The top reported proficiency rate is 24% in English language arts. The lowest is 11% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Wadsworth Avenue Elementary
Wadsworth Avenue Elementary is a small, heavily economically disadvantaged school in South Los Angeles serving kindergarten through fifth grade. The enrollment is small enough to create a tight community, with roughly even distribution across the grade levels. Nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is predominantly Latino, with smaller shares of Black and multiracial students. The school sits at the lower edge of academic performance across the county, with proficiency rates in both English language arts and math in the lowest quartile among Los Angeles County's tested elementary schools. Math proficiency is particularly low, with fifth graders at a much weaker level than younger grades. Science proficiency at fifth grade is also notably low.
These numbers warrant attention. A parent considering Wadsworth should ask the school directly how it is working to improve core instruction, what reading and math interventions are in place, whether there are extended learning opportunities, and what professional development teachers have received recently. The single year of state data does not show trend, so it is worth asking whether these numbers reflect a recent dip or a longer pattern, and what the school's improvement plan looks like.
The neighborhood context is important to understand. The school's zip code, 90011, is in Southeast Los Angeles, an area of high population density and modest economic resources. Housing costs in the zip are well below the county median but remain substantial relative to household income; rental affordability is particularly tight. This is a neighborhood built for working families, not one of choice moves or real estate appreciation. Families here are rooted, and schools serve as anchors.
Los Angeles Unified, the district, is in the midst of significant change. Voters recently approved a large bond measure to repair aging school buildings, a shift that will take years to unfold and will touch property taxes for decades. The district implemented a cellphone ban district-wide in February 2025, a policy that affects daily communication between students and families throughout the school day. The district also invested substantially in its Black Student Achievement Plan, which funds culturally responsive teaching and additional counseling at targeted schools; whether Wadsworth is one of those designated schools is not stated in the available data, and a parent would want to ask.
The school has Title I status data missing from the records reviewed, so confirmation of whether Wadsworth receives Title I funding is not available here. Given the student demographics and economic profile, it is almost certain to qualify, but a parent should confirm what federal and state resources the school receives and how they are deployed. Special education and English learner enrollment counts are also absent from the data, so the school's capacity to support students with disabilities or students still acquiring English is unclear from these sources alone.
Wadsworth is a working-class elementary school in a working-class neighborhood. It is small, its students face real economic strain, and its test scores show it is struggling to deliver grade-level proficiency in core subjects. For a family moving to or already living in Southeast Los Angeles and looking for an elementary school, Wadsworth is a neighborhood option worth visiting, talking with staff and families, and understanding in person. The published data alone suggests it is a school in need of instructional strengthening, and a parent's role in understanding what supports exist and what the school's direction is will be important.
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