 5314	36.4%	★★☆☆☆
2009	31.7	3572 of 5193	31.2%	★★☆☆☆
2008	10.6	4900 of 5113	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	15.7	4599 of 5113	10.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	10.6	4603 of 4818	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	17.1	4167 of 4822	13.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	12.8	4499 of 4809	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	23.7	2916 of 3162	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	19.6	3159 of 3245	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	24.8	2960 of 3311	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.8	535 of 602	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	25.4	2838 of 3275	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	26.7	2609 of 3246	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	6.4	5567 of 5597	0.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	8.0	5552 of 5612	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	10.1	5496 of 5609	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.7	5625 of 5635	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	9.4	1251 of 1267	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	28.1	3977 of 5492	27.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	28.1	3904 of 5413	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	6.6	5078 of 5107	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	8.1	5059 of 5107	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	10.7	4984 of 5087	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.0	5079 of 5084	0.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	31.6	3579 of 4963	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	32.8	3363 of 4830	30.4%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	6.9	5416 of 5460	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	7.5	5475 of 5517	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	10.0	5265 of 5363	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.3	5248 of 5264	0.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	9.8	1098 of 1110	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	31.2	3773 of 5173	27.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	31.0	3698 of 5084	27.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	5.9	5599 of 5628	0.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	7.6	5585 of 5643	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.1	5447 of 5638	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.9	5640 of 5663	0.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	17.8	4836 of 5510	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	21.3	4443 of 5431	18.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	9.0	2647 of 2761	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	8.4	2708 of 2783	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	10.3	2681 of 2781	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	8.8	2669 of 2740	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	8.4	872 of 894	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	20.4	1437 of 1531	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	20.9	346 of 354	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	28.8	1295 of 1478	12.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	26.3	1427 of 1521	6.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	27.8	1337 of 1540	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	24.1	359 of 363	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	10.8	2410 of 2533	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	8.6	2506 of 2551	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	10.8	2444 of 2531	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	9.4	2447 of 2509	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	8.3	730 of 738	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	10.5	2291 of 2395	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	9.0	2332 of 2388	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.7	2272 of 2374	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	9.6	2311 of 2359	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	23.7	406 of 477	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.7	364 of 394	7.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	18.7	292 of 320	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	16.4	318 of 336	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	11.2	2413 of 2542	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	9.3	2509 of 2579	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.8	2420 of 2531	4.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	11.2	2369 of 2458	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	11.9	697 of 721	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	7.8	2472 of 2534	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	8.6	2505 of 2552	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	10.5	2446 of 2538	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	9.0	2477 of 2527	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	9.3	748 of 763	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Military Connected

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	5.3	192 of 194	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	5.6	191 of 192	0.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	13.4	179 of 197	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	20.1	1452 of 1566	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	22.2	1382 of 1552	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.6	1401 of 1531	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

Elementary school

English Language Learner (2024)8th percentile+7 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)1st percentile~ school

Hispanic (2025)1st percentile~ school

Female (2025)1st percentile~ school

Male (2025)1st percentile~ school

Middle school

Homeless (2025)15th percentile+11 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)12th percentile+10 vs school

Special Education (2025)7th percentile+3 vs school

Disabled (2022)6th percentile+4 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)5th percentile~ school

Female (2025)5th percentile~ school

Hispanic (2025)4th percentile~ school

Male (2025)2nd percentile~ school

Military Connected (2025)1st percentile-3 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy12%-37 vs state

Mathematics10%-27 vs state

Science6%-27 vs state

★

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Schools Near Romero-Cruz Academy

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 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
Romero-Cruz Academy	Public	K-8	2701 West Fifth St.	Santa Ana	92703	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 480-2200	827	47	17.4	95.8%	8 (1.0%)	2 (0.2%)	803 (97.1%)	11 (1.3%)	3 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5.7	5820^th of 5857 public elementary schools	0.6%		7.2	5802^nd of 5869 public elementary schools	1.1%	18	3.3	6.0	5.6	5.3	4.4	24.1	5.9	16.0	14.3	11.6	10.5	10.9	6.7	5.3	12.4	12.0	9.8	94.7	96.5		96.5		96.5	$24,122	$991	$23,131
Vista Condor Global Academy	Public, Charter	K-5	2609 West Fifth St.	Santa Ana	92703	Orange County	Vista Condor Global Academy District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 988-2719	357	15	23.0	97.2%	8 (2.2%)	3 (0.8%)	342 (95.8%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.6%)	15.3	5234^th of 5857 public elementary schools	10.6%		12.4	5528^th of 5869 public elementary schools	5.8%	294	16.7		16.7	22.0	18.2	28.2				23.0	22.6	12.1	16.4				16.7							$22,532	$2,547	$19,985
Fremont Elementary	Public	K-5	1930 West 10th St.	Santa Ana	92703	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 972-4300	394	16	24.5	92.9%	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	387 (98.2%)	6 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	38.9	3289^th of 5857 public elementary schools	43.8%		38.8	3245^th of 5869 public elementary schools	44.7%	44	14.6		14.6	44.4	44.2	45.5				44.7	45.2	27.5	18.2				31.8	95.5			97.0			$27,434	$873	$26,561
Abraham Lincoln Elementary	Public	K-5	425 South Sullivan	Santa Ana	92704	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 972-6200	468	21	22.2	91.9%	4 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	444 (94.9%)	15 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.9%)	1 (0.2%)	13.6	5380^th of 5857 public elementary schools	8.1%		13.6	5427^th of 5869 public elementary schools	7.5%	47	11.4		11.4	22.7	26.7	21.4				23.6	13.5	18.7	11.4				14.6	89.8	93.9		91.8	92.9	94.9	$25,794	$1,312	$24,482
Edward Russell Elementary	Public	K-6	600 South Jackson St.	Santa Ana	92704	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6151	473	15	32.0	92.8%	10 (2.1%)	0 (0.0%)	452 (95.6%)	10 (2.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	22.3	4651^st of 5857 public elementary schools	20.6%		29.3	3994^th of 5869 public elementary schools	31.9%	657	24.1		24.1	16.3	25.4	33.3	33.9			27.7	22.5	22.4	25.9	16.9			21.7							$17,360	$1,688	$15,672
Monte Vista Elementary	Public	K-5	2116 West Monta Vista Ave.	Santa Ana	92704	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 558-5831	348	17	20.4	98.3%	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	342 (98.3%)	4 (1.1%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23.2	4568^th of 5857 public elementary schools	22.0%		27.1	4193^rd of 5869 public elementary schools	28.6%	375	23.1		23.1	5.6	37.5	43.1				29.0	12.7	25.8	15.4				18.5							$28,066	$1,772	$26,294
George Washington Carver Elementary	Public	K-5	1401 West Santa Ana Blvd.	Santa Ana	92703	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 564-2000	429	19	22.4	93.2%	2 (0.5%)	1 (0.2%)	421 (98.1%)	3 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	23.5	4543^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	22.4%		23.2	4560^th of 5869 public elementary schools	22.3%	17	16.9		16.9	18.5	40.0	35.5				31.1	22.7	28.6	19.5				23.1							$26,532	$808	$25,724
Clinton Elementary	Public	K-6	13641 Clinton St.	Garden Grove	92843	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6146	413	17	24.2	90.3%	5 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	360 (87.2%)	45 (10.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	34	3646^th of 5857 public elementary schools	37.7%		33.7	3624^th of 5869 public elementary schools	38.3%	22	20.5		20.5	40.4	34.8	38.6	31.8			36.6	45.6	39.1	20.5	25.8			31.1							$18,680	$2,193	$16,487
R. F. Hazard Elementary	Public	K-6	4218 West Hazard Ave.	Santa Ana	92703	Orange County	Garden Grove Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 663-6403	383	16	23.9	91.4%	5 (1.3%)	1 (0.3%)	284 (74.2%)	88 (23.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.3%)	75.6	1349^th of 5857 public elementary schools	77.0%		76.4	1319^th of 5869 public elementary schools	77.5%	30	23.1		23.1	49.0	58.5	63.5	79.6			63.1	68.6	60.5	53.9	58.9			60.4							$17,704	$1,569	$16,135
Andrew Jackson Elementary	Public	K-5	1143 South Nakoma Dr.	Santa Ana	92704	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 431-3700	493	22	22.3	91.1%	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	477 (96.8%)	12 (2.4%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	31.1	3864^th of 5857 public elementary schools	34.0%		26.4	4258^th of 5869 public elementary schools	27.4%	394	31.0		31.0	21.6	16.9	51.2				30.8	20.9	24.2	35.7				27.0	96.2	97.1	97.1	98.1	97.1	98.1	$27,777	$1,255	$26,522

Frequently Asked Questions about Romero-Cruz Academy

How many students attend Romero-Cruz Academy?

In the 2024-25 school year, 827 students attended Romero-Cruz Academy.

Is Romero-Cruz Academy a good school?

Romero-Cruz Academy ranks in the bottom 0.6% of California elementary schools.

What district is Romero-Cruz Academy in?

Santa Ana Unified

What is the racial makeup of Romero-Cruz Academy?

Students at Romero-Cruz Academy are 97% Hispanic, 1% Asian.

Rate Romero-Cruz Academy!

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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.