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SCHOOL COMMUNITY·PAJARO VALLEY UNIFIED·NCES 062949004549

Rio del Mar Elementary

819 Pinehurst Dr., Aptos, CA 95003 · (831) 688-2053 · Santa Cruz County
GRADES KG–06ELEMENTARY22-SUBURBREGULAR SCHOOL393 STUDENTS
C+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 41% 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.
  • DBeats 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
393
Elementary
DISTRICT 434 · STATE 465
Student : Teacher
20.5:1
19 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 21.4:1 · STATE 22.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
22%
87 students
DISTRICT 81% · STATE 65%
Community
1
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
Kindergarten4812%
Grade 14812%
Grade 24912%
Grade 36116%
Grade 45313%
Grade 56517%
Grade 66918%

This year's kindergarten class (48) is 30% smaller than its 6th grade class (69).

Student demographics
54%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 27% · STATE 62% · US 70%
White
24963%
DISTRICT 13% · STATE 20% · US 43%
Hispanic
8822%
DISTRICT 84% · STATE 56% · US 30%
Black
21%
DISTRICT 0% · STATE 5% · US 15%
Asian
133%
DISTRICT 1% · STATE 12% · US 6%
Two+
3910%
DISTRICT 2% · STATE 6% · US 5%
Native American
21%
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
22457%
Female
16943%

School pathway

Students here typically continue to
Rio del Mar Elementary→Aptos Junior High
Based on grade levels within Pajaro Valley Unified. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.

Discussions

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Test scores

CAASPP 2024-25 . % met or exceeded standard
English Language Arts
57.6%
CA avg 49.1% . -8.4pp since 2014
Math
53.7%
CA avg 37.7% . -5.3pp since 2014

What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 58 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 54 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 8 points since 2014, while math scores are down about 5 points.

Performance levels, 2024-25

SubjectStandard ExceededStandard MetStandard Nearly MetStandard Not Met
English Language Arts28.4%29.3%24.4%17.9%
Math25.3%28.4%28.8%17.5%
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
2024-2557.6%53.7%
2023-2458.3%50.0%
2022-2359.3%50.2%
2021-2260.2%55.3%
2018-1969.5%63.2%
2017-1870.8%66.0%
2016-1766.5%61.7%
2015-1674.0%65.0%
2014-1566.0%59.0%
% 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
54.8%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
66.6%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-11.8pp
below demographic expectation

What this means: About 55% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 67% 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 Rio del Mar Elementary

Rio del Mar Elementary's state test result (54.8% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 4 schools below with a result.

SchoolStudentsLow-incomeProficient
Rio del Mar Elementary this school39322.1%54.8%
Silver Gate Elementary
San Diego
39923.6%81.5%
Sequoia Elementary
Santa Rosa
41422.7%54.2%
Park Dale Lane Elementary
Encinitas
42424.5%60.8%
Vineyard Elementary
Templeton
42620.0%49.1%
BRIDGES Charter
Thousand Oaks
42019.0%N/A
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 Rio del Mar Elementary ranks

Among elementary schools
MeasureThis schoolIn CaliforniaIn Santa Cruz County
State test proficiency
ranked highest first
54.8%#1,417 of 5,151#9 of 36
Math proficiency
ranked highest first
53.7%#1,372 of 5,172
▲ 152
#10 of 36
▲ 1
Reading proficiency
ranked highest first
57.6%#1,491 of 5,172
▼ 140
#9 of 36
no change
3-year test score change
ranked biggest drop first
-2.1pp#1,197 of 5,116#9 of 36
Enrollment
ranked largest first
393#3,782 of 5,915#21 of 39
Students per teacher
ranked fewest first
20.5:1#1,233 of 5,352#9 of 33
Diversity index
ranked most diverse first
53.7%#2,461 of 5,354#12 of 33
Free and reduced lunch
ranked highest share first
22.1%#5,077 of 5,625#32 of 37
Enrollment change since 2017-18
ranked steepest decline first
-33.7%#356 of 3,837#5 of 30
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
393
-14 (-3%) vs 2020
-34% since 1990-91, when it was 595
Student : Teacher
20.5:1
was 21.4:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data

Enrollment and staffing by year

School yearStudentsTeachers (FTE)Students per teacherFree and reduced lunch
2024-2539319.120.5:122% (87)
2023-2440818.522.0:124% (98)
2022-2340417.523.1:129% (118)
2020-214071921.4:120% (83)
2017-185932424.7:115% (90)
2015-165792424.1:111% (66)
2010-11613N/AN/A10% (62)
2000-016133020.4:15% (29)
1990-915952325.9:1N/A
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Rio del Mar Elementary.

Since 2017-18: students down 34% (593 to 393); teachers down 20% (24 to 19.1).

About Rio del Mar Elementary

A small elementary school in Aptos, California, Rio del Mar Elementary is part of Pajaro Valley Unified. It enrolls 393 students in 2024-25. The grades offered are kindergarten through 6.

Rio del Mar Elementary is part of Pajaro Valley Unified, where 33 schools serve 16,482 students.

More than half of the students at Rio del Mar Elementary are White (63%). Beyond that, enrollment is 22% Hispanic, 10% multiracial, and 3% Asian. That is in line with Santa Cruz County, where about 60% of residents are White. On the diversity index, which measures the chance that two random students are from different groups, Rio del Mar Elementary scores 54%.

The school has 19.1 full-time-equivalent teachers and a ratio of 20.5 students per teacher. Elementary schools in California average 22.3:1, 1.8 more students per teacher than here. Of all students at Rio del Mar Elementary, 22% are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. For comparison, public schools in Santa Cruz County average 52%.

Among California public elementary schools, Rio del Mar Elementary outscored 41%, which works out to a C+ on the allk12 Grade.

The allk12 BeatsExpectations score for Rio del Mar Elementary is -11.8 points: 54.8% actual, 66.6% predicted.

In Santa Cruz County, median household income comes to about $111,093, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 44% of adults, and the poverty rate is about 6%. The county's public schools total 83, with about 36,316 students.

Rio del Mar Elementary's closest public school neighbor is Aptos Junior High, about 1.3 miles away. Within five miles of Rio del Mar Elementary, there are at least 8 other public schools. Of 8 schools in the immediate area with test results, Rio del Mar Elementary ranks 2nd on average proficiency.

Locale data from NCES put Rio del Mar Elementary in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population between 100,000 and 250,000 (Suburb: Mid-size).

Over 4 years, enrollment decreased by 14 students, from 407 to 393.

This community page is for conversations about athletics, class schedules, and weather closures. You can also rate the school on this page.

Santa Cruz County at a glance

View full county profile
Population
264,926
Census ACS
Median income
$111,093
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
44%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
6%
Below federal line
Schools in county
83
36,316 students

Quick facts

School name
Rio del Mar Elementary
District
Pajaro Valley Unified
Address
819 Pinehurst Dr., Aptos, CA 95003
Phone
(831) 688-2053
County
Santa Cruz County
Level
Elementary
Grade range
KG–06
Total enrollment
393
Teachers (FTE)
19
Student–teacher ratio
20.5:1
Free and reduced lunch
87 (22%)
Locale
22-Suburb: Mid-size
NCES ID
062949004549
Charter school
No
Virtual school
No

Related schools

Other schools in Pajaro Valley Unified
Other schools in Aptos
Nearby schools

Frequently asked questions

About Rio del Mar Elementary
What is the total enrollment at Rio del Mar Elementary?
Rio del Mar Elementary enrolls approximately 393 students in grades KG-06.
What grades does Rio del Mar Elementary serve?
Rio del Mar Elementary serves grades KG-06.
How many students per teacher at Rio del Mar Elementary?
Approximately 20.5:1 students per teacher at Rio del Mar Elementary.
How diverse is Rio del Mar Elementary?
Rio del Mar Elementary reports a student body of 63% White, 22% Hispanic, 1% Black, 3% Asian, 10% Two or more.
Who oversees Rio del Mar Elementary?
Rio del Mar Elementary is overseen by Pajaro Valley Unified in Santa Cruz County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.
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