Summary:
ZIP code 95357 has two K–6 elementary schools—Bernard L. Hughes Elementary and Alice N. Stroud Elementary—both in Empire Union Elementary. The area’s clearest concern is that both schools fall below California’s all-grade results in every subject: their two-school averages are 33% in English language arts (ELA), 21% in math, and 16% in science, respectively 16, 18, and 20 percentage points below the state.
Hughes leads in all-grade ELA and math, while Stroud leads in science. In 2025–2026, Hughes scored 35% in ELA and 22% in math, compared with Stroud’s 30% and 19%—gaps of 5 and 3 points. Stroud scored 17% in science, 3 points above Hughes’s 14%. Both schools also have brighter grade-level pockets: each exceeded district results in third- and sixth-grade ELA and math. For instance, sixth-grade math was 28% at Hughes and 25% at Stroud, versus 23% districtwide.
Recent score changes favor neither school across the board: from the prior year, math fell by 7 points at Hughes and 9 at Stroud, while science fell 12 points at Hughes but rose 4 at Stroud; ELA slipped 2 points at Hughes and rose 1 at Stroud. SchoolDigger rates both one star; its latest statewide rankings are 25th percentile for Hughes and 18th for Stroud, down 14 and 9 points from the previous year. Other differences may help families weigh options: Hughes enrolls 455 students and has a 26.7 student-teacher ratio, compared with Stroud’s 379 students and 23.6 ratio; chronic absenteeism is 20% at Hughes and 16% at Stroud. Both report free/reduced lunch eligible for 2024–2025, at 82% and 81%, respectively. Score changes cover only the two school years provided.
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