Howard Wood Elementary

Howard Wood Elementary operates as a modestly sized elementary-level community in Torrance, California, operated by Torrance Unified. Current enrollment sits at 344 students spanning grades K through 5. By comparison, California's public schools average about 465 students each, so Howard Wood Elementary sits 26% smaller than that benchmark.

Howard Wood Elementary is one of 31 schools operated by Torrance Unified, a district that instructs 21,890 students overall.

Looking at the student body, Howard Wood Elementary shows that the most-represented group is Hispanic (53%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups; the rest looks like 20% Asian, 15% White, 10% multiracial, 2% Black.

In terms of school funding signals, On paper, Howard Wood Elementary has 16 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 21.6:1. That tracks the state average closely. Around 42% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, 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 below the surrounding baseline.

After controlling for student poverty, Howard Wood Elementary sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 54.2%; this one delivers 62.6%.

In the area at large, the surrounding county (Los Angeles County) records that median household earnings sit near $90,112, 36% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 10%. Across Los Angeles County's 2244 public schools (combined enrollment of about 1,265,907 students), Howard Wood Elementary is one campus in the mix.

John Adams Elementary is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.3 miles from this campus. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around Howard Wood Elementary. Among the 6 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Howard Wood Elementary ranks 2nd on composite proficiency, above the local average of 52.0%.

Geographically, the school is in an inner-city area.

Five-year trend. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Howard Wood Elementary has contracted 18%, going from 419 students in 2018 to 344 in 2025. The Hispanic share of enrollment rose from 42% to 53% over that span. The student-to-teacher ratio pulled in from 23.5:1 in 2018 to 21.6:1 today.

Inside the community feed, the feed for Howard Wood Elementary typically covers pickup logistics, teacher feedback, and after-school programs. Members of the school community can share what they know.