San Jose Elementary, Pomona CA - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on San Jose Elementary

San Jose Elementary serves kindergarten through eighth grade in Pomona, a dense urban neighborhood within Los Angeles County anchored by the Cal Poly Pomona campus and a revitalized downtown arts district. The school enrolls a student body that is overwhelmingly Latino and economically disadvantaged. Most students qualify for free or reduced-price meals. The school sits within the Pomona Unified School District, which recently passed a major bond measure to fund facility repairs and classroom upgrades, and reached a teacher compensation agreement designed to help the district remain competitive in attracting staff.

The academic picture at San Jose Elementary reflects substantial instructional need. State testing data from the most recent year shows proficiency rates well below state medians across tested subjects and grade bands. In mathematics, proficiency ranges from single digits in third and fourth grade to around a third by eighth grade, with an average across grades of roughly eighteen percent. English language arts performance is modestly stronger, with proficiency averaging around a quarter across grade levels, though early elementary grades again score in single digits. Science proficiency tested in fifth and eighth grade sits in the low to mid-teens. On the overall proficiency index used to benchmark schools within Los Angeles County, San Jose Elementary falls in the bottom quartile of county schools. The school has only one year of recent assessment data, so longer-term trends are not yet visible in the record.

The enrollment is stable at a mid-sized level for an elementary school spanning nine grade bands. Kindergarten is the largest cohort, with proportionally smaller enrollments in the upper elementary and middle grades. Data on English learner enrollment and special education identification were not available; a parent may want to contact the school directly to understand these populations and the supports available.

The community surrounding San Jose Elementary is undergoing visible change. Pomona's downtown has become a destination for arts and nightlife centered on the Arts Colony, with monthly art walks, galleries, and restaurants drawing crowds. The city is actively pursuing infill housing development tied to new transit connections, including the recently opened Metro A Line light rail extension. Housing values have moderated in the recent period. These changes create both opportunity and displacement pressure for longtime residents in lower-income neighborhoods; families considering this school should ask about community stability and any programs the school offers to support students experiencing housing instability.

Pomona Unified voters approved a substantial bond in November 2024 to fund building repairs, classroom upgrades, water safety, and removal of environmental hazards like asbestos and lead paint. This investment reflects acknowledgment of deferred maintenance and is a lasting financial commitment that will show in property taxes for years. The district also secured a teacher salary increase in March 2024 aimed at bringing compensation closer to surrounding districts, a move intended to strengthen recruitment and retention. These district-level actions provide context for school-level conditions, though how quickly improvements reach individual schools is a question worth asking directly.

For families weighing this school, the immediate reality is proficiency rates substantially below county norms and a student body facing significant economic challenges. The school does not appear in available data to have distinctive programs like dual-language immersion or magnet offerings. What San Jose Elementary offers is a neighborhood anchor in an increasingly dynamic urban area, serving students who are rooted in Pomona's communities. Families should seek clarity from the school on specific instructional strategies, interventions for struggling readers and mathematicians, and how the recent bond investment will translate to classroom resources and staffing.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 314%

School 14% · District 28% · ▼ 13 pts below district

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

Grade 49%

School 9% · District 24% · ▼ 16 pts below district

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

Grade 512%

School 12% · District 22% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 22 pts below county median

Grade 620%

School 20% · District 24% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

Grade 730%

School 30% · District 25% · ▲ 5 pts above district

even with state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 825%

School 25% · District 24% · ▲ 1 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 317%

School 17% · District 31% · ▼ 14 pts below district

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

Grade 49%

School 9% · District 32% · ▼ 24 pts below district

▼ 33 pts below state median · ▼ 35 pts below county median

Grade 517%

School 17% · District 35% · ▼ 18 pts below district

▼ 28 pts below state median · ▼ 29 pts below county median

Grade 632%

School 32% · District 37% · ▼ 6 pts below district

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

Grade 744%

School 44% · District 39% · ▲ 5 pts above district

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

Grade 832%

School 32% · District 37% · ▼ 5 pts below district

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

Science

Grade 512%

School 12% · District 21% · ▼ 10 pts below district

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

Grade 819%

School 19% · District 19% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 816%

School 16% · District 31% · ▼ 15 pts below district

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

This schoolPomona 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.