Lake Marie Elementary, Whittier CA

Original Research by School Decision on Lake Marie Elementary

Lake Marie Elementary serves kindergarten through sixth grade in Whittier, a Southern California city with a strong sense of community and a diverse, predominantly Latino population anchored by healthcare, education, retail, and small business. The school sits in an area where housing carries a modest price premium relative to national benchmarks, and rents are rising moderately. The local economy draws on healthcare systems like Whittier Hospital Medical Center, educational institutions including Whittier College, and employers such as PIH Health. The city offers parks and hiking trails alongside urban amenities, creating a neighborhood-oriented setting for families.

Lake Marie's student body reflects the character of its community. Nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a marker of economic challenge that is widespread across the school. The enrollment is small, at about a hundred-eighty students spread across seven grades from kindergarten through sixth grade. The student population is predominantly Hispanic, with only a handful of students from other racial or ethnic backgrounds. Data on the school's English learner population and special education enrollment was not available. The school is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet program, operated by South Whittier Elementary School District.

Academic performance shows moderate to low proficiency on California state assessments. In English language arts, students in fourth through sixth grade score better than those in third grade, with results ranging from below half to roughly three-fifths of students meeting proficiency. In mathematics, proficiency is lower across all grades tested, with less than a quarter of third graders, about a third of fourth and sixth graders, and just over two-fifths of fifth graders meeting the benchmark. Science testing, administered only to fifth grade, shows just under a third of students meeting proficiency. The school's overall proficiency index places it below the midpoint when compared to districts across Los Angeles County. Only one year of assessment data was available, so trend patterns cannot be identified. A parent may want to look into further detail with the school on what academic support systems are in place to address these proficiency gaps, particularly in mathematics.

The South Whittier School District, Lake Marie's parent district, has approved a general obligation bond to fund roof repairs, electrical and HVAC upgrades, student technology access, facility modernization, and health and safety improvements. The district has also launched a Spanish Dual Language Immersion Program using a 90/10 two-way model at two other elementary schools, McKibben and Los Altos, starting in kindergarten and expanding to first grade. That program is not currently offered at Lake Marie, so families interested in dual-language instruction would need to explore enrollment options elsewhere in the district.

Lake Marie is a small, economically challenged school serving a community with limited resources but strong cultural identity. The proficiency results suggest students are encountering significant academic difficulty, particularly in mathematics. The school itself is not positioned as a specialized program or choice within its district, so a family choosing to attend would be doing so primarily for neighborhood proximity or as their assigned school. For families weighing this school, the key questions center on what supplemental academic support exists, how the school partners with families on literacy and numeracy at home, and whether the broader district's facility improvements and language programming align with their educational values even if those specific programs are housed at other campuses.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 325%

School 25% · District 34% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 18 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

Grade 438%

School 38% · District 33% · ▲ 4 pts above district

even with state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 541%

School 41% · District 25% · ▲ 16 pts above district

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

Grade 631%

School 31% · District 19% · ▲ 12 pts above district

▲ 1 pts above state median · even with county median

English language arts

Grade 338%

School 38% · District 31% · ▲ 7 pts above district

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

Grade 450%

School 50% · District 35% · ▲ 15 pts above district

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 563%

School 63% · District 41% · ▲ 22 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 16 pts above county median

Grade 655%

School 55% · District 35% · ▲ 20 pts above district

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

Science

Grade 531%

School 31% · District 21% · ▲ 11 pts above district

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

This schoolSouth Whittier 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.