1
What's the most underrated thing about Pearl Zanker Elementary that outsiders don't know?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
563
Elementary
DISTRICT 554 · STATE 465
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MILPITAS UNIFIED·NCES 062450003677
Pearl Zanker Elementary
1585 Fallen Leaf Dr., Milpitas, CA 95035 · (408) 635-2882 · Santa Clara County
GRADES KG–06ELEMENTARY13-CITYREGULAR SCHOOL563 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
24.5:1
23 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 24.4:1 · STATE 22.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
36%
202 students
DISTRICT 41% · 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 | 120 | 21% |
| Grade 1 | 60 | 11% |
| Grade 2 | 69 | 12% |
| Grade 3 | 89 | 16% |
| Grade 4 | 89 | 16% |
| Grade 5 | 64 | 11% |
| Grade 6 | 72 | 13% |
This year's kindergarten class (120) is 67% larger than its 6th grade class (72).
Student demographics
51%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 50% · 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
64.3%
CA avg 49.1% . +4.3pp since 2014
Math
60.8%
CA avg 37.7% . +4.8pp since 2014
What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 64 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 61 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 4 points since 2014, while math scores are up about 5 points.
Performance levels, 2024-25
| Subject | Standard Exceeded | Standard Met | Standard Nearly Met | Standard Not Met |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language Arts | 39.8% | 24.5% | 15.0% | 20.7% |
| Math | 36.1% | 24.7% | 18.4% | 20.9% |
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 | 64.3% | 60.8% |
| 2023-24 | 58.7% | 52.2% |
| 2022-23 | 61.3% | 56.6% |
| 2021-22 | 65.4% | 58.9% |
| 2018-19 | 68.8% | 65.4% |
| 2017-18 | 65.3% | 63.9% |
| 2016-17 | 61.1% | 57.6% |
| 2015-16 | 63.0% | 58.0% |
| 2014-15 | 60.0% | 56.0% |
% 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
58.8%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
58.5%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+0.3pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 59% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 59% 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 Pearl Zanker Elementary
Pearl Zanker Elementary's state test result (58.8% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pearl Zanker Elementary this school | 563 | 35.9% | 58.8% |
| Anthony Spangler Elementary Milpitas | 610 | 35.2% | 64.1% |
| Gonsalves (Joe A.) Elementary Cerritos | 516 | 35.5% | 80.3% |
| Cerritos Elementary Cerritos | 612 | 35.6% | 82.5% |
| Tom Maloney Elementary Fremont | 551 | 38.8% | 61.6% |
| Yu (Alice Fong) Elementary San Francisco | 594 | 36.5% | 81.1% |
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 Pearl Zanker Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In California | In Santa Clara County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 58.8% | #1,181 of 5,151 | #105 of 226 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 60.8% | #1,026 of 5,172 ▲ 355 | #100 of 226 ▲ 13 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 64.3% | #1,065 of 5,172 ▲ 255 | #95 of 226 ▲ 16 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest gain first | +0.4pp | #3,217 of 5,116 | #92 of 225 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 563 | #1,723 of 5,915 | #39 of 255 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 24.5:1 | #4,090 of 5,352 | #206 of 247 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 51.4% | #2,660 of 5,354 | #141 of 247 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 35.9% | #4,516 of 5,625 | #123 of 252 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -17.9% | #1,653 of 3,837 | #112 of 189 |
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
563
-109 (-16%) vs 2020
+42% since 1990-91, when it was 397
Student : Teacher
24.5:1
was 24.9:1
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 | 563 | 23 | 24.5:1 | 36% (202) |
| 2023-24 | 578 | 22.5 | 25.7:1 | 40% (232) |
| 2022-23 | 574 | 23 | 25.0:1 | 31% (176) |
| 2020-21 | 672 | 27 | 24.9:1 | 24% (164) |
| 2017-18 | 686 | 27 | 25.4:1 | 27% (185) |
| 2015-16 | 675 | 27 | 25.0:1 | 25% (167) |
| 2010-11 | 640 | N/A | N/A | 31% (199) |
| 2000-01 | 432 | 20 | 21.6:1 | 29% (126) |
| 1990-91 | 397 | 16 | 24.8:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Pearl Zanker Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 18% (686 to 563); teachers down 15% (27 to 23).
About Pearl Zanker Elementary
Pearl Zanker Elementary is the name of a medium-sized elementary school in Milpitas, California. It enrolled 563 students in kindergarten through 6 for the 2024-25 school year. Statewide, elementary schools in California average about 465 students each.
A total of 15 schools make up Milpitas Unified, with 10,076 students enrolled.
Asian students are the majority at Pearl Zanker Elementary, with 67% of enrollment. After that, the student body is 16% Hispanic, 8% multiracial, 5% Black, and 3% White. Among all residents of Santa Clara County, the Asian share is about 41%. Pick two students at random and there is a 51% chance they belong to different racial or ethnic groups; that figure is the school's diversity index.
The school has about 24.5 students per teacher and 23 full-time-equivalent teachers. This ratio sits 2.2 above the 22.3:1 average for elementary schools in California. Federal records put free or reduced-price lunch eligibility at 36%. For comparison, public schools in Santa Clara County average 37%.
Given its share of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, Pearl Zanker Elementary would be expected to post about 58.5%. Its actual average proficiency rate on state tests is 58.8%.
Federal survey data for Santa Clara County show that the median household income is $164,281, 57% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 4% of people live in poverty. There are 412 public schools in Santa Clara County, enrolling about 230,059 students in all.
The closest other public school is Mabel Mattos Elementary, about 0.4 miles away. Pearl Zanker Elementary has at least 8 other public schools within five miles. Ranking the closest schools with test data puts Pearl Zanker Elementary at 4th of 9.
The school's locale code, City: Small, means it is inside a principal city with a population under 100,000.
Enrollment dropped 16% from its 2020-21 level of 672.
If you have questions about enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news at Pearl Zanker Elementary, you can post them here. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.
Santa Clara County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
1,902,047
Census ACS
Median income
$164,281
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
57%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
4%
Below federal line
Schools in county
412
230,059 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Milpitas Unified
- Milpitas HighHigh · 2,926 students
- Thomas Russell MiddleMiddle · 761 students
- Mabel Mattos ElementaryElementary · 746 students
- Rancho Milpitas MiddleMiddle · 693 students
- John Sinnott ElementaryElementary · 686 students
- Curtner ElementaryElementary · 663 students
Other schools in Milpitas
- Milpitas HighHigh · 2,926 students
- Thomas Russell MiddleMiddle · 761 students
- Mabel Mattos ElementaryElementary · 746 students
- Rancho Milpitas MiddleMiddle · 693 students
- John Sinnott ElementaryElementary · 686 students
- Curtner ElementaryElementary · 663 students
Nearby schools
- Mabel Mattos Elementary0.4 mi · 746
- Northwood Elementary1.3 mi · 452
- Orchard Elementary1.3 mi · 740
- Abram Agnew Elementary1.4 mi · 505
- Kathleen MacDonald High1.5 mi · 683
- Dolores Huerta Middle1.5 mi · 571
Frequently asked questions
About Pearl Zanker ElementaryWhat is the total enrollment at Pearl Zanker Elementary?
Pearl Zanker Elementary enrolls approximately 563 students in grades KG-06.
What grades does Pearl Zanker Elementary serve?
Pearl Zanker Elementary serves grades KG-06.
How many students per teacher at Pearl Zanker Elementary?
Approximately 24.5:1 students per teacher at Pearl Zanker Elementary.
What is the student diversity at Pearl Zanker Elementary?
Student demographics at Pearl Zanker Elementary are roughly 3% White, 16% Hispanic, 5% Black, 67% Asian, 8% Two or more.
What district is Pearl Zanker Elementary in?
Pearl Zanker Elementary is part of Milpitas Unified.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.