Orange Center Elementary, Fresno CA

Original Research by School Decision on Orange Center Elementary

Orange Center Elementary serves kindergarten through eighth grade in Fresno and is a regular public school within the Orange Center School District. The school is a small K-8 serving an enrollment of about two hundred fifty students. The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a substantial majority, and a significant share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the economic circumstances of the families in the area. Asian students make up a meaningful smaller share, while other racial and ethnic groups represent small numbers.

On state assessments in English language arts and math administered during the 2024-25 school year, Orange Center Elementary's performance reflects serious academic challenges. In math, proficiency across the grades spans from a low point around one-tenth at the highest grades tested up to roughly four in ten students in sixth grade, with third and fourth grades near that level. In language arts, the picture is mixed by grade: fourth grade proficiency reaches above half, and eighth grade reaches into the mid-sixties, but fifth and seventh grades fall to around three in ten, and third grade is near four in ten. The overall school proficiency rate in math sits just above the midpoint among Fresno County's school districts, a positioning that reflects performance lower than many peers. Science proficiency in tested grades is notably low, in the range of one in eight to under one in five.

The variability in language arts proficiency by grade, particularly the higher results in the upper grades, and the drop in math proficiency as students move up the grades, are patterns a parent may want to look into further with the school. Understanding whether this reflects differences in curriculum delivery, student composition at each level, or other factors would help clarify the school's instructional priorities and where support is most concentrated.

The enrollment is stable across the grade band, with each grade level containing roughly twenty to thirty-five students, typical for a district school of this size serving a rural area. Kindergarten enrollment is higher than most upper grades, which is common.

The surrounding community in Fresno reflects a mix of long-standing neighborhoods and ongoing urban revitalization efforts. Downtown Fresno, while historically car-dependent, has seen recent investment in affordable housing and cultural districts. The broader Fresno economy carries substantial agricultural employment alongside government and service sectors. Housing costs in the area are relatively affordable by state standards, and rental rates are accessible, making the region a lower cost-of-living alternative within California.

The Orange Center School District placed Measure D before voters in November 2022, a facilities bond that would have funded modernization of aging classrooms and school buildings in the district through a property tax on assessed value. This represents the kind of long-term capital investment families considering the area would note.

The school is located at 3530 South Cherry Avenue in Fresno's 93706 zip code, placing it in a residential area of the city.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 337%

School 37% · District 37%

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

Grade 433%

School 33% · District 33%

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

Grade 513%

School 13% · District 13%

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Grade 640%

School 40% · District 40%

▲ 10 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 720%

School 20% · District 20%

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Grade 810%

School 10% · District 10%

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

English language arts

Grade 339%

School 39% · District 39%

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

Grade 458%

School 58% · District 58%

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

Grade 532%

School 32% · District 32%

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Grade 642%

School 42% · District 42%

▼ 2 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 730%

School 30% · District 30%

▼ 15 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Grade 864%

School 64% · District 64%

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 28 pts above county median

Science

Grade 513%

School 13% · District 13%

▼ 15 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Grade 818%

School 18% · District 18%

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

Social studies

Grade 818%

School 18% · District 18%

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

This schoolOrange Center, 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.