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Coming soon: We're expecting this year's test scores from the California Department of Education any day now — new rankings will be posted the moment they're released!

Coming soon: This year's test scores are expected from the California Department of Education any day now — new rankings will follow the moment they're released!

San Joaquin Elementary

Public Grades K-8

5612^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 4% of California elementary schools

Summary

San Joaquin Elementary is a K-8 public school serving 518 students in the rural Golden Plains Unified district, which ranks among the lowest in California.

The school faces significant academic challenges, consistently ranking in the bottom percentiles of the state in English, math, and science proficiency, and its performance is lower than other schools in its own district like Cantua Elementary and Helm Elementary. A major concern is chronic absenteeism, with nearly one-third of students missing significant school, a rate much higher than nearby schools and the state average. The school also operates with less funding per student and a higher student-to-teacher ratio compared to its district peers.

Despite these struggles, the school has shown a notable strength in supporting its English Language Learner students, who have performed significantly better relative to the state. Performance varies greatly by grade and gender, suggesting inconsistent experiences. Importantly, comparisons show that schools with similar student populations in the neighboring Kerman Unified district, such as Liberty Elementary, achieve much higher proficiency and lower absenteeism, indicating that district-level systems and resources can make a substantial difference in outcomes.

518

Students ?

21.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$19,009

Per pupil spending ?

96.1%

Free/discounted lunch ?

8535 South Ninth
San Joaquin, CA 93660

(559) 693-4321

District: Golden Plains Unified

Students who attend San Joaquin Elementary usually attend:

High:

Tranquillity High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

96.9%

African American:

1.9%

Asian:

0.8%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare San Joaquin Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 3rd percentile in 2015 → 4th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (16% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (4th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (30% vs 19% California)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school16%

District avg19%

California avg41%

Elementary school

5,612^th of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Bottom 4%▲ up 1 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

2,370^th of 2,761

California public middle schools ?

Bottom 14%▲ up 9 pts since 2015

From bottom 5% (2015) to bottom 14% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 3Elementary Schools in the Golden Plains Unified

1400^th of 1,543Golden Plains 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	10.4	5612 of 5857	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	18.0	5024 of 5869	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	12.8	5487 of 5859	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	10.4	5703 of 5883	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	9.2	1394 of 1417	1.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	7.7	5672 of 5789	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	7.2	5571 of 5662	1.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	10.8	5452 of 5692	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	7.3	5544 of 5614	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	11.1	5418 of 5611	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	9.6	5317 of 5530	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	10.5	5177 of 5390	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	13.3	5049 of 5377	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	7.2	5232 of 5314	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	5.1	5153 of 5193	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	4.4	5091 of 5113	0.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	9.1	4961 of 5113	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	9.9	4636 of 4818	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	6.0	4788 of 4822	0.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	7.0	4771 of 4809	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	50.2	1166 of 3162	63.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	42.9	1628 of 3245	49.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	28.8	2699 of 3311	18.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	34.0	418 of 602	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	29.5	2535 of 3275	22.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	29.4	2436 of 3246	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	13.9	5186 of 5597	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	18.7	4833 of 5612	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.9	5148 of 5609	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	11.3	5464 of 5635	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	9.5	1250 of 1267	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	7.6	5417 of 5492	1.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	8.8	5284 of 5413	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	13.8	4816 of 5107	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	25.8	4053 of 5107	20.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.8	4623 of 5087	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	13.9	4859 of 5084	4.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	9.3	4875 of 4963	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	8.8	4759 of 4830	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	13.8	5131 of 5460	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	23.6	4483 of 5517	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	15.7	4979 of 5363	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	13.2	5069 of 5264	3.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	12.7	1080 of 1110	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	9.5	5065 of 5173	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.2	4980 of 5084	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	8.6	5501 of 5628	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	20.2	4711 of 5643	16.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	12.0	5369 of 5638	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	11.9	5454 of 5663	3.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	10.5	1244 of 1272	2.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	9.4	5372 of 5510	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	6.5	5386 of 5431	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	16.7	2370 of 2761	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.3	2252 of 2783	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.7	2506 of 2781	9.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	11.2	2600 of 2740	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	13.5	834 of 894	6.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	7.3	2616 of 2715	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.2	2367 of 2480	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	14.7	2231 of 2508	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	8.9	2369 of 2497	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	9.9	2348 of 2477	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	10.0	2223 of 2379	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	8.2	2147 of 2259	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	17.0	1955 of 2236	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	27.1	1659 of 2179	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	36.8	1284 of 2063	37.8%	★★☆☆☆
2008	35.0	1296 of 2005	35.4%	★★☆☆☆
2007	26.2	1489 of 1999	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	20.6	1472 of 1804	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	17.2	1521 of 1777	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	17.6	1502 of 1769	15.1%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	68.5	169 of 1478	88.6%	★★★★☆
2023	53.9	374 of 1521	75.4%	★★★★☆
2022	27.1	1375 of 1540	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	34.4	261 of 363	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	40.7	666 of 1442	53.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	32.3	887 of 1364	35.0%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	20.3	2066 of 2533	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.9	2054 of 2551	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.9	2302 of 2531	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	15.1	2260 of 2509	9.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	13.9	690 of 738	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	7.4	2331 of 2380	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.0	2124 of 2262	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	22.6	1927 of 2395	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	27.9	1722 of 2388	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	19.2	2048 of 2374	13.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	14.6	2194 of 2359	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	8.6	2141 of 2213	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	12.0	1969 of 2072	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	21.3	2095 of 2542	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	26.8	1911 of 2579	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	19.3	2187 of 2531	13.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	16.5	2235 of 2458	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	23.0	614 of 721	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	8.5	2278 of 2369	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	12.4	2097 of 2230	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	13.8	2300 of 2534	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	20.9	2046 of 2552	19.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	15.5	2283 of 2538	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	9.8	2464 of 2527	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	15.2	708 of 763	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	6.8	2359 of 2407	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	6.8	2246 of 2273	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

Elementary school

English Language Learner (2024)63rd percentile+49 vs school

Female (2025)7th percentile+3 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)6th percentile~ school

Hispanic (2025)6th percentile~ school

Male (2025)2nd percentile~ school

Middle school

English Language Learner (2024)89th percentile+69 vs school

Hispanic (2025)20th percentile+5 vs school

Female (2025)18th percentile+4 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)18th percentile+3 vs school

Male (2025)9th percentile-5 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy18%-30 vs state

Mathematics16%-22 vs state

Science6%-26 vs state

★

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Schools Near San Joaquin 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 (2025)	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
San Joaquin Elementary	Public	K-8	8535 South Ninth	San Joaquin	93660	Fresno County	Golden Plains Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(559) 693-4321	518	24	21.2	96.1%	1 (0.2%)	10 (1.9%)	502 (96.9%)	4 (0.8%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10.4	5612^th of 5857 public elementary schools	4.2%		18	5024^th of 5869 public elementary schools	14.4%	588	7.0	5.5	6.3	17.9	6.7	19.3	10.7	33.3	22.2	18.5	17.7	9.8	14.0	19.6	19.1	12.7	15.6	92.8	95.7	95.7		94.2		$19,009	$15,682	$3,327
Tranquillity Elementary	Public	K-8	6116 South Daniels	Tranquillity	93660	Fresno County	Golden Plains Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(559) 698-5517	209	13	16.3	88.0%	4 (1.9%)	3 (1.4%)	201 (96.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16.2	5167^th of 5857 public elementary schools	11.8%		13.8	5408^th of 5869 public elementary schools	7.9%	241	0.0	0.0	0.0	34.6	36.4	32.0	4.4	18.2	31.6	26.3	19.2	22.7	4.0	8.7	22.7	21.1	16.1	85.2	88.9		92.6	88.9	88.9	$23,256	$18,994	$4,262
Helm Elementary	Public	K-8	13883 South Lassen Ave.	Helm	93660	Fresno County	Golden Plains Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(559) 866-5683	60	5	11.7	93.3%	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	60 (100.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)			5.9							40.5							24.3							$36,910	$34,004	$2,906
Liberty Elementary	Public	K-6	16001 E St.	Kerman	93630	Fresno County	Kerman Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(559) 843-9300	563	22	25.4	82.2%	37 (6.6%)	0 (0.0%)	483 (85.8%)	37 (6.6%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.7%)	56.8	2220^th of 5857 public elementary schools	62.1%		49.9	2559^th of 5869 public elementary schools	56.4%	339	42.7		42.7	60.3	33.3	47.2	63.0			50.6	48.5	32.2	38.2	39.1			39.0							$23,753	$22,114	$1,639
Cantua Elementary	Public	K-8	29288 West Clarkson	Cantua Creek	93660	Fresno County	Golden Plains Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(559) 829-3331	184	10	17.9	98.9%	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.6%)	178 (96.7%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.5%)	14.9	5265^th of 5857 public elementary schools	10.1%		20.9	4779^th of 5869 public elementary schools	18.6%	486	4.8	10.0	7.3	30.4	30.0	4.8	22.2	53.9	40.0	28.7	26.1	28.6	0.0	5.6	7.7	35.0	18.1							$25,767	$22,772	$2,995
Kerman-Floyd Elementary	Public	K-6	14655 West F St.	Kerman	93630	Fresno County	Kerman Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(559) 843-9400	567	25	22.6	93.8%	12 (2.1%)	2 (0.4%)	536 (94.5%)	7 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (1.8%)	30.9	3888^th of 5857 public elementary schools	33.6%		27.2	4190^th of 5869 public elementary schools	28.6%	302	16.2		16.2	45.1	46.8	31.1	25.6			37.1	42.3	31.7	17.6	12.8			25.8	95.4	97.3	98.2		95.4		$26,184	$24,260	$1,924
Harvest Elementary	Public	K-6	194 North First St.	Kerman	93630	Fresno County	Kerman Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(559) 843-8500	535	25	21.4	89.5%	31 (5.8%)	1 (0.2%)	490 (91.6%)	8 (1.5%)	3 (0.6%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)								(n/a)	22.0		22.0	31.7	46.9	39.0	46.3			40.7	31.7	40.7	17.0	16.7			28.2							$26,516	$24,368	$2,148
Goldenrod Elementary	Public	K-6	445 South Goldenrod Ave.	Kerman	93630	Fresno County	Kerman Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(559) 843-9500	617	25	24.6	87.2%	24 (3.9%)	0 (0.0%)	552 (89.5%)	28 (4.5%)	4 (0.6%)	1 (0.2%)	8 (1.3%)	38.7	3305^th of 5857 public elementary schools	43.6%		41.8	3081^st of 5869 public elementary schools	47.5%	224	24.7		24.7	45.0	40.8	42.3	45.9			43.7	40.0	27.6	23.7	23.6			28.1	97.8						$25,572	$23,648	$1,924
Sun Empire Elementary	Public	K-6	2649 North Modoc Ave.	Kerman	93630	Fresno County	Kerman Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(559) 843-9200	490	23	21.2	86.7%	35 (7.1%)	0 (0.0%)	446 (91.0%)	7 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	39.1	3280^th of 5857 public elementary schools	44.0%		39.7	3192^nd of 5869 public elementary schools	45.6%	88	16.2		16.2	25.4	54.1	42.3	36.8			39.4	33.9	60.3	24.3	28.1			35.4							$29,045	$27,324	$1,721
Burrel Elementary	Public	K-8	16704 South Jameson Ave.	Riverdale	93656	Fresno County	Burrel Union Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(559) 866-5634	94	8	11.7	85.1%	3 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	90 (95.7%)	1 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	17.7	5035^th of 5857 public elementary schools	14.0%		15.8	5229^th of 5869 public elementary schools	10.9%	194			5.6	18.2	13.3	18.2		45.5		21.9	54.6	6.7			45.5		23.8							$27,074	$24,958	$2,116

Frequently Asked Questions about San Joaquin Elementary

Is San Joaquin Elementary a good school?

San Joaquin Elementary ranks in the bottom 4.2% of California elementary schools.

What schools do graduates of San Joaquin Elementary attend?

Students who attend San Joaquin Elementary usually go on to attend:

High : Tranquillity High

How many students attend San Joaquin Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 518 students attended San Joaquin Elementary.

What district is San Joaquin Elementary in?

Golden Plains Unified

What is the racial makeup of San Joaquin Elementary?

Students at San Joaquin Elementary are 97% Hispanic, 2% African American.

Rate San Joaquin 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.