Summary:
ZIP code 94609 has five schools: three K–5 elementary schools and two high schools, including an alternative high school. In 2025–2026, elementary results varied widely, while the two high schools had very low proficiency in all three reported subjects. Peralta Elementary is the clear elementary standout, while both high schools remain far below state proficiency levels.
Peralta led the elementary schools with 68% proficient in ELA, 70% in math and 67% in science—about 38, 45 and 36 percentage points above the average of the other two elementary schools, respectively. Emerson Elementary had 40% in ELA, 33% in math and 22% in science; Sankofa United Elementary had 20%, 18% and 39%. Sankofa’s science result was 3 points above the state, despite its lower ELA and math results. At the high schools, Street Academy Alternative High was ahead of Oakland International High in all three subjects, though both were far below state results. Attendance and completion are also concerns: chronic absenteeism was 84% at Street Academy and 50% at Oakland International, while graduation rates were 13% and 54%, respectively.
Recent changes differ by school and subject: from 2024–2025 to 2025–2026, Sankofa’s science proficiency rose 24 percentage points and Peralta’s rose 15, while ELA declined at both Peralta and Emerson. Emerson offers a notable grade-level exception: its fourth graders exceeded state results by 11 points in ELA and 5 points in math. SchoolDigger ranked Peralta at the 88th percentile with four stars in 2025–2026; the other schools ranged from the 4th to the 40th percentile. Peralta’s strong scores came alongside the highest elementary student-teacher ratio, 30.8 in 2024–2025, compared with 19.6 at Emerson and 18.7 at Sankofa. That year’s reported free/reduced lunch eligible measures were 30% at Peralta, 74% at Emerson and 76% at Sankofa; these are observations, not explanations for the score differences.
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