Henry Miller Elementary, Los Banos CA

Original Research by School Decision on Henry Miller Elementary

Henry Miller Elementary serves kindergarten through sixth grade in Los Banos, a San Joaquin Valley agricultural city where Bay Area commuters have driven substantial housing growth over the past two decades. The school sits in a community that is predominantly residential beyond its compact, walkable downtown, with the city expanding steadily into new subdivisions as families seek affordable housing within commuting range of the San Jose area.

The school's current enrollment is small relative to the elementary grades it serves, with a student body that is overwhelmingly Hispanic and economically disadvantaged. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Detailed data on English learners and students with disabilities were not available from the school's most recent reports, so a parent may want to look into those enrollment profiles directly with the school.

State assessment results for the school year just completed show proficiency rates that are notably low across tested grades and subjects. In English language arts, proficiency ranges from the low end in fifth grade to the upper end in third grade, but none exceed about a third of students. Mathematics proficiency is weaker still, declining sharply from third to fifth grade and then recovering slightly in sixth grade, though all grades remain in the single digits to low teens. Science proficiency in fifth grade was in the single digits. When compared to other districts in Merced County, Henry Miller's overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile among the county's schools, indicating that academic attainment here is substantially below the regional median.

The school's performance context is important to understand. Los Banos Unified is actively managing substantial growth: the district is in the middle of redrawing elementary attendance boundaries to relieve overcrowding and rebalance enrollment across multiple schools as new housing construction continues. Los Banos Elementary is transitioning into a full dual language immersion program, reshaping the attendance landscape. These operational shifts, combined with the school's high concentration of economically disadvantaged students and the predominance of Spanish-speaking households in the attendance area, define the environment in which Henry Miller operates. The district has invested in facility expansions, including a new elementary school and a transitional kindergarten center that opened in early 2026, and passed a bond measure several years ago to add classroom and lab capacity.

For a family considering Henry Miller, the school represents a neighborhood elementary option in a growing, working-class community where the majority of peers are Hispanic and most families qualify for free meals. The academic results are weak, and a parent should ask the school directly about its instructional approach, support services for English learners, and whether language support is available given the student population. The broader district context of boundary changes means families should clarify whether their home address will keep their child at Henry Miller or result in assignment elsewhere as lines shift.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 325%

School 25% · District 34% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 18 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 418%

School 18% · District 29% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 13 pts below county median

Grade 55%

School 5% · District 16% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 612%

School 12% · District 21% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 18 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 329%

School 29% · District 31% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Grade 423%

School 23% · District 33% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 13 pts below county median

Grade 518%

School 18% · District 34% · ▼ 17 pts below district

▼ 28 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

Grade 623%

School 23% · District 36% · ▼ 14 pts below district

▼ 21 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

Science

Grade 59%

School 9% · District 17% · ▼ 8 pts below district

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

This schoolLos Banos Unified, 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-income29%Higher-income27%1 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income23%Higher-income46%23 pp gap