The top reported proficiency rate is 30% in English language arts. The lowest is 14% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on North Beardsley Elementary
North Beardsley Elementary sits on Sanford Drive in the northwestern part of Bakersfield, serving kindergarten through sixth grade within the Beardsley Elementary district. The school is a regular public school with no charter or magnet designation.
The student body is large enough that each grade has a meaningful cohort, though grade-level counts vary. Nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which tells you this is a high-poverty community by the measure used for that designation. Hispanic students make up a majority of enrollment, with white students forming the next largest group and smaller shares of Black, multiracial, and other students. Data on English learner rates and students with individualized education programs was not available in what we reviewed.
State assessment results from the most recent year tested are reported through California's CAASPP system and the California Science Test. Across tested grades in both English language arts and math, proficiency rates are low. In ELA, scores range from the upper twenties into the low thirties depending on grade; in math, they are generally lower, with fifth grade the weakest point among the grades tested. Science results at fifth grade are similarly modest. Placed against districts across Kern County, the school's overall proficiency index falls below the midpoint of that group. These are numbers worth understanding, and a parent may want to ask the school directly about what specific interventions or instructional supports are in place, particularly in math and science. Only one year of data was available, so no trend direction can be drawn from what exists.
The Beardsley Elementary district brief yielded no recent bond measures, curriculum changes, or other parent-relevant policy shifts to report. We looked and found nothing qualifying, so we left it out rather than guess.
On the housing side, the zip code surrounding the school sits well below California's statewide median home value, making it one of the more accessible areas for buyers in a state where affordability is a widespread challenge. Rents are similarly moderate. Home values in the zip were essentially flat year over year, with a slight dip, while rents ticked up modestly. The rent-to-income ratio in this zip is relatively manageable compared to many California markets, and monthly mortgage costs are considerably lower than the state norm.
Bakersfield itself is a large, car-dependent city where agriculture, energy, and healthcare anchor the local economy. The area around North Beardsley is part of the broader northward residential expansion of the city. Bakersfield has been publicly reported as one of California's fastest-growing large cities, with new housing activity concentrated both downtown and near the northern city limits, including developments along the 7th Standard Road corridor not far from this part of town. The city has an extensive river trail system along the Kern River Parkway, a county library network centered on the Beale Memorial Library downtown, and a bus system operated by Golden Empire Transit, though most daily life requires a car.
No program offerings were listed in the data for North Beardsley. AP courses and dual-enrollment pathways are not applicable here given the grade band, which stops at sixth grade. A graduation rate similarly does not apply to a school that serves only elementary grades.
For a family weighing this school, the picture is one of a high-poverty neighborhood elementary in a growing part of Bakersfield, where assessed academic proficiency is substantially below state medians across subjects and grades. The housing market in this zip offers real affordability relative to most of California. The gap between what the test scores show and what families would hope for in their child's preparation is the central question to bring to the school when visiting.
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