Mt. Vernon Elementary, Lemon Grove CA

Original Research by School Decision on Mt. Vernon Elementary

Mt. Vernon Elementary serves kindergarten through sixth grade in Lemon Grove, a small residential suburb in eastern San Diego County. The school has a stable enrollment across its grade bands, with roughly equal class sizes from early elementary through middle grades.

The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with Spanish-speaking students forming the largest share of the enrollment. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting economic need in the school's service area. Complete enrollment data on English learners and students with disabilities was not available, so a fuller picture of instructional needs would be worth confirming directly with the school.

State assessment results show mixed academic performance. In English language arts, proficiency varies by grade: third and fourth graders show proficiency rates near the midpoint, fifth graders are lower, and sixth graders show stronger results. In mathematics, performance is substantially weaker, with proficiency declining sharply in the upper elementary grades. Fifth-grade science proficiency was also below the midpoint. Across all tested subjects and grades, Mt. Vernon's overall proficiency index places it above the midpoint among elementary schools in San Diego County, though absolute proficiency levels are modest. A parent may want to look into what targeted support or intervention the school offers in mathematics, particularly in the fourth through sixth grades where proficiency gaps appear most pronounced.

Lemon Grove itself is a small, walkable community with its civic and commercial life concentrated downtown around Broadway and Lemon Grove Avenue, where the trolley depot and library anchor the area. The neighborhood is in transition, with a recent mixed-use development marking the beginning of taller, denser residential construction expected to reshape the downtown over time. Housing values are moderate for San Diego County, and rents are increasing modestly. Most residents drive to work, though the trolley provides transit access. The city has a diverse employment base centered on healthcare, education, retail, and construction, with many residents also commuting to jobs in nearby San Diego.

The Lemon Grove School District passed two bond measures in November 2024 for science and technology facilities and general infrastructure improvements, funded through local property taxes. An earlier bond measure in 2022 also prioritized classroom and facility upgrades. The district operates a Spanish/English dual language immersion pathway that spans preschool through middle school, including a dedicated dual immersion elementary school and a middle school pathway. This is a distinctive offering that families considering the district would want to explore further, though Mt. Vernon Elementary itself does not appear to be designated as the district's dual immersion school based on publicly reported information.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 351%

School 51% · District 35% · ▲ 16 pts above district

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

Grade 438%

School 38% · District 33% · ▲ 6 pts above district

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

Grade 523%

School 23% · District 19% · ▲ 5 pts above district

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

Grade 635%

School 35% · District 40% · ▼ 5 pts below district

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

English language arts

Grade 349%

School 49% · District 37% · ▲ 13 pts above district

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

Grade 449%

School 49% · District 38% · ▲ 11 pts above district

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

Grade 538%

School 38% · District 31% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Grade 658%

School 58% · District 51% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Science

Grade 527%

School 27% · District 23% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

This schoolLemon Grove, 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-income33%Higher-income83%50 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income45%Higher-income60%15 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income50%Higher-income77%27 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income38%Higher-income83%45 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income31%Higher-income94%64 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income35%Higher-income47%12 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income30%Higher-income46%16 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income23%Higher-income25%2 pp gap