Dr. Juliet Thorner Elementary, Bakersfield CA

Original Research by School Decision on Dr. Juliet Thorner Elementary

Dr. Juliet Thorner Elementary serves grades kindergarten through sixth in Bakersfield, a rapidly growing city in Kern County where new housing and commercial development are reshaping neighborhoods, particularly in southeast parts of the city and downtown. The school draws from a community where agriculture, energy, and healthcare are major employers and where a substantial majority of families qualify for free or reduced-price meals.

The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a smaller Black population and a small Asian and white enrollment. Enrollment is steady across the grade bands, clustering around a hundred to a hundred and thirty students per grade. State assessment data shows proficiency rates in English language arts ranging across the tested grades, with fifth grade performing better than others; math proficiency is uniformly low across all tested grades. Science data are available only for fifth grade. These scores place the school in the bottom quartile for proficiency when compared against other districts in Kern County, meaning students here are further behind in core academics than most peers elsewhere in the county.

The gap in math proficiency is particularly steep, especially in sixth grade where it drops sharply. In English language arts, fifth-grade students showed noticeably higher performance than students in grades three, four, and six, suggesting either variation in instruction or support across grade levels or changes in student cohorts. Fifth grade also showed modest science proficiency; the school does not appear to have reported science results for other grades, likely because science is tested only at certain grade levels statewide.

Bakersfield as a place combines affordability with car dependency. Much of the city requires a car for daily errands, though downtown and some older neighborhoods like Oleander-Sunset are more walkable. The city's east side, where Thorner is located, mixes residential and commercial areas. Homes in the school's zip code are moderately priced relative to state and national benchmarks, and rent is affordable by California standards, making this a neighborhood where families can afford housing on moderate incomes. The district itself, Bakersfield City, is the largest elementary school district in California and is investing in ethnic studies curriculum that will connect students' learning to their cultural and community backgrounds. The district also adopted a smartphone-restriction policy for schools and revised its opt-out procedures for instruction that conflicts with families' religious beliefs, changes that took effect or are taking effect in the 2026 school year.

At Thorner, low proficiency in core academics is the central characteristic. A parent or resident considering this school should understand that students are performing well below county averages in reading and math, and the trend data available do not show recent improvement. The school may want to explore with families what academic support looks like, how instruction in literacy and numeracy is organized, and what interventions are in place for students who are not meeting grade-level standards. The diverse student population and strong community ties through the district's ethnic studies initiative are assets; translating those into academic gains in the early and upper elementary grades appears to be an active work in progress.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 317%

School 17% · District 24% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▼ 26 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 415%

School 15% · District 18% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Grade 521%

School 21% · District 13% · ▲ 8 pts above district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 65%

School 5% · District 16% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 26 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 319%

School 19% · District 27% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 423%

School 23% · District 27% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Grade 533%

School 33% · District 29% · ▲ 4 pts above district

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

Grade 626%

School 26% · District 29% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▼ 18 pts below state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Science

Grade 522%

School 22% · District 17% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▼ 7 pts below state median · even with county median

This schoolBakersfield City, 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 4Lower-income23%Higher-income23%0 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income30%Higher-income48%17 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income22%Higher-income54%32 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 4Lower-income16%Higher-income14%2 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income18%Higher-income33%15 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income1%Higher-income31%30 pp gap