Ruth Brown Elementary, Blythe CA

Original Research by School Decision on Ruth Brown Elementary

Ruth Brown Elementary serves kindergarten through grade eight in Blythe, in Riverside County. The school enrolls a student body that is predominantly Hispanic, with substantial Black and white populations as well. About nine in ten students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker of economic need that is typical for schools in this region.

State testing data from the most recent year shows weak proficiency across all grade bands and subjects. In math, proficiency ranges from low single digits in grades five through eight, to around a fifth of third and fourth graders meeting the standard. English language arts performance is somewhat stronger in the early grades (third and fourth grade near a quarter of students, seventh grade about a third) but drops sharply in the middle grades, falling to single digits in grade five. Science proficiency in grades five and eight hovers around a tenth of students. These results place the school in the bottom quartile among districts across Riverside County when measuring overall proficiency. Parents may want to look further into what academic support and intervention programs the school offers to address these gaps, as well as how staff approach instruction in low-proficiency grades.

Ruth Brown is one piece of a significant structural change coming to the Palo Verde Unified district for the school year beginning in 2026-2027. The district is implementing a grade-span reconfiguration that will reshape which grades attend which buildings. Middle school grades will be housed separately for the first time in recent years, after the district's previous middle school closed and those grades were absorbed into the high school. Under the new configuration, Ruth Brown's role and the students it serves will change. Families considering this school should check the district's reconfiguration webpage and communications for clarity on the exact grade bands Ruth Brown will serve and how the transition affects enrollment, staffing, transportation, and bell schedules.

The school's immediate community context involves modest housing values and sustained economic pressure. The area's housing values have declined modestly in recent months, and mortgage rates remain elevated. The school's enrollment is moderate for its grade span, distributed fairly evenly across grades. No data on English learner or special education populations was available.

Ruth Brown sits in a town and region where a school must contend with significant academic challenges. The proficiency numbers are clear indicators that many students are not meeting grade-level standards. How the school moves students forward academically, what targeted help is available for struggling learners, and how the imminent grade reconfiguration affects school culture and continuity are all questions a parent should pursue directly with the school and district.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 323%

School 23% · District 27% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

Grade 420%

School 20% · District 13% · ▲ 7 pts above district

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

Grade 53%

School 3% · District 8% · ▼ 5 pts below district

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

Grade 64%

School 4% · District 10% · ▼ 5 pts below district

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

Grade 79%

School 9% · District 12% · ▼ 2 pts below district

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

Grade 89%

School 9% · District 10% · ▼ 1 pts below district

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

English language arts

Grade 326%

School 26% · District 21% · ▲ 5 pts above district

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

Grade 427%

School 27% · District 19% · ▲ 8 pts above district

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

Grade 514%

School 14% · District 17% · ▼ 3 pts below district

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

Grade 618%

School 18% · District 26% · ▼ 8 pts below district

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

Grade 736%

School 36% · District 37%

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

Grade 825%

School 25% · District 26% · ▼ 1 pts below district

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

Science

Grade 511%

School 11% · District 11%

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

Grade 813%

School 13% · District 11% · ▲ 1 pts above district

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

This schoolPalo Verde 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 5Lower-income13%Higher-income15%2 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income19%Higher-income43%24 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 5Lower-income2%Higher-income8%6 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income5%Higher-income21%17 pp gap