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Alumni: what's one memory from Murdock Elementary that still sticks with you?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
608
Elementary
DISTRICT 397 · STATE 465
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·LA MESA-SPRING VALLEY·NCES 062025002438
Murdock Elementary
4354 Conrad Dr., La Mesa, CA 91941 · (619) 668-5775 · San Diego County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL608 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
24.3:1
25 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 25.0:1 · STATE 22.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
43%
262 students
DISTRICT 66% · 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 | 156 | 26% |
| Grade 1 | 102 | 17% |
| Grade 2 | 95 | 16% |
| Grade 3 | 106 | 17% |
| Grade 4 | 100 | 16% |
| Grade 5 | 49 | 8% |
This year's kindergarten class (156) is 218% larger than its 5th grade class (49).
Student demographics
68%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 65% · 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
63.5%
CA avg 49.1% . +10.5pp since 2014
Math
56.2%
CA avg 37.7% . -0.8pp since 2014
What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 63 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 up about 10 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 | 39.8% | 23.7% | 20.9% | 15.7% |
| Math | 30.1% | 26.1% | 24.9% | 18.9% |
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 | 63.5% | 56.2% |
| 2023-24 | 62.9% | 52.2% |
| 2022-23 | 64.9% | 48.5% |
| 2021-22 | 66.0% | 53.5% |
| 2018-19 | 76.6% | 67.7% |
| 2017-18 | 76.2% | 67.1% |
| 2016-17 | 70.9% | 68.3% |
| 2015-16 | 65.0% | 60.0% |
| 2014-15 | 53.0% | 57.0% |
% 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
57.2%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
54.3%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+2.9pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 57% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 54% 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 Murdock Elementary
Murdock Elementary's state test result (57.2% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Murdock Elementary this school | 608 | 43.1% | 57.2% |
| Nicolas Valley Elementary Temecula | 691 | 45.4% | 52.2% |
| Ivey Ranch Elementary Oceanside | 698 | 42.6% | 58.4% |
| Almondale Elementary Bakersfield | 631 | 45.0% | 42.9% |
| Fort Washington Elementary Fresno | 568 | 41.4% | 61.8% |
| Rio Del Oro Elementary Plumas Lake | 564 | 43.6% | 47.8% |
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 Murdock Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In California | In San Diego County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 57.2% | #1,265 of 5,151 | #142 of 392 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 56.2% | #1,250 of 5,172 ▲ 130 | #137 of 393 ▲ 13 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 63.5% | #1,122 of 5,172 ▼ 39 | #130 of 393 ▼ 9 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest gain first | +0.1pp | #3,295 of 5,116 | #224 of 387 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 608 | #1,326 of 5,915 | #101 of 453 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 24.3:1 | #3,976 of 5,352 | #293 of 418 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 67.8% | #909 of 5,354 | #79 of 418 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 43.1% | #4,211 of 5,625 | #288 of 442 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -0.5% | #3,801 of 3,837 | #273 of 279 |
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
608
-18 (-3%) vs 2020
+59% since 1990-91, when it was 382
Student : Teacher
24.3:1
was 29.8:1
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 | 608 | 25 | 24.3:1 | 43% (262) |
| 2023-24 | 617 | 26 | 23.7:1 | 43% (267) |
| 2022-23 | 594 | 22 | 27.0:1 | 41% (245) |
| 2020-21 | 626 | 21 | 29.8:1 | 29% (183) |
| 2017-18 | 611 | 21.5 | 28.4:1 | 31% (192) |
| 2015-16 | 720 | 25 | 28.8:1 | 32% (228) |
| 2010-11 | 636 | N/A | N/A | 21% (135) |
| 2000-01 | 636 | 29 | 21.9:1 | 15% (93) |
| 1990-91 | 382 | 15 | 25.5:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Murdock Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students unchanged (611 to 608); teachers up 16% (21.5 to 25).
About Murdock Elementary
Murdock Elementary is an elementary school located in La Mesa, California, in San Diego County. Its 608 students are spread across kindergarten through 5. The typical figure for elementary schools in California is about 465 students.
La Mesa-Spring Valley enrolls 10,491 students, and its 22 schools include Murdock Elementary.
The most common group at Murdock Elementary is Hispanic students, at 42%. The school is also 35% White, 15% multiracial, 4% Black, and 4% Asian. Murdock Elementary's diversity index is 68%, against a US figure of 70%.
Federal records show a student-to-teacher ratio of 24.3:1 at Murdock Elementary, with 25 full-time-equivalent teachers. On average, elementary schools in California have 22.3:1, compared with 24.3:1 here. The count of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch equals 43% of enrollment. Public schools in San Diego County average 54%.
A school with Murdock Elementary's lunch-eligibility share in California is predicted to score 54.3%. Murdock Elementary scores 57.2%, 2.9 points above that line.
San Diego County has these Census figures: the median household income is $106,268, about 43% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and roughly 7% of residents are in poverty. In all, San Diego County has 766 public schools and roughly 467,437 students.
Spring Valley Academy is located about 0.7 miles from Murdock Elementary. The five-mile area around Murdock Elementary holds at least 8 other public schools. The nearest schools with test data average 36.9%, lower than Murdock Elementary's 57.2%.
Under the NCES locale system, Murdock Elementary is Suburb: Large.
Enrollment at Murdock Elementary dropped 3% between 2020-21 and 2024-25, from 626 to 608 students. Federal data show the ratio falling from 29.8:1 to 24.3:1.
Community posts for Murdock Elementary can cover enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
San Diego County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
3,288,774
Census ACS
Median income
$106,268
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
43%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
766
467,437 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in La Mesa-Spring Valley
- La Mesa Arts AcademyMiddle · 1,059 students
- Parkway Sports and Health Science AcademyMiddle · 897 students
- Sci Tech Engr Arts and Math Acad at La PresaMiddle · 800 students
- Spring Valley AcademyMiddle · 597 students
- Fletcher Hills ElementaryElementary · 540 students
- Murray Manor ElementaryElementary · 530 students
Other schools in La Mesa
- Helix HighHigh · 2,554 students
- Grossmont HighHigh · 2,172 students
- La Mesa Arts AcademyMiddle · 1,059 students
- Parkway Sports and Health Science AcademyMiddle · 897 students
- Avocado ElementaryElementary · 573 students
- Murray Manor ElementaryElementary · 530 students
Other Murdock Elementary schools
4 other US public schools in 4 states are named Murdock Elementary. Murdock Elementary is the 2nd largest of the 5.
- Murdock ElementaryWillows, CA · 488 students
- Murdock Elementary SchoolMarietta, GA · 847 students
- MURDOCK ELEMENTARYMURDOCK, MN · 395 students
- Murdock Elementary SchoolLafayette, IN · 230 students
Nearby schools
- Spring Valley Academy0.7 mi · 597
- Casa de Oro Elementary1.1 mi · 320
- College Preparatory Middle1.3 mi · 397
- Lemon Avenue Elementary1.4 mi · 502
- Grossmont High1.5 mi · 2,172
- Sparrow Academy1.5 mi · 156
Frequently asked questions
About Murdock ElementaryHow many students attend Murdock Elementary?
Murdock Elementary enrolls approximately 608 students in grades KG-05.
What grades does Murdock Elementary serve?
Murdock Elementary serves grades KG-05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Murdock Elementary?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Murdock Elementary is approximately 24.3:1 (25 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at Murdock Elementary?
At Murdock Elementary, the student body is approximately 35% White, 42% Hispanic, 4% Black, 4% Asian, 15% Two or more.
Is Murdock Elementary public or private?
Murdock Elementary is a public K-12 school, overseen by La Mesa-Spring Valley.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.