Kendall Elementary, San Bernardino CA

Original Research by School Decision on Kendall Elementary

Kendall Elementary serves kindergarten through fifth grade in San Bernardino, a city that spans residential neighborhoods from urban rental-heavy areas near downtown to tree-lined mid-century districts and foothill communities. The school sits in the 92407 zip code, where housing values are moderate and rent is manageable relative to incomes in the area, though mortgage costs remain substantial.

The school enrollment is small, just over three hundred students, with a heavily economically disadvantaged student population. The majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is predominantly Latino, with smaller populations of Black, Asian, and white students. Enrollment data does not break out the percentage of students who are English learners or who receive special education services; a parent may want to look into that profile directly with the school.

State testing results from spring 2025 show uneven performance. In English language arts, Kendall sits below the state midpoint: third grade scored lowest at around two in five students proficient, fourth grade dropped further, but fifth grade improved to just under half of students meeting the standard. Math proficiency is substantially lower across the board. Third grade math proficiency was just over one in four students, fourth grade fell to under one in five, and fifth grade landed at under one in five as well. The school also administered science testing in fifth grade, where proficiency was one in five students. Across tested subjects and grades, the school's overall proficiency index places it below the midpoint among the county's school-level results.

San Bernardino City Unified, the parent district, has made two significant shifts in recent years. The district adopted Vision 2030, a multi-year strategic plan setting direction through the end of the decade around academics, college and career readiness, equity, student wellness, and safe environments. The broader structural change is the district's buildout of Linked Learning pathways in high schools, which blend college-preparatory academics with hands-on career-technical education and work-based learning, with gold-level certification on multiple pathways. That model shapes the district's high school experience and offers perspective on the pathway from elementary through secondary.

Kendall serves a neighborhood school population in a city with a mixed character: downtown contains civic anchors including the historic library and train station, neighborhoods vary in density and housing type, and development is ongoing in the downtown and university districts. The school's academic results suggest that students will need targeted support and intervention, particularly in mathematics, as they progress through the upper elementary grades. A parent considering Kendall would be making a choice about a small, economically disadvantaged school in a district committed to structured pathways and college and career readiness, with the understanding that current proficiency levels are low and will shape what academic support and classroom experience look like.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 326%

School 26% · District 31% · ▼ 5 pts below district

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

Grade 419%

School 19% · District 23% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

Grade 517%

School 17% · District 19% · ▼ 2 pts below district

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

English language arts

Grade 342%

School 42% · District 31% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 434%

School 34% · District 32% · ▲ 2 pts above district

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

Grade 547%

School 47% · District 34% · ▲ 12 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 520%

School 20% · District 18% · ▲ 2 pts above district

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

This schoolSan Bernardino City 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.