The top reported proficiency rate is 57% in Math. The lowest is 21% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Virginia Road Elementary
Virginia Road Elementary is a small public school serving kindergarten through fifth grade in Los Angeles, with enrollment drawing almost entirely from its immediate neighborhood. The school sits in a high-poverty area; a very substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a significant Black enrollment and very few white students; the school reflects the racial makeup of its South Los Angeles location.
On state assessments in 2024-25, Virginia Road's results show mixed performance. In math, across all tested grades, students reached proficiency at a rate that falls slightly above the midpoint among schools countywide. English language arts proficiency is lower, roughly at the midpoint across the county's district schools. Science proficiency in fifth grade is notably low. Within the school itself, math performance is strongest in third grade and declines in fourth and fifth. English language arts shows a sharper drop in fourth grade before recovering somewhat in fifth. These grade-level patterns suggest students struggle most in the upper elementary years, a typical challenge many schools face as material grows more abstract.
The test data available is only from the most recent school year, so year-to-year trends cannot be measured. A parent may want to look into this further with the school or the district to understand whether performance is improving, holding steady, or declining over time.
Virginia Road is part of Los Angeles Unified, a sprawling district serving over five million students across an enormous geographic footprint. The district recently passed a major school facilities bond approved by voters, which will fund long-overdue repairs and upgrades to aging buildings across the system, funded through a multi-decade property tax increase. The district has also implemented an all-day ban on student cellphones, smartwatches, and earbuds beginning in February 2025, a change affecting daily school culture and parent-student communication. Additionally, LAUSD funds culturally responsive curriculum and added counselors at targeted schools through its Black Student Achievement Plan, with expanded funding approved for the 2025-26 school year.
The neighborhood around Virginia Road sits in the 90016 ZIP code in South Los Angeles, an area of older housing stock where home values have declined modestly year over year. Rents have risen slightly but remain lower than countywide medians; monthly rent in the area is roughly half the estimated monthly mortgage payment. The area sits within a broader Los Angeles housing market under pressure, with the city actively rezoning to allow more density and launching new housing incentive programs to address a severe shortage. Schools across the vast LAUSD footprint sit within their own neighborhoods rather than clustering around a central campus; Virginia Road is embedded in its local community rather than part of a larger campus district.
Virginia Road's size and setting are straightforward: a neighborhood school serving young elementary students in a dense, low-income residential area with very high concentrations of both Black and Hispanic families, reflecting the demographics and economic circumstances of the South Los Angeles community it serves. For families seeking a small elementary with walkable access to school in a neighborhood context, this is that type of school. For families evaluating academic readiness, the state test data suggests a mixed picture in which math instruction is holding up better than reading, and upper grades warrant closer attention and direct conversation with school leadership about instructional support and student outcomes.
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