W. A. Kendrick Elementary, Bakersfield CA

Original Research by School Decision on W. A. Kendrick Elementary

W. A. Kendrick Elementary serves kindergarten through fifth grade in Bakersfield's Greenfield Union district. The school sits on Faith Avenue in the 93304 zip code in central Bakersfield, a fast-growing city where energy, agriculture, and healthcare anchor employment and neighborhoods range from newer subdivisions to established residential districts.

The student body at Kendrick is predominantly Hispanic, with a substantial share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price meals. This is a full-enrollment school by economic measure. The school's enrollment is stable across grades, with roughly balanced cohorts from kindergarten through fifth grade.

Academic performance shows a pattern worth understanding. In English language arts, students in grades three through five perform better in the upper grades. Fourth and fifth graders show solid proficiency in ELA, while third grade performance is lower. In mathematics, fourth grade performs strongest, while third grade lags significantly and fifth grade falls between. Science proficiency in fifth grade sits below both ELA and math. Across all tested grades and subjects, the school's overall proficiency index places it in the top quartile among districts in Kern County. This is a genuine strength: the school is performing better than the median across its county peer set, even as individual results show uneven pathways by subject and grade.

The gap between third-grade math and later grades suggests that early numeracy or foundational skills may be an area where students arrive with less preparation or where instruction faces headwinds; a parent might want to explore directly with the school how the third-grade jump is supported and what interventions or approaches are in place there. Science proficiency being lower than reading and math is common in elementary schools with limited science time or resources.

Bakersfield itself is compact and car-dependent for most errands, though the downtown core is small and walkable around a grid of restored storefronts and restaurants. The city's neighborhoods range widely: some are upscale subdivisions, others are historic districts, and others mix residential and commercial use. Housing values in the area are moderate relative to other California markets, and rents align with affordability benchmarks for the region. The city is among California's fastest-growing, with active residential development both in established neighborhoods and in planned centers downtown and in southeast Bakersfield.

The Kern River Parkway offers a ribbon of trails and parks along the city's eastern edge. Daily civic life is anchored by the county library system, Golden Empire Transit's local bus network, and a series of riverside parks. No data about Greenfield Union's strategic priorities or recent changes was available, so this account rests on what the school itself reports.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 345%

School 45% · District 35% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

Grade 464%

School 64% · District 31% · ▲ 33 pts above district

▲ 27 pts above state median · ▲ 38 pts above county median

Grade 561%

School 61% · District 25% · ▲ 35 pts above district

▲ 30 pts above state median · ▲ 41 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 352%

School 52% · District 38% · ▲ 14 pts above district

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

Grade 470%

School 70% · District 41% · ▲ 29 pts above district

▲ 28 pts above state median · ▲ 37 pts above county median

Grade 568%

School 68% · District 41% · ▲ 27 pts above district

▲ 23 pts above state median · ▲ 32 pts above county median

Science

Grade 544%

School 44% · District 24% · ▲ 20 pts above district

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

This schoolGreenfield Union, 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.