The top reported proficiency rate is 46% in English language arts. The lowest is 31% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Loma Verde Elementary
Loma Verde Elementary sits on Alameda de la Loma in southern Novato, a residential corner of California's northernmost Marin County city. The school serves kindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public elementary within Novato Unified, and its enrollment puts it in a comfortable size range for an elementary of its grade band.
The student body is meaningfully diverse. Hispanic students make up roughly half the enrollment, white students about a third, and the remaining students include multiracial, Asian, Black, and other backgrounds. Close to half of students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, which places Loma Verde at a different economic profile than several other Marin County schools. Data on English learner enrollment and students with IEPs was not available in what was provided.
State testing results come from the 2024-25 CAASPP, the most recent year on file, and only a single year of data is available, so there is no trend to read. Across third, fourth, and fifth grades, math proficiency runs from the low forties to just under half of students meeting the standard, with third grade being the highest point. English language arts shows a similar range, with fourth grade at roughly half of students proficient and third grade running lower. Fifth-grade science results on the CAST come in below the math and ELA figures. Placed against districts in Marin County, the school's overall proficiency index lands below the midpoint of the county set. This is a soft spot in the picture, and parents who want to understand what's driving the gap, and what support structures are in place, would do well to ask the school directly.
A few district-level facts matter to families at Loma Verde. Novato Unified has carried a parcel tax for many years, most recently renewed in 2023, which provides a recurring stream for teacher retention and core programs and comes as an ongoing property cost for homeowners. A second supplemental measure was placed on the June 2026 ballot; its outcome was pending at the time these data were compiled. The district also expanded arts and music programming starting in 2023-24 using California's Proposition 28 arts funding, adding a meaningful annual sum across schools. Whether Loma Verde sees a direct program benefit from that expansion is worth confirming with the school. In the background: Novato Unified came close to closing one of its elementary schools in 2022 before pulling back, a signal that enrollment and budget pressures can resurface.
Novato itself is a predominantly residential city in northern Marin, roughly a short highway drive from San Francisco. The school's neighborhood sits away from the downtown Grant Avenue corridor, which has a walkable historic commercial strip, and is closer to the auto-oriented residential fabric that makes up most of the city's south end. Publicly reported information describes Novato as housing major employers in health care and life sciences, including BioMarin Pharmaceuticals and the Buck Institute for Research on Aging, alongside retail anchors and the school district itself as a significant employer. SMART commuter rail connects Novato to the rest of Marin and Sonoma counties, with three stations in the city.
Housing in this zip code is priced well above both the state and national benchmarks, with values that have ticked upward year over year. Rents are also well above the national norm, and the rent-to-income ratio points to real affordability pressure for families who are not already owners. For buyers, the estimated monthly carrying cost on a home here is substantial at current mortgage rates.
Graduation rates do not apply to Loma Verde, as it ends at fifth grade. Program-specific offerings were not included in the data provided, so the narrative stays with what was reported. A parent looking for specifics on enrichment, interventions, or after-school access would want to go directly to the school or the Novato Unified website.
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