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What's the biggest difference between La Mesa and what you expected?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
689
Elementary
DISTRICT 508 · STATE 465
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MONTEREY PENINSULA UNIFIED·NCES 062553003830
La Mesa
1 La Mesa Way, Monterey, CA 93940 · (831) 649-1872 · Monterey County
GRADES KG–08ELEMENTARY22-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL689 STUDENTS
B-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 54% of California public elementary schools
- B+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.
- DThree-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
23.4:1
29 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 21.4:1 · STATE 22.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
45%
312 students
DISTRICT 73% · 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 | 143 | 21% |
| Grade 1 | 91 | 13% |
| Grade 2 | 78 | 11% |
| Grade 3 | 64 | 9% |
| Grade 4 | 71 | 10% |
| Grade 5 | 54 | 8% |
| Grade 6 | 63 | 9% |
| Grade 7 | 65 | 9% |
| Grade 8 | 60 | 9% |
This year's kindergarten class (143) is 138% larger than its 8th grade class (60).
Student demographics
69%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 57% · 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
56.6%
CA avg 49.1% . -11.4pp since 2014
Math
50.1%
CA avg 37.7% . +0.1pp since 2014
What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 57 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 50 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 11 points since 2014, while math scores have held steady.
Performance levels, 2024-25
| Subject | Standard Exceeded | Standard Met | Standard Nearly Met | Standard Not Met |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language Arts | 29.5% | 27.1% | 15.6% | 27.9% |
| Math | 25.2% | 24.9% | 21.2% | 28.7% |
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 | 56.6% | 50.1% |
| 2023-24 | 58.4% | 51.1% |
| 2022-23 | 53.6% | 49.5% |
| 2021-22 | 64.9% | 49.8% |
| 2018-19 | 65.2% | 64.8% |
| 2017-18 | 62.1% | 65.0% |
| 2016-17 | 59.1% | 53.0% |
| 2015-16 | 52.0% | 55.0% |
| 2014-15 | 68.0% | 50.0% |
% 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
53.6%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
53.0%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+0.6pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 54% 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 La Mesa
La Mesa's state test result (53.6% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| La Mesa this school | 689 | 45.3% | 53.6% |
| Browns Valley Elementary Vacaville | 806 | 43.1% | 54.2% |
| Harbour View Elementary Huntington Beach | 677 | 41.2% | 60.0% |
| Sierra Vista K-8 Vacaville | 611 | 48.1% | 48.4% |
| Monte Vista Monterey | 688 | 45.9% | 46.3% |
| Creekview Ranch Roseville | 838 | 45.9% | 57.0% |
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 La Mesa ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In California | In Monterey County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 53.6% | #1,475 of 5,151 | #7 of 70 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 50.1% | #1,584 of 5,172 ▼ 135 | #7 of 70 no change |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 56.6% | #1,575 of 5,172 ▼ 224 | #8 of 70 ▼ 1 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest drop first | -4.0pp | #736 of 5,116 | #12 of 70 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 689 | #820 of 5,915 | #8 of 81 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 23.4:1 | #3,292 of 5,352 | #46 of 70 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 69.3% | #717 of 5,354 | #3 of 70 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 45.3% | #4,118 of 5,625 | #60 of 74 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +54.1% | #34 of 1,139 | #2 of 11 |
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
689
+350 (+103%) vs 2020
+3% since 1990-91, when it was 668
Student : Teacher
23.4:1
was 16.9:1
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 | 689 | 29.4 | 23.4:1 | 45% (312) |
| 2023-24 | 654 | 29.7 | 22.0:1 | 40% (263) |
| 2022-23 | 564 | 26.8 | 21.1:1 | 28% (158) |
| 2020-21 | 339 | 20 | 16.9:1 | 17% (58) |
| 2017-18 | 447 | 20.5 | 21.8:1 | 13% (60) |
| 2015-16 | 453 | 22 | 20.6:1 | 19% (86) |
| 2010-11 | 456 | N/A | N/A | 17% (77) |
| 2000-01 | 451 | 23 | 19.6:1 | 9% (40) |
| 1990-91 | 668 | 32 | 20.9:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for La Mesa.
Since 2017-18: students up 54% (447 to 689); teachers up 44% (20.5 to 29.4).
About La Mesa
La Mesa is a medium-sized elementary school with its address in Monterey, California. The school's 689 students are in kindergarten through 8. For comparison, elementary schools in California average about 465 students.
Monterey Peninsula Unified runs 18 schools with a combined 9,308 students. La Mesa is one of them.
Enrollment at La Mesa is mixed, with White students the largest group at 44%. The rest of enrollment is 29% Hispanic, 11% Asian, 10% multiracial, and 4% Black. Census estimates put the White share of Monterey County's population at about 36%. La Mesa has a diversity index of 69%, compared with 70% for all US public school students.
The school employs the equivalent of 29.4 full-time teachers, for a ratio of 23.4:1. Among elementary schools in California, the typical ratio is 22.3:1. The free or reduced-price lunch share, often used to gauge student poverty, is 45%. Public schools in Monterey County average 76%.
allk12 grades La Mesa a B-. The grade compares the school only with California public elementary schools, because each state gives its own test.
A school with La Mesa's lunch-eligibility share in California is predicted to score 53.0%. La Mesa scores 53.6%, within a point of that line.
Monterey County has these Census figures: median household income is about $97,230, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 28% of adults, and the poverty rate is about 10%. The public schools of Monterey County number 153 and enroll about 73,845.
Nearby, Bay View Academy is about 1.5 miles away. Other public schools within five miles number at least 8. On average proficiency, La Mesa is 3rd of 7 nearby schools with test data.
The school is in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population between 100,000 and 250,000, according to its NCES locale (Suburb: Mid-size).
Between 2020-21 and 2024-25, reported enrollment went from 339 to 689. Such a large difference may reflect a change in the grades served. Staffing shifted too: the ratio moved from 16.9:1 to 23.4:1.
Conversations here can range across sports schedules, lunch menus, and spirit week. Reviews and ratings from people who know the school are welcome.
Monterey County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
437,613
Census ACS
Median income
$97,230
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
28%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
10%
Below federal line
Schools in county
153
73,845 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Monterey Peninsula Unified
- Monterey HighHigh · 1,401 students
- Seaside HighHigh · 1,073 students
- Marina HighHigh · 721 students
- Monte VistaElementary · 688 students
- J. C. Crumpton ElementaryElementary · 562 students
- Martin Luther KingElementary · 548 students
Other schools in Monterey
- Monterey HighHigh · 1,401 students
- Monte VistaElementary · 688 students
- Bay View AcademyElementary · 477 students
- Big Sur CharterCombined · 101 students
- Walter ColtonCombined
Nearby schools
- Bay View Academy1.5 mi · 477
- Monterey High1.7 mi · 1,401
- Monte Vista2.1 mi · 688
- Del Rey Woods Elementary2.4 mi · 390
- Big Sur Charter2.4 mi · 101
- Carmel High2.5 mi · 780
Frequently asked questions
About La MesaWhat is the total enrollment at La Mesa?
La Mesa enrolls approximately 689 students in grades KG-08.
What age range does La Mesa serve?
La Mesa serves students from grade KG through grade 08.
What is the student-teacher ratio at La Mesa?
The student-to-teacher ratio at La Mesa is approximately 23.4:1 (29 FTE teachers).
What is the student diversity at La Mesa?
Student demographics at La Mesa are roughly 44% White, 29% Hispanic, 4% Black, 11% Asian, 10% Two or more.
Who oversees La Mesa?
La Mesa is overseen by Monterey Peninsula Unified in Monterey County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.