Johnston Cooper Elementary, Vallejo CA

Original Research by School Decision on Johnston Cooper Elementary

Johnston Cooper Elementary serves kindergarten through fifth grade in Vallejo, a mid-sized waterfront city in Solano County. The school sits in a neighborhood shaped by working families facing significant economic pressure. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is predominantly Latino and Black, with smaller shares of Asian, multiracial, and other students.

State testing data from the most recent school year shows proficiency rates well below state benchmarks across all tested subjects and grades. In math, third grade proficiency sits in the low range, while fourth and fifth grades show even lower proficiency. English language arts results follow a similar pattern, with fourth grade particularly low and fifth grade somewhat higher. Fifth grade science proficiency is also low. Across all tested grades and subjects combined, the school's overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile relative to other districts in Solano County.

The school is relatively small for its grade band, with roughly balanced enrollment across kindergarten through fifth grade, with one student in sixth grade. This size lends itself to closer staff-student relationships, though it also means fewer resources and specialized staff than larger schools typically have.

The context matters here. Vallejo City Unified has spent nearly two decades in state receivership due to a fiscal crisis and only regained full local control in mid-2025. The district has faced sustained enrollment decline and is now closing five schools districtwide while cutting hundreds of staff positions. Johnston Cooper is not on the closure list, but the broader contraction is real. Simultaneously, the district completed a districtwide K-12 math curriculum adoption during the 2024-25 school year with family and teacher input, which represents an intentional instructional shift that may take time to show results in student outcomes.

Housing in Vallejo's 94589 zip code is moderately priced compared to broader California and national benchmarks, though still reflects significant affordability pressure for renters. Monthly rent is substantial relative to median household income, and purchasing a home requires substantial down payment and monthly mortgage commitment.

A parent considering Johnston Cooper should recognize that the school serves a high-poverty, predominantly students-of-color population, and current test results indicate substantial instructional challenges. The district's very recent exit from state control and ongoing school closures create uncertainty, though they also create an opportunity: with local governance restored and a new math curriculum in place, the district is positioned to make instructional decisions and build continuity. Whether that translates into improved outcomes will unfold over the coming years. Parents may want to look into what support structures the school offers, what the new math curriculum looks like in the classroom, and how the school is working with families on literacy and numeracy development. The proficiency data shows students are not yet meeting grade-level standards at scale; understanding how the school is responding to that gap is critical to any enrollment decision.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 328%

School 28% · District 24% · ▲ 4 pts above district

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

Grade 416%

School 16% · District 19% · ▼ 3 pts below district

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

Grade 515%

School 15% · District 16% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▼ 16 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 318%

School 18% · District 25% · ▼ 7 pts below district

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

Grade 413%

School 13% · District 21% · ▼ 8 pts below district

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

Grade 527%

School 27% · District 31% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

Science

Grade 513%

School 13% · District 17% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

This schoolVallejo 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.