Enrollment
321
Elementary
DISTRICT 405 · STATE 465
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·NEWPORT-MESA UNIFIED·NCES 062724009593
Adams Elementary
2850 Club House Rd., Costa Mesa, CA 92626 · (714) 424-7935 · Orange County
GRADES KG–06ELEMENTARY12-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL321 STUDENTS
A
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 91% of California public elementary schools
- B+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- ABeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- A+Three-year trend Change in reading and math proficiency over the last three test years.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded California public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
13.7:1
23 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 18.4:1 · STATE 22.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
74%
237 students
DISTRICT 54% · STATE 65%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 65 | 20% |
| Grade 1 | 44 | 14% |
| Grade 2 | 42 | 13% |
| Grade 3 | 43 | 13% |
| Grade 4 | 41 | 13% |
| Grade 5 | 39 | 12% |
| Grade 6 | 47 | 15% |
This year's kindergarten class (65) is 38% larger than its 6th grade class (47).
Student demographics
42%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 63% · STATE 62% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
CAASPP 2024-25 . % met or exceeded standardEnglish Language Arts
64.5%
CA avg 49.1% . +31.5pp since 2014
Math
47.6%
CA avg 37.7% . +25.6pp since 2014
What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 65 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 48 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all California schools, those numbers are about 49 and 38. Reading and writing scores are up about 32 points since 2014, while math scores are up about 26 points.
Performance levels, 2024-25
| Subject | Standard Exceeded | Standard Met | Standard Nearly Met | Standard Not Met |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language Arts | 31.2% | 33.3% | 19.9% | 15.6% |
| Math | 21.4% | 26.2% | 27.6% | 24.8% |
Share of tested students at each CAASPP level. Each student counts in one level, so a row adds to about 100%.
CAASPP results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 64.5% | 47.6% |
| 2023-24 | 55.6% | 39.9% |
| 2022-23 | 46.8% | 31.2% |
| 2021-22 | 48.3% | 28.6% |
| 2020-21 | N/A | 33.0% |
| 2018-19 | 60.6% | 50.5% |
| 2017-18 | 49.8% | 37.2% |
| 2016-17 | 52.2% | 39.1% |
| 2015-16 | 46.0% | 40.0% |
| 2014-15 | 33.0% | 22.0% |
% met or exceeded standard, all students and all tested grades.
Source: CAASPP. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
OUTPERFORMING
Top 10% of CA schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
52.3%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
36.3%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+16.0pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 52% of students here test proficient in math and reading, well above the roughly 36% typical for California schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations ranks schools against others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school can post high scores and still fall short of its prediction, or post lower scores and still beat it. This school clears its prediction by about 16 points, placing it in California's top 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Adams Elementary
Adams Elementary's state test result (52.3% proficient) is higher than 5 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adams Elementary this school | 321 | 73.8% | 52.3% |
| Hueneme Elementary Port Hueneme | 329 | 72.9% | 21.4% |
| Olive Elementary Orange | 319 | 74.6% | 34.1% |
| Gretchen Higgins Elementary Dixon | 353 | 75.9% | 22.2% |
| Hidden Hills Elementary Laguna Niguel | 330 | 76.1% | 40.0% |
| Barbara Benson Elementary Tustin | 313 | 73.2% | 44.7% |
Matched among California elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Adams Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In California | In Orange County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 52.3% | #1,569 of 5,151 | #199 of 381 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 47.6% | #1,751 of 5,172 ▲ 450 | #210 of 382 ▲ 43 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 64.5% | #1,050 of 5,172 ▲ 458 | #144 of 382 ▲ 47 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest gain first | +17.6pp | #98 of 5,116 | #4 of 381 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 321 | #4,569 of 5,915 | #360 of 404 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.7:1 | #9 of 5,352 | #1 of 398 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 42.4% | #3,278 of 5,354 | #265 of 398 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 73.8% | #2,706 of 5,625 | #154 of 400 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -26.9% | #765 of 3,837 | #78 of 324 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
321
-5 (-2%) vs 2020
+23% since 1990-91, when it was 261
Student : Teacher
13.7:1
was 19.2:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 321 | 23.4 | 13.7:1 | 74% (237) |
| 2023-24 | 326 | 21.8 | 15.0:1 | 78% (255) |
| 2022-23 | 355 | 21.7 | 16.4:1 | 79% (281) |
| 2020-21 | 326 | 17 | 19.2:1 | 62% (202) |
| 2017-18 | 439 | 20 | 21.9:1 | 74% (323) |
| 2015-16 | 423 | 21 | 20.1:1 | 81% (344) |
| 2010-11 | 460 | N/A | N/A | 77% (352) |
| 2000-01 | 553 | 26 | 21.3:1 | 61% (335) |
| 1990-91 | 261 | 10 | 26.1:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Adams Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 27% (439 to 321); teachers up 17% (20 to 23.4).
About Adams Elementary
Adams Elementary is a small elementary school located in Costa Mesa, California. It is open to students in kindergarten through 6 and enrolls 321 students. By comparison, elementary schools in California enroll about 465 students on average.
Adams Elementary reports to Newport-Mesa Unified, which has 31 schools and 17,540 students.
Federal enrollment data show Adams Elementary is 74% Hispanic. The remaining shares are 17% White, 4% Asian, and 3% multiracial. Orange County as a whole is about 34% Hispanic, so the school's share is higher. A diversity index of 42% means there is a 42% chance two randomly chosen students at Adams Elementary are from different groups.
With 23.4 full-time-equivalent teachers, the student-to-teacher ratio is about 13.7:1. Statewide, elementary schools in California average 22.3:1. Roughly 74% of students come from households that qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. By comparison, the figure for public schools in Orange County is 55%.
Adams Elementary earns an A on the allk12 Grade, which blends test scores, results against poverty-based expectations, and the three-year trend. It scored higher than 91% of California public elementary schools.
Adams Elementary scores 16.0 points above its predicted average proficiency rate across its state test results: 52.3% actual versus 36.3% predicted. That puts it in the top 10% of California schools on BeatsExpectations.
Five-year Census Bureau estimates for Orange County show that median household income comes to about $116,289, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 44% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 7%. Orange County counts 649 public schools with about 430,458 students.
Among nearby public schools, Early College High is closest at about 0.5 miles. There are at least 8 more public schools inside five miles. Of the 8 nearby schools with scores, including this one, Adams Elementary is 5th on average proficiency.
NCES describes the area around Adams Elementary as City: Mid-size, meaning inside a principal city with a population between 100,000 and 250,000.
Between 2020-21 and 2024-25, enrollment moved from 326 to 321, a small change. The student-to-teacher ratio went down from 19.2:1 to 13.7:1.
This page is set up for the Adams Elementary community to discuss homework, tutoring, and testing dates. Current and former families are welcome to add their experience.
Orange County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
3,165,820
Census ACS
Median income
$116,289
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
44%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
649
430,458 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Newport-Mesa Unified
- Corona del Mar HighHigh · 2,106 students
- Newport Harbor HighHigh · 2,084 students
- Costa Mesa HighHigh · 1,730 students
- Estancia HighHigh · 976 students
- Horace Ensign IntermediateMiddle · 875 students
- Mariners ElementaryElementary · 573 students
Other schools in Costa Mesa
- Costa Mesa HighHigh · 1,730 students
- ACCESS County CommunityCombined · 1,315 students
- Estancia HighHigh · 976 students
- Maude B. Davis ElementaryElementary · 570 students
- Heinz Kaiser ElementaryElementary · 539 students
- Charles W. Tewinkle MiddleMiddle · 501 students
Other Adams Elementary schools
40 other US public schools in 20 states are named Adams Elementary. Adams Elementary is the 22nd largest of the 41.
- Adams ElementaryStockton, CA · 492 students
- Adams ElementaryRiverside, CA · 487 students
- Adams ElementarySanta Barbara, CA · 469 students
- Adams ElementarySanta Ana, CA · 320 students
- Adams ElementarySan Diego, CA · 290 students
Nearby schools
- Early College High0.5 mi · 177
- Charles W. Tewinkle Middle1.1 mi · 501
- Estancia High1.1 mi · 976
- California Elementary1.1 mi · 373
- Wilson Elementary1.3 mi · 323
- Killybrooke Elementary1.3 mi · 473
Frequently asked questions
About Adams ElementaryHow many students attend Adams Elementary?
Adams Elementary enrolls approximately 321 students in grades KG-06.
Is Adams Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
Adams Elementary is an elementary school covering grades KG-06.
How many students per teacher at Adams Elementary?
Approximately 13.7:1 students per teacher at Adams Elementary.
How diverse is Adams Elementary?
Adams Elementary reports a student body of 17% White, 74% Hispanic, 2% Black, 4% Asian, 3% Two or more.
Who oversees Adams Elementary?
Adams Elementary is overseen by Newport-Mesa Unified in Orange County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.