Georgia F. Morris Elementary, Colton CA

Original Research by School Decision on Georgia F. Morris Elementary

Georgia F. Morris Elementary serves kindergarten through fifth grade in Colton, a mid-sized Inland Empire city anchored by logistics, healthcare, and a civic center at 9th and D streets. The school enrollment runs small to mid-sized for its grade band, with an overwhelming share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch and the student body predominantly Hispanic. Race and ethnicity data show the school reflects the composition of Colton itself. Data on the share of English learners and students with individualized education plans was not available.

The school's recent state test results show proficiency below the midpoint among San Bernardino County districts. In English language arts, proficiency rates cluster in the low to mid-range across grades three, four, and five. In mathematics, results are weaker; fifth grade shows particularly low performance, while third and fourth grades track closer to the ELA results. Science proficiency in fifth grade sits in the low range. The school has only one year of reported assessment data, so trend direction is not yet visible. Across the tested subjects and grades available, Georgia F. Morris sits above the midpoint of overall proficiency among county schools, a modest positioning that reflects mixed performance rather than strength. A parent may want to look into the school's academic support systems and instructional approaches in math and science, and whether the school has plans to address the lower outcomes in fifth grade, especially in mathematics.

Colton itself is growing. New residential construction is underway across multiple projects; the city's housing element reflects intent to accommodate substantially more households over the coming years. At the zip-code level, home values sit modestly below the California state median and rental costs are in moderate range, positioning Colton as somewhat more affordable than many California communities. The economic landscape is shaped by the Agua Mansa Industrial Corridor, which hosts refrigerated logistics, a major Walmart consolidation center, and Class I rail service, alongside Arrowhead Regional Medical Center and related healthcare employment. Walkability is car-dependent in most areas, though the older downtown core near the library and historic La Cadena district scores much higher.

Rialto Unified, the parent district, passed a large general obligation bond in 2022 to replace aging facilities, upgrade fire and safety systems, remove asbestos and lead paint, and build new career and technical education spaces. That bond repayment comes through property taxes on all homes in the district and will shape school conditions and resources for years ahead. In 2022, the district also moved from at-large to trustee-area elections, meaning families now vote for school board members who represent their geographic sector of the district rather than the board as a whole.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 338%

School 38% · District 34% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 439%

School 39% · District 28% · ▲ 11 pts above district

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

Grade 517%

School 17% · District 21% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

English language arts

Grade 332%

School 32% · District 35% · ▼ 3 pts below district

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

Grade 441%

School 41% · District 36% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 540%

School 40% · District 41% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▼ 6 pts below state median · even with county median

Science

Grade 524%

School 24% · District 23% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

This schoolRialto 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 3Lower-income23%Higher-income60%37 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income36%Higher-income62%26 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income41%Higher-income31%10 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income31%Higher-income60%29 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income36%Higher-income52%17 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income19%Higher-income6%12 pp gap