Balboa Elementary

Set in Glendale, California, Balboa Elementary is a large K-5 school, overseen by Glendale Unified. It enrolls 799 students across grades K through 6. Compared to the state average of about 465 students per school, that is 72% larger than typical.

Balboa Elementary is one of 32 schools operated by Glendale Unified, a district that teaches 25,294 students overall.

In terms of who attends, Balboa Elementary records that nearly all students (91%) are White. The remainder comes out to 7% Hispanic. The wider county runs roughly 31% White, putting the school's mix visibly more White than the area baseline.

On the income-and-resources front, Balboa Elementary reports 32 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 25.0:1. The state averages around 22.3:1, so this campus is higher than the state norm typical. Roughly 60% of students at Balboa Elementary qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. By comparison, Los Angeles County runs at roughly 70%, so the school's eligibility rate is somewhat below the surrounding baseline.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, Balboa Elementary tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 43.6% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 48.2%.

Zooming out to the county, Los Angeles County reports that median household earnings sit near $90,112, 36% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and roughly 10% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Across Los Angeles County's 2244 public schools (combined enrollment of about 1,265,907 students), Balboa Elementary is one campus in the mix.

Nearest neighbor: Joaquin Miller Elementary, around 0.6 miles off. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Balboa Elementary at 5th of 8; the average score across the group is 50.6%.

The school occupies an inner-city site.

Looking at the recent track record. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Balboa Elementary has shrank 4%, going from 830 students in 2018 to 799 in 2025. The White share of enrollment climbed from 83% to 91% over that span. The student-to-teacher ratio pulled in from 27.7:1 in 2018 to 25.0:1 today.

In the discussion threads here, members of the Balboa Elementary community share and discuss classroom updates, athletics, and weather closures. Members of the school community can share what they know.