Beta You're viewing our redesigned school page. Prefer the classic layout?

Manuel Esqueda Elementary

Public Grades K-8

5208^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 11% of California elementary schools

Summary

Manuel Esqueda Elementary is a large K-8 public school serving 811 students in the Santa Ana Unified district, consistently ranking in the lower quartile of California schools while showing some relative strengths in supporting specific student groups.

Academically, the school's proficiency rates in English, math, and science are below both district and state averages, though they are higher than some nearby schools like Pio Pico Elementary and Franklin Elementary. Performance varies dramatically by grade, with middle school grades (6-8) being a particular challenge area, especially in 6th-grade math. Despite these academic struggles, the school has made significant progress in improving student attendance, reducing chronic absenteeism to a rate that is now better than both the district and state averages and better than schools like Taft Elementary and Washington Elementary.

Notably, the school demonstrates relative effectiveness with certain student subgroups, with its Special Education students performing significantly better statewide than the school's overall ranking. However, it operates with considerably less funding per student than many neighboring schools in the same district. The school's unique K-8 configuration and large size differentiate it from most nearby elementary schools, and its performance trends suggest that school-level factors play a significant role in student outcomes within this community.

811

Students ?

21.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$23,274

Per pupil spending ?

94.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

2240 South Main St.
Santa Ana, CA 92707-3264

(714) 431-1500

District: Santa Ana Unified

Students who attend Manuel Esqueda Elementary usually attend:

High:

Saddleback High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

98.2%

Asian:

0.7%

Two or more races:

0.4%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare Manuel Esqueda Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 35th percentile in 2013 → 11th in 2025

Worth a look

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

!In the lower quartile statewide (11th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 24 percentile points since 2013

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school18%

District avg26%

California avg41%

Elementary school

5,208^th of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Bottom 11%▼ down 8 pts since 2015

From bottom 20% (2015) to bottom 11% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

2,525^th of 2,761

California public middle schools ?

Bottom 9%▼ down 10 pts since 2015

From bottom 18% (2015) to bottom 9% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

25^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	15.7	5208 of 5857	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	15.6	5245 of 5869	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.6	4492 of 5859	23.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.3	4930 of 5883	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	20.3	4771 of 5789	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	15.0	5100 of 5662	9.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	16.1	5025 of 5692	11.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	19.4	4679 of 5614	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	21.1	4513 of 5611	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	35.8	3613 of 5530	34.7%	★★☆☆☆
2012	51.7	2510 of 5390	53.4%	★★★☆☆
2011	51.9	2487 of 5377	53.7%	★★★☆☆
2010	40.1	3167 of 5314	40.4%	★★☆☆☆
2009	27.9	3854 of 5193	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	13.5	4749 of 5113	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	7.8	5018 of 5113	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	19.9	2023 of 2227	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	29.3	1840 of 2585	28.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	27.1	1578 of 2128	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	31.6	2448 of 3162	22.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	51.4	1116 of 3245	65.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	30.2	2591 of 3311	21.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	32.2	2323 of 3275	29.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	24.6	2752 of 3246	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	19.1	4758 of 5597	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	14.0	5198 of 5612	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	23.3	4396 of 5609	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.4	4773 of 5635	15.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	19.3	4682 of 5492	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	17.7	4720 of 5413	12.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	21.7	4343 of 5107	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.1	4450 of 5107	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	31.9	3556 of 5087	30.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	26.1	4024 of 5084	20.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	29.2	3743 of 4963	24.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.5	4216 of 4830	12.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	33.3	324 of 429	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.0	332 of 364	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	21.3	4629 of 5460	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.1	4776 of 5517	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	32.3	3696 of 5363	31.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	27.6	4027 of 5264	23.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	30.0	3863 of 5173	25.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.4	4461 of 5084	12.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	15.3	5099 of 5628	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	18.6	4852 of 5643	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.8	4279 of 5638	24.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.2	4698 of 5663	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	23.3	4358 of 5510	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	14.5	5000 of 5431	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	33.6	1796 of 2847	36.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	34.4	1594 of 2635	39.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	23.1	2022 of 2420	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	12.8	2525 of 2761	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.9	2519 of 2783	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.4	2521 of 2781	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	13.9	2500 of 2740	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	16.8	2321 of 2715	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	11.0	2325 of 2480	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	12.9	2285 of 2508	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	14.7	2213 of 2497	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	19.9	2022 of 2477	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	22.6	1354 of 1531	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	51.2	534 of 1491	64.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	37.1	757 of 1369	44.7%	★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	29.7	1238 of 1478	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	28.0	1361 of 1521	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	28.3	1319 of 1540	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	24.5	1391 of 1442	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	34.1	808 of 1364	40.8%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	13.7	2308 of 2533	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.5	2384 of 2551	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.3	2333 of 2531	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	12.4	2363 of 2509	5.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	14.1	2146 of 2380	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	10.7	2128 of 2262	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	16.3	2137 of 2395	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.5	2100 of 2388	12.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.1	2077 of 2374	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	17.7	2109 of 2359	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	22.7	1801 of 2213	18.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	14.2	1921 of 2072	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	24.2	404 of 477	15.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	15.8	377 of 394	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	16.8	2257 of 2542	11.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.5	2278 of 2579	11.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	19.9	2160 of 2531	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	18.8	2148 of 2458	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	23.8	1907 of 2369	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	14.1	2065 of 2230	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	12.5	2348 of 2534	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	15.9	2250 of 2552	11.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	15.2	2293 of 2538	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	17.4	2180 of 2527	13.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	20.5	1966 of 2407	18.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	10.8	2156 of 2273	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	21.1	1414 of 1566	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	27.2	1199 of 1552	22.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.7	1398 of 1531	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

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

Special Education (2025)37th percentile+26 vs school

Homeless (2025)24th percentile+13 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)23rd percentile+12 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)15th percentile+4 vs school

Female (2025)15th percentile+4 vs school

Hispanic (2025)15th percentile+4 vs school

Male (2025)9th percentile~ school

Disabled (2022)9th percentile-7 vs school

Middle school

English Language Learner (2024)16th percentile+7 vs school

Homeless (2025)15th percentile+7 vs school

Disabled (2022)12th percentile+3 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)11th percentile+3 vs school

Hispanic (2025)11th percentile~ school

Special Education (2025)10th percentile~ school

Female (2025)9th percentile~ school

Male (2025)7th percentile~ school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy24%-25 vs state

Mathematics15%-23 vs state

Science14%-19 vs state

1.0

1 rating · 1 written review

5★0

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★1

Rate Manuel Esqueda Elementary

Have first-hand experience? A quick rating - and a sentence or two about what stands out (teachers, academics, safety, communication) - helps other families know what to expect.

Takes about a minute. We email you a link to verify your review - your address is never shown publicly.

Tap a star to rate

What people are saying

by a parent
Thursday, February 27, 2025

This was the worst experience with an elementary school. If I could rate it zero stars, I would. My daughter, who has a stuttering issue, was made fun of by her 6th-grade teacher. When I raised the issue with the school, the counselor and principal didn’t take proper action. Instead of suspending the teacher, they only gave her a verbal warning. I felt completely unsupported by both the counselor and the principal. Additionally, before this incident, during a parent-teacher conference, the same teacher criticized my daughter's binder for being disorganized. She even held it up in front of us to show how messy it was, causing papers to fall out. I could tell the other two teachers felt uncomfortable and embarrassed, yet they didn’t say anything. This has now caused serious self-esteem issues for my daughter. The way she was treated by the teacher, and the lack of support from the school, has deeply affected her confidence. She no longer feels comfortable in school and struggles with feelings of embarrassment and insecurity. This school should be fully investigated for how they handle such situations. If you love your child, please don’t bring them here. The lack of care and accountability is unacceptable. Close Quote

Schools Near Manuel Esqueda 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 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
Manuel Esqueda Elementary	Public	K-8	2240 South Main St.	Santa Ana	92707	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 431-1500	811	37	21.7	94.3%	2 (0.2%)	2 (0.2%)	796 (98.2%)	6 (0.7%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.4%)	15.7	5208^th of 5857 public elementary schools	11.1%		15.6	5245^th of 5869 public elementary schools	10.6%	37	16.0	12.0	13.9	23.0	28.6	27.5	14.3	29.0	21.7	23.5	27.0	18.6	19.6	6.3	14.1	8.6	14.7	93.7				95.8	96.8	$23,274	$865	$22,409
Thomas A. Edison Elementary	Public	K-5	2063 Orange Ave.	Santa Ana	92707	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 433-6900	332	16	20.6	92.8%	2 (0.6%)	2 (0.6%)	326 (98.2%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	21.6	4703^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	19.7%		24.3	4433^rd of 5869 public elementary schools	24.5%	270	11.1		11.1	37.9	31.3	22.2				31.1	32.8	9.4	13.3				20.7							$30,504	$1,456	$29,048
Monroe Elementary	Public	K-5	417 East Central Ave.	Santa Ana	92707	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 431-3900	217	13	16.6	88.5%	3 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	213 (98.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.5%)	15.4	5231^st of 5857 public elementary schools	10.7%		15.9	5223^rd of 5869 public elementary schools	11.0%	8	16.7		16.7	20.7	16.7	25.0				20.2	27.6	13.9	20.8				20.2							$31,643	$1,071	$30,572
Washington Elementary	Public	K-5	910 West Anahurst Pl.	Santa Ana	92707	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 440-5100	529	24	21.8	95.7%	6 (1.1%)	4 (0.8%)	508 (96.0%)	8 (1.5%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	18.7	4947^th of 5857 public elementary schools	15.5%		22	4680^th of 5869 public elementary schools	20.3%	267	9.6		9.6	23.3	35.9	24.3				28.0	14.9	30.5	12.2				19.6							$28,973	$1,321	$27,652
Madison Elementary	Public	K-6	1124 East Hobart St.	Santa Ana	92707	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 972-6400	749	33	22.6	94.1%	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	728 (97.2%)	8 (1.1%)	1 (0.1%)	5 (0.7%)	6 (0.8%)	24.2	4477^th of 5857 public elementary schools	23.6%		24.1	4453^rd of 5869 public elementary schools	24.1%	24	15.3		15.3	12.2	29.4	35.3	47.0			29.8	15.3	26.2	24.6	27.9			23.3	90.7	93.5		92.8	92.1	92.1	$25,889	$1,087	$24,802
Martin Elementary	Public	K-5	939 West Wilshire	Santa Ana	92707	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 480-8000	443	19	23.2	93.5%	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	437 (98.6%)	3 (0.7%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24.4	4462^nd of 5857 public elementary schools	23.8%		36.3	3419^th of 5869 public elementary schools	41.7%	1043	15.2		15.2	26.9	37.3	31.6				32.1	23.9	29.3	21.5				24.9							$25,416	$1,006	$24,410
Jefferson Elementary	Public	K-5	1522 West Adams St.	Santa Ana	92704	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 431-3800	616	30	20.4	83.6%	12 (1.9%)	10 (1.6%)	560 (90.9%)	26 (4.2%)	4 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.6%)	27	4220^th of 5857 public elementary schools	27.9%		36	3436^th of 5869 public elementary schools	41.5%	784	22.6		22.6	22.1	24.5	35.7				27.2	34.9	32.4	26.2				31.3	87.3	89.1	95.5	91.8	88.2	91.8	$27,105	$1,169	$25,936
Franklin Elementary	Public	K-5	210 West Cubbon	Santa Ana	92701	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 564-2900	343	15	22.6	94.2%	6 (1.7%)	1 (0.3%)	330 (96.2%)	5 (1.5%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10.4	5611^th of 5857 public elementary schools	4.2%		18.4	4989^th of 5869 public elementary schools	15.0%	622	6.1		6.1	8.5	22.0	12.2				14.8	14.9	20.3	12.2				16.1							$25,336	$773	$24,563
John F. Kennedy Elementary	Public	K-5	1300 East McFadden	Santa Ana	92705	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 972-5700	380	18	21.0	96.3%	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	375 (98.7%)	3 (0.8%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22.5	4631^st of 5857 public elementary schools	20.9%		16.4	5183^rd of 5869 public elementary schools	11.7%	552	9.4		9.4	31.9	33.8	26.4				31.2	35.7	21.8	11.3				23.9							$28,278	$898	$27,380
Taft Elementary	Public	K-6	500 West Keller	Santa Ana	92707	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 431-7700	408	26	15.6	85.3%	15 (3.7%)	1 (0.2%)	366 (89.7%)	17 (4.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	8 (2.0%)	10.6	5594^th of 5857 public elementary schools	4.5%		11.3	5597^th of 5869 public elementary schools	4.6%	3	5.9		5.9	19.0	7.8	28.6	18.0			17.6	25.0	9.4	5.9	12.2			13.4	81.6	81.6		81.6	81.6	81.6	$36,532	$3,146	$33,386

Frequently Asked Questions about Manuel Esqueda Elementary

What schools do graduates of Manuel Esqueda Elementary attend?

Students who attend Manuel Esqueda Elementary usually go on to attend:

High : Saddleback High

What district is Manuel Esqueda Elementary in?

Santa Ana Unified

Is Manuel Esqueda Elementary a good school?

Manuel Esqueda Elementary ranks in the bottom 11.1% of California elementary schools.

How many students attend Manuel Esqueda Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 811 students attended Manuel Esqueda Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Manuel Esqueda Elementary?

Students at Manuel Esqueda Elementary are 98% Hispanic.

Rate Manuel Esqueda Elementary!

Other helpful SchoolDigger resources...

Compare to nearby schools

CACalifornia Elementary School Rankings

CACalifornia District Rankings

Schools in Santa Ana, CA

Sign up for updates!

Be the first to know when there is an update for Manuel Esqueda Elementary!

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.