Arroyo Vista Elementary, South Pasadena CA

Original Research by School Decision on Arroyo Vista Elementary

Arroyo Vista Elementary is a small, established kindergarten-through-fifth-grade school in the residential city of South Pasadena, located in Los Angeles County. The school serves roughly seven hundred students across its six grade levels, distributed fairly evenly year to year. The student body is diverse by race and ethnicity, with an Asian plurality, followed by white, Hispanic, and multiracial students. About one in seven students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a rate well below the county median.

The school's academic performance in 2024-25 is a clear strength. On the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress, Arroyo Vista students show high proficiency across English language arts and math. In third grade, nearly all students meet proficiency in ELA and roughly nine in ten in math. Performance holds strong through fourth grade, where about four in five meet proficiency in both subjects. By fifth grade, proficiency rates settle at roughly three-quarters for math and about four in five for ELA. In science, fifth graders show proficiency at roughly three-quarters. These results position the school in the top quartile of schools across Los Angeles County districts on an overall proficiency index.

South Pasadena itself is a small residential city known for tree-lined streets, historic Craftsman homes, and a strong park network anchored by walkable green spaces like Library Park and Garfield Park. The commercial spine centers on Mission Street, where a Metro A Line station serves as both transit hub and community gathering point with cafes and a weekly farmers market. The community is in a period of carefully managed growth tied to the station area; housing costs are high, with median home values substantially above both the state and national benchmarks. Monthly rent runs moderately high, while the price-to-income ratio for purchase is steep—roughly double the national average—reflecting the city's appeal as a residential suburb for professional families.

Arroyo Vista sits on a neighborhood campus away from downtown, as do the district's other two elementary schools. Data on school discipline, attendance, special education enrollment, or English learner support was not available. The school's website was not provided, so details on specific programs, pedagogical approaches, or classroom structures cannot be reported here. Given the school's strong academic results and the affluent, educationally engaged character of South Pasadena, the environment appears to be one that supports solid elementary academics for families seeking that foundation before moving into the district's middle and high schools.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 391%

School 91% · District 86% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 48 pts above state median · ▲ 45 pts above county median

Grade 482%

School 82% · District 85% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▲ 44 pts above state median · ▲ 41 pts above county median

Grade 574%

School 74% · District 79% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▲ 44 pts above state median · ▲ 41 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 390%

School 90% · District 86% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▲ 49 pts above state median · ▲ 48 pts above county median

Grade 483%

School 83% · District 87% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 41 pts above state median · ▲ 39 pts above county median

Grade 583%

School 83% · District 82% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 38 pts above state median · ▲ 36 pts above county median

Science

Grade 577%

School 77% · District 73% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 49 pts above state median · ▲ 50 pts above county median

This schoolSouth Pasadena 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-income76%Higher-income93%17 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income80%Higher-income84%4 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income53%Higher-income89%36 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income76%Higher-income94%18 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income75%Higher-income83%8 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income42%Higher-income80%38 pp gap