Clearwater Elementary, Perris CA

Original Research by School Decision on Clearwater Elementary

Clearwater Elementary is a kindergarten through sixth-grade school in Perris, a mid-sized working and middle-income Riverside County city that has grown steadily around a historic downtown and rail corridor. The school enrolls a substantial enrollment of about that size, with a student body that is predominantly Hispanic, reflective of Perris's demographics. A large majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, signaling an economically disadvantaged population.

State test results show academic proficiency significantly below midpoint across the county's elementary schools. In English language arts, fewer than half of tested students met proficiency in any grade, ranging from upper-thirties to mid-forties percent at the lower grades and dropping to about thirty-eight percent in sixth grade. Mathematics proficiency is markedly lower: only about forty-three percent of third graders met the standard, but proficiency declines sharply in higher grades, falling to about twenty-four percent in fourth grade, eighteen percent in fifth grade, and sixteen percent in sixth grade. Science proficiency at fifth grade, the only year assessed, sits at about sixteen percent. The school's overall proficiency index across all tested subjects and grades is above the midpoint when compared to other districts in Riverside County, a positioning that reflects the challenges many schools in this region face rather than strong absolute performance. Trend data is limited to the current school year, so whether these results represent stability or change cannot yet be determined.

The school serves grades kindergarten through six evenly distributed across the enrollment. The demographic composition is stable and homogeneous: the vast majority of students are Hispanic, with smaller populations of Black students and students of two or more races; Asian and white students are minimal. Data on English learner and special education enrollment rates were not available, leaving gaps in understanding the school's population profile fully. The high free-lunch rate underscores that Clearwater serves a low-income community and likely qualifies for federal Title I support, though Title I designation was not provided in available records.

Perris itself is a family-oriented city with a working and middle-income texture shaped by logistics, retail, and light manufacturing. The downtown historic core along Fourth Street remains the walkable center, though most residents are car-dependent for shopping and commuting; the median commute time is moderate and average car ownership is high. Civic anchors including the public library, parks, and the Perris-Downtown Metrolink station sit downtown. Housing is dominated by single-family suburbs, many built in the early 2000s; median home prices have held relatively stable, and rent is climbing modestly year-over-year. The city is in active growth mode, with new logistics parks breaking ground and a downtown specific plan that envisions substantial new residential and retail development.

In November 2024, district voters approved a substantial school facilities bond to modernize aging classrooms, repair deteriorating infrastructure, relieve overcrowding, and improve safety and security. This will bring a new property-tax levy on homeowners. Many Perris elementary and middle schools were built more than several decades ago and have been awaiting upgrades, so this bond represents a significant capital commitment that will unfold over time.

Clearwater's position is one of a neighborhood elementary school in a working-class community with substantial economic need and proficiency levels well below state targets. A parent considering this school should engage directly with the school and district about current academic support strategies, classroom conditions and any improvements underway, and what kind of supplemental learning or intervention the school offers, since state proficiency data alone suggests meaningful academic gaps that warrant closer understanding at the school level.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 343%

School 43% · District 28% · ▲ 15 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Grade 424%

School 24% · District 21% · ▲ 3 pts above district

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

Grade 518%

School 18% · District 16% · ▲ 2 pts above district

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

Grade 616%

School 16% · District 13% · ▲ 3 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 344%

School 44% · District 31% · ▲ 13 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Grade 442%

School 42% · District 32% · ▲ 10 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 538%

School 38% · District 29% · ▲ 9 pts above district

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

Grade 638%

School 38% · District 32% · ▲ 6 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 516%

School 16% · District 14% · ▲ 2 pts above district

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

This schoolPerris Elementary, 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-income42%Higher-income60%19 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income41%Higher-income47%6 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income37%Higher-income40%3 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income35%Higher-income56%21 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income40%Higher-income60%20 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income24%Higher-income25%1 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income21%Higher-income7%14 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income13%Higher-income33%21 pp gap