Wilson Elementary, Gridley CA - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Wilson Elementary

Wilson Elementary in Gridley serves grades two through five across about a dozen classrooms. The student body is economically challenged, with the vast majority of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. Enrollment is evenly distributed across the grade band, and the student population is majority Hispanic, with substantial White representation and smaller numbers of Asian and multiracial students.

On state assessments in 2024-25, Wilson's performance in English language arts across all tested grades averaged in the low-to-mid range. Third grade showed slightly stronger results, with proficiency climbing by fifth grade. Math proficiency was consistently lower across all three tested grades, with fifth grade the weakest of the three. In science, tested only in fifth grade, proficiency was below both ELA and math results. Across all tested subjects and grades, Wilson's overall proficiency index places it in the top quartile among the county's tested schools, a position that reflects the school's performance relative to its peers in Butte County but should not obscure the absolute proficiency levels, which remain well below state benchmarks. Only about one in three students in math, and fewer than half in ELA, demonstrate proficiency on state standards.

The school sits within Gridley Unified, a small district of five schools. The town of Gridley itself is a historic agricultural community in the Sacramento Valley, with a walkable downtown of family-owned businesses and a strong farming heritage centered on rice, almonds, and prunes. The area is in a growth phase, with housing developments underway and property values rising modestly. Gridley voters approved a general obligation bond in 2022 to rebuild and modernize high school facilities, a measure that will carry as an ongoing property tax obligation through the repayment period. The district has also expanded Transitional Kindergarten eligibility under state law, so families with children turning four by the school year start now have access to publicly funded pre-K.

The housing market in Gridley's zip code is affordable relative to California and the nation, with home values and monthly mortgage payments well below state and national medians. Rental costs are similarly modest, making the community accessible to families with lower incomes. A parent looking at Wilson would be choosing a school in an economically working-class community where the public elementary grades are showing mixed academic results and would want to discuss with the school the shape of its instructional support, particularly in math, and to understand the household economic realities that shape both student need and school resource allocation.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 335%

School 35% · District 35%

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 434%

School 34% · District 34%

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 531%

School 31% · District 31%

even with state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 341%

School 41% · District 41%

even with state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Grade 440%

School 40% · District 40%

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 547%

School 47% · District 47%

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Science

Grade 532%

School 32% · District 32%

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

This schoolGridley Unified, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income34%Higher-income66%32 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income33%Higher-income74%41 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income42%Higher-income67%25 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income25%Higher-income69%44 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income29%Higher-income61%32 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income26%Higher-income50%24 pp gap