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SCHOOL COMMUNITY·HUNTINGTON BEACH CITY ELEMENTARY·NCES 061803007190

John R. Peterson Elementary

20661 Farnsworth Ln., Huntington Beach, CA 92646 · (714) 378-1515 · Orange County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL477 STUDENTS
A-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 79% 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.
  • A-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

Enrollment
477
Elementary
DISTRICT 484 · STATE 465
Student : Teacher
22.7:1
21 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 24.0:1 · STATE 22.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
46%
220 students
DISTRICT 30% · 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

GradeStudentsShare
Kindergarten13127%
Grade 15612%
Grade 26514%
Grade 38117%
Grade 45612%
Grade 58818%

This year's kindergarten class (131) is 49% larger than its 5th grade class (88).

Student demographics
67%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 66% · STATE 62% · US 70%
White
21745%
DISTRICT 50% · STATE 20% · US 43%
Hispanic
14631%
DISTRICT 22% · STATE 56% · US 30%
Asian
317%
DISTRICT 12% · STATE 12% · US 6%
Two+
8217%
DISTRICT 15% · STATE 6% · US 5%
Pacific Islander
10%
DISTRICT 0% · STATE 0% · US 0%
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
Male
24251%
Female
23549%

Discussions

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Test scores

CAASPP 2024-25 . % met or exceeded standard
English Language Arts
60.7%
CA avg 49.1% . -13.3pp since 2014
Math
55.7%
CA avg 37.7% . -17.3pp since 2014

What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 61 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 56 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all California schools, those numbers are about 49 and 38. Reading and writing scores are down about 13 points since 2014, while math scores are down about 17 points.

Performance levels, 2024-25

SubjectStandard ExceededStandard MetStandard Nearly MetStandard Not Met
English Language Arts37.4%23.3%17.4%21.9%
Math31.2%24.4%25.8%18.6%
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 yearEnglish Language ArtsMath
2024-2560.7%55.7%
2023-2470.3%66.8%
2022-2369.2%67.0%
2021-2264.1%59.0%
2018-1973.1%65.8%
2017-1873.7%63.8%
2016-1777.9%70.8%
2015-1676.0%73.0%
2014-1574.0%73.0%
% 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 · methodology
Tier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
63.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
52.5%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+11.2pp
above demographic expectation

What this means: About 64% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 53% 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 John R. Peterson Elementary

John R. Peterson Elementary's state test result (63.7% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.

SchoolStudentsLow-incomeProficient
John R. Peterson Elementary this school47746.1%63.7%
Calavera Hills Elementary
Carlsbad
44145.1%64.0%
Vinewood Elementary
Lodi
54347.1%66.0%
C. W. Dillard Elementary
Wilton
44342.9%57.8%
Montevideo Elementary
Mission Viejo
44445.7%55.8%
Monte Vista Elementary
Rohnert Park
48946.6%38.7%
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 John R. Peterson Elementary ranks

Among elementary schools
MeasureThis schoolIn CaliforniaIn Orange County
State test proficiency
ranked highest first
63.7%#942 of 5,151#139 of 381
Math proficiency
ranked highest first
55.7%#1,276 of 5,172
▼ 537
#174 of 382
▼ 63
Reading proficiency
ranked highest first
60.7%#1,276 of 5,172
▼ 572
#163 of 382
▼ 57
3-year test score change
ranked biggest drop first
-3.4pp#866 of 5,116#59 of 381
Enrollment
ranked largest first
477#2,715 of 5,915#206 of 404
Students per teacher
ranked fewest first
22.7:1#2,775 of 5,352#137 of 398
Diversity index
ranked most diverse first
66.6%#1,056 of 5,354#95 of 398
Free and reduced lunch
ranked highest share first
46.1%#4,075 of 5,625#235 of 400
Enrollment change since 2017-18
ranked steepest decline first
-28.6%#637 of 3,837#66 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 2024-25
Enrollment
477
-145 (-23%) vs 2020
-31% since 2000-01, when it was 692
Student : Teacher
22.7:1
was 23.0:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data

Enrollment and staffing by year

School yearStudentsTeachers (FTE)Students per teacherFree and reduced lunch
2024-254772122.7:146% (220)
2023-245122322.3:145% (228)
2022-234892321.3:143% (209)
2020-216222723.0:125% (158)
2017-186682427.8:127% (182)
2015-167052429.4:123% (163)
2010-11651N/AN/A21% (137)
2000-016923321.0:122% (149)
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for John R. Peterson Elementary.

Since 2017-18: students down 29% (668 to 477); teachers down 13% (24 to 21).

About John R. Peterson Elementary

Families in Huntington Beach, California, are served by John R. Peterson Elementary, a mid-sized elementary school. The school runs kindergarten through 5 and enrolls 477 students.

John R. Peterson Elementary is one of the 8 schools that make up Huntington Beach City Elementary (4,560 students in total).

White students make up 45% of enrollment at John R. Peterson Elementary, the largest share of any group. Beyond that, enrollment is 31% Hispanic, 17% multiracial, and 7% Asian. That is in line with Orange County, where about 43% of residents are White. A diversity index of 67% means there is a 67% chance two randomly chosen students at John R. Peterson Elementary are from different groups.

There are about 22.7 students for every full-time-equivalent teacher at John R. Peterson Elementary, which has 21. The 22.3:1 average for elementary schools in California is close to this figure. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility at John R. Peterson Elementary is about 46%. For comparison, public schools in Orange County average 55%.

John R. Peterson 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 79% of California public elementary schools.

Test results at John R. Peterson Elementary are 11.2 points above what its free or reduced-price lunch share predicts (63.7% actual, 52.5% predicted).

Looking at the county, Orange County, the median household earns about $116,289 a year, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 44%, and about 7% of people live in poverty. Counting John R. Peterson Elementary, Orange County has 649 public schools.

John R. Peterson Elementary is about 0.7 miles from S. A. Moffett Elementary, its nearest public school. There are at least 8 other public schools within five miles. Nearby schools average 67.8% on proficiency, and John R. Peterson Elementary is below that at 63.7%.

Federal records code the school's setting as Suburb: Large.

By 2024-25, enrollment had dropped to 477, from 622 in 2020-21.

The discussion board for John R. Peterson Elementary is open to topics like pickup and drop-off, after-school programs, and teacher feedback. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to post.

Orange County at a glance

View full county profile
Population
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

School name
John R. Peterson Elementary
District
Huntington Beach City Elementary
Address
20661 Farnsworth Ln., Huntington Beach, CA 92646
Phone
(714) 378-1515
County
Orange County
Level
Elementary
Grade range
KG–05
Total enrollment
477
Teachers (FTE)
21
Student–teacher ratio
22.7:1
Free and reduced lunch
220 (46%)
Locale
21-Suburb: Large
NCES ID
061803007190
Charter school
No
Virtual school
No

Related schools

Other schools in Huntington Beach City Elementary
Other schools in Huntington Beach
Nearby schools

Frequently asked questions

About John R. Peterson Elementary
How many students attend John R. Peterson Elementary?
John R. Peterson Elementary enrolls approximately 477 students in grades KG-05.
Is John R. Peterson Elementary an elementary, middle, or high school?
John R. Peterson Elementary is an elementary school covering grades KG-05.
How many teachers does John R. Peterson Elementary have?
John R. Peterson Elementary employs 21 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 22.7:1.
What is the racial breakdown of students at John R. Peterson Elementary?
At John R. Peterson Elementary, the student body is approximately 45% White, 31% Hispanic, 7% Asian, 17% Two or more.
Who oversees John R. Peterson Elementary?
John R. Peterson Elementary is overseen by Huntington Beach City Elementary in Orange County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.
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