Cook (hazel Goes) Elementary, Chula Vista CA

Original Research by School Decision on Cook (hazel Goes) Elementary

Cook (Hazel Goes) Elementary is a small public school in Chula Vista serving kindergarten through sixth grade, with an enrollment that reflects the demographics and economic conditions of its neighborhood. About three-fifths of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with smaller numbers of white, Asian, and Black students. The school is part of the Chula Vista Elementary School District.

Recent state testing shows Cook's academic performance is below the midpoint for elementary schools in San Diego County. In English language arts, performance varies notably by grade: third-graders and fourth-graders show roughly one in three to two in five students meeting state standards, while fifth-grade proficiency climbs to slightly better than half, and by sixth grade roughly seven in ten students reach proficiency. Math performance is weaker across all grades. Third and fourth graders show lower proficiency, though half of fifth graders and roughly the same share of sixth graders meet standards. Science testing, available only for fifth grade, shows proficiency around one in three students. The overall proficiency index places the school above the median among San Diego County elementary schools, though well below the strongest performers in the district.

Chula Vista itself is the second-largest city in San Diego County and is undergoing rapid growth. The city ranges from an established downtown core with a revived Third Avenue commercial corridor and older neighborhoods to large master-planned communities to the east. The eastern developments, including Millenia and Otay Ranch, are designed around walkability and mixed-use neighborhoods, while older areas like downtown are predominantly residential with midcentury and Spanish-style homes. Housing costs in the area are substantial relative to local income, and most residents drive to work. Public transit includes the San Diego Trolley Blue Line, MTS buses, and a new electric Bayfront Shuttle.

The school district recently passed two major bond measures funded by property taxes. Measure M in 2020 funded campus security, classroom technology, and a district-wide solar installation now complete at all schools, along with a teacher housing project that broke ground in late 2024. Voters then approved Measure AA in November 2024 to fund expanded STEAM classrooms, security upgrades, special education and counseling space, ADA accessibility improvements, and playground renovations across district schools. These represent visible infrastructure improvements families can observe over time.

The district also recently adopted a new K-6 history-social science curriculum aligned with California standards. The district offers a dual-language Spanish-English immersion program on more than twenty campuses, including multiple schools in the area; families considering this pathway should know that teachers reported curriculum material disruptions in 2025 that the district is working to address. A parent weighing Cook Elementary would want to confirm current curriculum availability and program implementation with the school directly.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 333%

School 33% · District 49% · ▼ 16 pts below district

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

Grade 426%

School 26% · District 47% · ▼ 22 pts below district

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 544%

School 44% · District 43% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 644%

School 44% · District 45% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 337%

School 37% · District 51% · ▼ 14 pts below district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Grade 439%

School 39% · District 53% · ▼ 14 pts below district

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

Grade 553%

School 53% · District 60% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▲ 7 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 670%

School 70% · District 62% · ▲ 9 pts above district

▲ 27 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

Science

Grade 532%

School 32% · District 39% · ▼ 7 pts below district

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

This schoolChula Vista Elementary, 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-income27%Higher-income50%23 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income26%Higher-income64%38 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income54%Higher-income50%4 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income72%Higher-income67%5 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income20%Higher-income50%30 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income24%Higher-income29%5 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income40%Higher-income58%18 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income44%Higher-income47%3 pp gap