Alvarado Elementary

Alvarado Elementary is an elementary campus of small scale in Signal Hill, California, operated by Long Beach Unified, hosting 390 students in grades K through 5.

Across the 82 schools in Long Beach Unified (62,255 students total), Alvarado Elementary accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

For racial and ethnic makeup, Alvarado Elementary logs that 49% of students identify as Hispanic, with the remaining enrollment distributed across several groups. Other groups include 26% Asian, 13% Black, 7% White, 6% multiracial. That mix tracks the wider county fairly closely.

Looking at school resources, On paper, Alvarado Elementary has 15 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 26.0:1. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 22.3:1, putting Alvarado Elementary higher than the state norm the norm. Around 78% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. Set against Los Angeles County (around 70%), the school's rate is meaningfully above typical.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), Alvarado Elementary sits in the top 10% of California schools after the BeatsExpectations adjustment. Predicted proficiency for the school's FRL share is roughly 32.8%; actual is 57.6%, +24.9 points clear of the demographic baseline.

In the broader community, Los Angeles County reports that the typical household earns roughly $90,112 per year, 36% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 10%. In all, Los Angeles County runs 2244 public schools (combined enrollment of about 1,265,907 students), of which Alvarado Elementary is one.

The closest other public school is Jessie Nelson Academy, roughly 0.1 miles away. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 8 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Alvarado Elementary ranks 1st on composite proficiency, ahead of the local average of 29.7%.

Geographically, the school is in a bedroom-community area.

Trend over the last 7 years. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Alvarado Elementary has ticked down 5%, going from 410 students in 2018 to 390 in 2025. The student-to-teacher ratio narrowed from 27.3:1 in 2018 to 26.0:1 today.

Inside the community feed, the feed for Alvarado Elementary typically covers enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.