Del Rey Woods Elementary, Seaside CA

Original Research by School Decision on Del Rey Woods Elementary

Del Rey Woods Elementary serves kindergarten through sixth grade in Seaside, a community in Monterey County. The school enrolls a small student body, with roughly balanced class sizes across grades. The population is markedly economically disadvantaged; the vast majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The enrollment is predominantly Hispanic, with smaller representations of white, Black, and Asian students, and very few students identifying as multiracial or Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander.

State testing data from the most recent year shows proficiency rates that fall below the county average. In English language arts, students across the school averaged around one third of the grade-level-tested population meeting proficiency benchmarks, with sixth-grade performance notably stronger than the elementary grades. Math proficiency was lower, averaging around one quarter of students, and dropped steeply in fourth and fifth grades, where fewer than one in five students met the standard. Fifth-grade science proficiency was similarly low. Among county districts, the school's overall proficiency index sits just above the county median, suggesting performance near the middle of the local field, though the grade-by-grade pattern reveals concentration of challenge in the intermediate grades. Only one year of data is available; historical trends cannot be assessed.

Demographic data on English learner and special education enrollment is not publicly reported for the school, so the full scope of student needs and support required is not visible here. A parent may want to ask the school directly about these populations and what language development and special education services are available.

The school sits within Monterey Peninsula Unified, a district in the midst of significant structural change. Enrollment has declined steadily over the past decade, prompting the closure of three schools and reconfiguration of attendance boundaries, with Monte Vista and La Mesa converting to TK-8 campuses and more than one hundred students reassigned. Del Rey Woods remained open and is part of this revised district footprint. The district has recently passed a bond measure to fund facility modernization, career technical education expansion, and teacher housing, indicating forward-looking capital investment. At the classroom level, middle school has transitioned to new ELA curriculum, and the district adopted a dyslexia screening tool for younger grades, signaling attention to early literacy foundations.

Housing costs in Seaside are moderately high relative to the region's income, and rents have ticked upward in recent years. The median home value exceeds the state benchmark, and monthly rent for a typical unit approaches the cost of a mortgage. Unemployment sits in a stable range. These economics frame the families the school serves: most are managing tight household budgets and qualifying for meal assistance, and the community appears to be an older one experiencing gradual population decline.

Del Rey Woods offers the regular elementary curriculum without specialized programs or magnets. Information on staffing levels, teacher retention, electives, or enrichment offerings was not available. The school's academic gaps, particularly in math and in the fourth and fifth grades, warrant direct conversation with the principal about intervention strategies, curriculum supports, and what progress looks like for students working below grade level. For a family navigating Seaside's economic pressures, understanding tutoring options, homework support, and school-home communication would be equally practical.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 340%

School 40% · District 37% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 415%

School 15% · District 34% · ▼ 19 pts below district

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

Grade 510%

School 10% · District 23% · ▼ 14 pts below district

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

Grade 643%

School 43% · District 34% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 21 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 335%

School 35% · District 37% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 424%

School 24% · District 36% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 18 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 521%

School 21% · District 39% · ▼ 18 pts below district

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

Grade 646%

School 46% · District 44% · ▲ 2 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 518%

School 18% · District 27% · ▼ 9 pts below district

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

This schoolMonterey Peninsula 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.