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If you had an hour of school board time for Fern Elementary, what would you bring up?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
473
Elementary
DISTRICT 556 · STATE 465
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·TORRANCE UNIFIED·NCES 063942006558
Fern Elementary
1314 Fern Ave., Torrance, CA 90503 · (310) 533-4506 · Los Angeles County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY12-CITYREGULAR SCHOOL473 STUDENTS
B
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 58% of California public elementary schools
- A-Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- B-Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- C-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
27.8:1
17 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 25.0:1 · STATE 22.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
35%
164 students
DISTRICT 36% · STATE 65%
Community
6
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 | 85 | 18% |
| Grade 1 | 66 | 14% |
| Grade 2 | 77 | 16% |
| Grade 3 | 79 | 17% |
| Grade 4 | 88 | 19% |
| Grade 5 | 78 | 16% |
This year's kindergarten class (85) is 9% larger than its 5th grade class (78).
Student demographics
72%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 73% · 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
56.0%
CA avg 49.1% . +7.0pp since 2014
Math
58.0%
CA avg 37.7% . +16.0pp since 2014
What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 56 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 58 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 7 points since 2014, while math scores are up about 16 points.
Performance levels, 2024-25
| Subject | Standard Exceeded | Standard Met | Standard Nearly Met | Standard Not Met |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language Arts | 34.9% | 21.2% | 21.2% | 22.8% |
| Math | 29.4% | 28.6% | 20.8% | 21.2% |
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 | 56.0% | 58.0% |
| 2023-24 | 60.3% | 61.4% |
| 2022-23 | 63.4% | 58.7% |
| 2021-22 | 65.3% | 54.1% |
| 2018-19 | 61.5% | 60.1% |
| 2017-18 | 66.1% | 56.4% |
| 2016-17 | 53.3% | 55.0% |
| 2015-16 | 55.0% | 49.0% |
| 2014-15 | 49.0% | 42.0% |
% 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
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
58.9%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
59.2%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-0.3pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 59% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 59% typical for California schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among California's top nor bottom 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 Fern Elementary
Fern Elementary's state test result (58.9% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fern Elementary this school | 473 | 34.7% | 58.9% |
| Sierra Vista Elementary Placentia | 454 | 33.7% | 73.0% |
| George C. Payne Elementary San Jose | 417 | 31.4% | 57.7% |
| Delevan Drive Elementary Los Angeles | 483 | 39.1% | 69.1% |
| Oak Ridge Elementary San Jose | 495 | 34.5% | 53.0% |
| Capri Elementary Campbell | 457 | 31.7% | 65.4% |
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 Fern Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In California | In Los Angeles County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 58.9% | #1,176 of 5,151 | #271 of 1,126 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 58.0% | #1,153 of 5,172 ▼ 196 | #273 of 1,129 ▼ 60 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 56.0% | #1,610 of 5,172 ▼ 367 | #363 of 1,129 ▼ 86 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest drop first | -2.8pp | #1,021 of 5,116 | #162 of 1,116 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 473 | #2,764 of 5,915 | #555 of 1,300 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 27.8:1 | #5,222 of 5,352 | #1,183 of 1,213 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 71.7% | #427 of 5,354 | #72 of 1,214 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 34.7% | #4,577 of 5,625 | #1,099 of 1,276 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -20.9% | #1,326 of 3,837 | #470 of 947 |
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
473
-64 (-12%) vs 2020
-2% since 1990-91, when it was 484
Student : Teacher
27.8:1
was 25.6:1
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 | 473 | 17 | 27.8:1 | 35% (164) |
| 2023-24 | 482 | 18 | 26.8:1 | 42% (202) |
| 2022-23 | 465 | 18 | 25.8:1 | 27% (124) |
| 2020-21 | 537 | 21 | 25.6:1 | 35% (190) |
| 2017-18 | 598 | 23 | 26.0:1 | 43% (256) |
| 2015-16 | 586 | 22 | 26.6:1 | 38% (224) |
| 2010-11 | 479 | N/A | N/A | 33% (157) |
| 2000-01 | 614 | 30 | 20.5:1 | 26% (157) |
| 1990-91 | 484 | 17 | 28.5:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Fern Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 21% (598 to 473); teachers down 26% (23 to 17).
About Fern Elementary
Fern Elementary operates as a medium-sized elementary school in Torrance, California. Enrollment is 473 students in 2024-25, and the school serves kindergarten through 5.
Besides Fern Elementary, Torrance Unified runs 30 other schools. The district enrolls 21,890 students.
The most common group at Fern Elementary is Hispanic students, at 41%. It is also 24% White, 22% Asian, 10% multiracial, and 3% Black. Pick two students at random and there is a 72% chance they belong to different racial or ethnic groups; that figure is the school's diversity index.
Staffing totals 17 full-time-equivalent teachers, and the student-to-teacher ratio is 27.8:1. On average, elementary schools in California have 22.3:1, compared with 27.8:1 here. The free or reduced-price lunch rate at Fern Elementary is 35%. The rate at public schools in Los Angeles County averages 70%, higher than here.
allk12 grades Fern Elementary a B. The grade compares the school only with California public elementary schools, because each state gives its own test.
Based on student poverty, the model expects 59.2% at Fern Elementary; the school's average proficiency rate on state tests is 58.9%.
Across Los Angeles County, the median household income is $90,112, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 36% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 10%. Los Angeles County is home to 2,244 public schools and about 1,265,907 public school students.
Nearest public school: Torrance High, about 0.7 miles away. Within five miles are at least 8 other public schools. Compared with its nearest neighbors, Fern Elementary ranks 4th of 7 on average proficiency.
The school's setting, by NCES definition, is City: Mid-size: inside a principal city with a population between 100,000 and 250,000.
Over 4 years, Fern Elementary's enrollment declined 12%, to 473. The number of students per teacher rose from 25.6 to 27.8 over 4 years.
To ask about school events, clubs, and volunteer needs, start a discussion on this page. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Los Angeles County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
9,808,667
Census ACS
Median income
$90,112
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
36%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
10%
Below federal line
Schools in county
2,244
1,265,907 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Torrance Unified
- Torrance HighHigh · 1,879 students
- North HighHigh · 1,812 students
- West HighHigh · 1,775 students
- South HighHigh · 1,734 students
- Victor ElementaryElementary · 965 students
- Hickory ElementaryElementary · 847 students
Other schools in Torrance
- Torrance HighHigh · 1,879 students
- North HighHigh · 1,812 students
- West HighHigh · 1,775 students
- South HighHigh · 1,734 students
- Victor ElementaryElementary · 965 students
- Hickory ElementaryElementary · 847 students
Nearby schools
- Torrance High0.7 mi · 1,879
- Madrona Middle0.7 mi · 678
- Gene Drevno Community Day0.9 mi · 12
- Torrance Elementary0.9 mi · 567
- Shery (Kurt T.) High (Continuation)0.9 mi · 119
- Hickory Elementary1.1 mi · 847
Frequently asked questions
About Fern ElementaryHow many students attend Fern Elementary?
Fern Elementary enrolls approximately 473 students in grades KG-05.
What grades does Fern Elementary serve?
Fern Elementary serves grades KG-05.
How many teachers does Fern Elementary have?
Fern Elementary employs 17 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 27.8:1.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Fern Elementary?
At Fern Elementary, the student body is approximately 24% White, 41% Hispanic, 3% Black, 22% Asian, 10% Two or more.
What district is Fern Elementary in?
Fern Elementary is part of Torrance Unified.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.