The bulletin board for America's public schools. Parents, teachers, students, and staff. One community per school.
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·LUCIA MAR UNIFIED·NCES 062308011785

Lange (Dorothea) Elementary

1661 Via Alta Mesa, Nipomo, CA 93444 · (805) 474-3670 · San Luis Obispo County
GRADES KG–06ELEMENTARY31-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL577 STUDENTS
B-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 48% 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.
  • C+Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
  • B+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
577
Elementary
DISTRICT 435 · STATE 465
Student : Teacher
22.4:1
26 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 20.0:1 · STATE 22.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
67%
388 students
DISTRICT 61% · 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
Kindergarten9116%
Grade 17814%
Grade 26712%
Grade 38114%
Grade 48114%
Grade 59717%
Grade 68214%

This year's kindergarten class (91) is 11% larger than its 6th grade class (82).

Student demographics
52%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 58% · STATE 62% · US 70%
White
20936%
DISTRICT 40% · STATE 20% · US 43%
Hispanic
34059%
DISTRICT 51% · STATE 56% · US 30%
Asian
10%
DISTRICT 2% · STATE 12% · US 6%
Two+
254%
DISTRICT 6% · STATE 6% · US 5%
Native American
20%
DISTRICT 0% · STATE 0% · US 1%
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
28549%
Female
29251%

Discussions

+ POST

Test scores

CAASPP 2024-25 . % met or exceeded standard
English Language Arts
44.4%
CA avg 49.1% . +2.4pp since 2014
Math
38.3%
CA avg 37.7% . +3.3pp since 2014

What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 44 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 38 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 2 points since 2014, while math scores are up about 3 points.

Performance levels, 2024-25

SubjectStandard ExceededStandard MetStandard Nearly MetStandard Not Met
English Language Arts18.6%25.8%27.0%28.7%
Math16.5%21.7%30.1%31.6%
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
2024-2544.4%38.3%
2023-2439.5%31.3%
2022-2342.6%30.8%
2021-2241.4%29.4%
2018-1946.0%36.4%
2017-1841.5%34.5%
2016-1745.4%31.9%
2015-1648.0%38.0%
2014-1542.0%35.0%
% 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
38.6%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
40.1%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-1.5pp
below demographic expectation

What this means: About 39% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 40% 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 Lange (Dorothea) Elementary

Lange (Dorothea) Elementary's state test result (38.6% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.

SchoolStudentsLow-incomeProficient
Lange (Dorothea) Elementary this school57767.2%38.6%
Denair Elementary Charter Academy
Denair
55464.8%23.4%
North Shore Elementary
Big Bear Lake
51770.4%39.1%
South Oceanside Elementary
Oceanside
48765.7%36.4%
Lockeford Elementary
Lockeford
54173.2%25.3%
Lakewood Elementary
Lodi
47870.5%35.2%
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 Lange (Dorothea) Elementary ranks

Among elementary schools
MeasureThis schoolIn CaliforniaIn San Luis Obispo County
State test proficiency
ranked highest first
38.6%#2,620 of 5,151#25 of 37
Math proficiency
ranked highest first
38.3%#2,423 of 5,172
▲ 518
#23 of 37
▲ 4
Reading proficiency
ranked highest first
44.4%#2,515 of 5,172
▲ 263
#22 of 37
▲ 3
3-year test score change
ranked biggest gain first
+5.9pp#1,403 of 5,116#11 of 37
Enrollment
ranked largest first
577#1,591 of 5,915#4 of 45
Students per teacher
ranked fewest first
22.4:1#2,554 of 5,352#17 of 37
Diversity index
ranked most diverse first
52.0%#2,614 of 5,354#22 of 37
Free and reduced lunch
ranked highest share first
67.2%#3,102 of 5,625#13 of 40
Enrollment change since 2017-18
ranked fastest growth first
+2.5%#925 of 1,139#14 of 17
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
577
+49 (+9%) vs 2020
-1% since 2010-11, when it was 584
Student : Teacher
22.4:1
was 22.0:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data

Enrollment and staffing by year

School yearStudentsTeachers (FTE)Students per teacherFree and reduced lunch
2024-2557725.722.4:167% (388)
2023-2456626.221.6:167% (379)
2022-2359427.421.7:167% (397)
2020-215282422.0:168% (358)
2017-1856322.125.5:156% (314)
2015-165572225.3:160% (334)
2010-11584N/AN/A58% (338)
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Lange (Dorothea) Elementary.

Since 2017-18: students up 2% (563 to 577); teachers up 16% (22.1 to 25.7).

About Lange (Dorothea) Elementary

Lange (Dorothea) Elementary is a medium-sized elementary school in California, with an address in Nipomo. Students in kindergarten through 6 attend the school, which enrolls 577 students. For comparison, elementary schools in California average about 465 students.

Lucia Mar Unified serves 9,590 students across 19 schools.

At 59%, Hispanic students outnumber all other groups at Lange (Dorothea) Elementary combined. The school is also 36% White and 4% multiracial. San Luis Obispo County's residents are about 25% Hispanic, 34 points below the school's share. Lange (Dorothea) Elementary has a diversity index of 52%, compared with 70% for all US public school students.

Staffing totals 25.7 full-time-equivalent teachers, and the student-to-teacher ratio is 22.4:1. Elementary schools in California average about 22.3:1, a similar figure. The free or reduced-price lunch rate at Lange (Dorothea) Elementary is 67%. The 54% average for public schools in San Luis Obispo County is 14 points lower.

The allk12 Grade for Lange (Dorothea) Elementary is B-. Compared with California public elementary schools, the school scored higher than 48% on a mix of test scores, poverty-adjusted results, and recent trend.

The school's average proficiency rate on state tests is 38.6%. For its free or reduced-price lunch share, the predicted value is 40.1%.

Among San Luis Obispo County residents, median household income is about $97,446, 40% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 6% of people live in poverty. Federal data list 83 public schools in San Luis Obispo County, with a combined enrollment of about 33,339.

The nearest other public school, Dana Elementary, is about 1.3 miles away. In all, at least 8 other public schools sit within five miles of Lange (Dorothea) Elementary. Of the 9 nearby schools with scores, including this one, Lange (Dorothea) Elementary is 3rd on average proficiency.

Lange (Dorothea) Elementary is in a town close to an urbanized area, a location NCES labels Town: Fringe.

Lange (Dorothea) Elementary had 528 students in 2020-21 and 577 in 2024-25, a 9% gain.

Topics for discussion here include sports tryouts, band and choir, and theater. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.

San Luis Obispo County at a glance

View full county profile
Population
281,555
Census ACS
Median income
$97,446
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
40%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
6%
Below federal line
Schools in county
83
33,339 students

Quick facts

School name
Lange (Dorothea) Elementary
District
Lucia Mar Unified
Address
1661 Via Alta Mesa, Nipomo, CA 93444
Phone
(805) 474-3670
County
San Luis Obispo County
Level
Elementary
Grade range
KG–06
Total enrollment
577
Teachers (FTE)
26
Student–teacher ratio
22.4:1
Free and reduced lunch
388 (67%)
Locale
31-Town: Fringe
NCES ID
062308011785
Charter school
No
Virtual school
No

Related schools

Other schools in Lucia Mar Unified
Other schools in Nipomo
Nearby schools

Frequently asked questions

About Lange (Dorothea) Elementary
What is the total enrollment at Lange (Dorothea) Elementary?
Lange (Dorothea) Elementary enrolls approximately 577 students in grades KG-06.
What age range does Lange (Dorothea) Elementary serve?
Lange (Dorothea) Elementary serves students from grade KG through grade 06.
How many students per teacher at Lange (Dorothea) Elementary?
Approximately 22.4:1 students per teacher at Lange (Dorothea) Elementary.
What is the student diversity at Lange (Dorothea) Elementary?
Student demographics at Lange (Dorothea) Elementary are roughly 36% White, 59% Hispanic, 0% Asian, 4% Two or more.
Who oversees Lange (Dorothea) Elementary?
Lange (Dorothea) Elementary is overseen by Lucia Mar Unified in San Luis Obispo County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.
+ Post