The top reported proficiency rate is 27% in English language arts. The lowest is 23% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Ricardo Lizarraga Elementary
Ricardo Lizarraga Elementary is a small public school serving kindergarten through fifth grade on the east side of Los Angeles, in a neighborhood where nearly all families qualify for free or reduced-price meals. The student body is overwhelmingly Hispanic, with a very small number of students from other backgrounds. The school sits within Los Angeles Unified, a sprawling district now operating under a major facilities bond passed by voters and a newly implemented district-wide cellphone ban affecting the daily rhythm of school life.
The academic picture reflects real challenges. State test results from the most recent school year show that across grades three through five, proficiency in math hovers in the low-to-mid range, with mathematics scores clustered around the same level across all three tested grades. English language arts performance is more uneven: third grade shows modest proficiency, fourth grade drops notably lower, and fifth grade rebounds to nearly double the fourth-grade rate. Science proficiency, tested only in fifth grade, comes in below both math and ELA. These results place the school well below the median proficiency rate among districts in Los Angeles County. The data reflects what families would recognize as a school serving a community with significant economic stress and likely high rates of students learning English as an additional language, though specific counts for English learners were not available in the data provided.
Structurally, the school is quite small, with total enrollment around typical elementary-school size for its grade band, distributed fairly evenly across the six grades. The neighborhood context is economically constrained: housing values in the surrounding area are moderate, rents have declined slightly year over year, and a rent-to-income ratio suggests housing costs consume a substantial share of household budgets. The zip code reflects both rental and ownership markets that are accessible compared to citywide medians, though affordability remains tight.
The school operates as a traditional public school with no charter or magnet designation, meaning it follows standard LAUSD curriculum and policy. Parents and students are now living under the district-wide cellphone ban implemented in early 2025, which restricts device use throughout the entire day including lunch and breaks. Additionally, families moving into the school's area should be aware that LAUSD voters approved a major school facilities bond that will raise property taxes over a multi-decade period to fund building repairs and upgrades. For families renting, this does not directly affect their housing costs, but for those buying into the neighborhood, it is a fixed, long-term financial commitment.
In the context of its peer schools across Los Angeles County, Ricardo Lizarraga Elementary ranks in the bottom quartile on overall proficiency. The school faces the task of supporting a population with high economic need and likely significant English-language learning. A parent considering this school may want to look further into the school's specific support structures for English learners, the availability of reading and math interventions, and any specialized programs or partnerships that address student needs beyond what state testing data alone reveals. The school's small size and deeply rooted neighborhood presence may offer advantages in terms of community connection and personalized attention, but prospective families should have clear-eyed conversations with school leadership about how the school is working to close proficiency gaps.
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