Enrollment
330
Elementary
DISTRICT 435 · STATE 465
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·LUCIA MAR UNIFIED·NCES 062308003529
Shell Beach Elementary
2100 Shell Beach Rd., Pismo Beach, CA 93449 · (805) 474-3760 · San Luis Obispo County
GRADES KG–06ELEMENTARY23-SUBURBREGULAR SCHOOL330 STUDENTS
A
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 86% of California public elementary schools
- ATest 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.
- BThree-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
20.6:1
16 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 20.0:1 · STATE 22.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
33%
109 students
DISTRICT 61% · STATE 65%
Community
0
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 | 65 | 20% |
| Grade 1 | 41 | 12% |
| Grade 2 | 41 | 12% |
| Grade 3 | 34 | 10% |
| Grade 4 | 49 | 15% |
| Grade 5 | 49 | 15% |
| Grade 6 | 51 | 15% |
This year's kindergarten class (65) is 27% larger than its 6th grade class (51).
Student demographics
59%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 58% · 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
72.6%
CA avg 49.1% . +5.6pp since 2014
Math
64.5%
CA avg 37.7% . +7.5pp since 2014
What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 73 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 65 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 6 points since 2014, while math scores are up about 8 points.
Performance levels, 2024-25
| Subject | Standard Exceeded | Standard Met | Standard Nearly Met | Standard Not Met |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language Arts | 41.4% | 31.2% | 15.6% | 11.8% |
| Math | 37.1% | 27.4% | 21.0% | 14.5% |
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 year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 72.6% | 64.5% |
| 2023-24 | 72.0% | 62.4% |
| 2022-23 | 67.9% | 55.6% |
| 2021-22 | 63.5% | 66.2% |
| 2018-19 | 69.8% | 54.5% |
| 2017-18 | 69.3% | 45.6% |
| 2016-17 | 62.8% | 55.3% |
| 2015-16 | 67.0% | 54.0% |
| 2014-15 | 67.0% | 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
68.0%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
60.2%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+7.9pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 68% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 60% 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 Shell Beach Elementary
Shell Beach Elementary's state test result (68.0% proficient) is higher than 5 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shell Beach Elementary this school | 330 | 33.0% | 68.0% |
| Harold Ambuehl Elementary San Juan Capistrano | 324 | 35.2% | 56.6% |
| George White Elementary Laguna Niguel | 378 | 36.2% | 63.9% |
| Pacific Beach Elementary San Diego | 312 | 34.9% | 65.6% |
| Loma Portal Elementary San Diego | 392 | 30.4% | 61.6% |
| Bishop's Peak Elementary San Luis Obispo | 358 | 34.1% | 63.6% |
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 Shell Beach Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In California | In San Luis Obispo County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 68.0% | #741 of 5,151 | #6 of 37 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 64.5% | #850 of 5,172 ▲ 64 | #4 of 37 ▲ 2 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 72.6% | #620 of 5,172 ▼ 6 | #4 of 37 no change |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest gain first | +3.7pp | #2,063 of 5,116 | #16 of 37 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 330 | #4,478 of 5,915 | #30 of 45 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 20.6:1 | #1,275 of 5,352 | #11 of 37 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 59.3% | #1,912 of 5,354 | #7 of 37 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 33.0% | #4,644 of 5,625 | #34 of 40 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -23.3% | #1,057 of 3,837 | #7 of 20 |
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
330
+16 (+5%) vs 2020
-13% since 1990-91, when it was 381
Student : Teacher
20.6:1
was 19.6:1
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 | 330 | 16 | 20.6:1 | 33% (109) |
| 2023-24 | 347 | 17.1 | 20.3:1 | 35% (123) |
| 2022-23 | 325 | 15.9 | 20.4:1 | 38% (125) |
| 2020-21 | 314 | 16 | 19.6:1 | 39% (121) |
| 2017-18 | 430 | 18.6 | 23.1:1 | 27% (114) |
| 2015-16 | 423 | 16 | 26.4:1 | 26% (109) |
| 2010-11 | 396 | N/A | N/A | 25% (100) |
| 2000-01 | 430 | 20 | 21.5:1 | 18% (76) |
| 1990-91 | 381 | 16 | 23.8:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Shell Beach Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 23% (430 to 330); teachers down 14% (18.6 to 16).
About Shell Beach Elementary
Shell Beach Elementary is a low-enrollment elementary school in Pismo Beach, California. It has an enrollment of 330 students in kindergarten through 6. Across elementary schools in California, the average enrollment is about 465.
Shell Beach Elementary is one of the 19 schools that make up Lucia Mar Unified (9,590 students in total).
The largest group at Shell Beach Elementary is White students, at 56%. Enrollment also includes 26% Hispanic, 15% multiracial, and 3% Asian. Among people living in San Luis Obispo County, the White share is about 69%. On the diversity index, which measures the chance that two random students are from different groups, Shell Beach Elementary scores 59%.
Shell Beach Elementary has 16 full-time-equivalent teachers on staff and a student-to-teacher ratio of 20.6:1. The gap from the 22.3:1 average for elementary schools in California is 1.7 students per teacher. At Shell Beach Elementary, 33% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch in 2024-25. Among public schools in San Luis Obispo County, the average eligibility rate is 54%.
Shell Beach Elementary holds an A allk12 Grade, placing it above 86% of California public elementary schools.
Compared with California schools that have similar shares of low-income students, Shell Beach Elementary's results are 7.9 points above predicted: 68.0% against 60.2%.
The school is in San Luis Obispo County, where median household income comes to about $97,446, 40% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 6% of residents live below the federal poverty line. San Luis Obispo County counts 83 public schools with about 33,339 students.
Judkins Middle sits about 2.5 miles from Shell Beach Elementary. Around the school, 4 other public schools are within five miles. Shell Beach Elementary places 3rd of 8 on proficiency among the closest schools that report scores.
Federal records code the school's setting as Suburb: Small.
In 2020-21, Shell Beach Elementary enrolled 314 students. By 2024-25, that number had grown to 330.
The Shell Beach Elementary discussion page is a place for special education services, counseling, and support programs. Teachers and staff are welcome to share updates too.
San Luis Obispo County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
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
Related schools
Other schools in Lucia Mar Unified
- Arroyo Grande HighHigh · 2,012 students
- Nipomo HighHigh · 819 students
- Harloe ElementaryElementary · 619 students
- Dana ElementaryElementary · 612 students
- Lange (Dorothea) ElementaryElementary · 577 students
- Ocean View ElementaryElementary · 547 students
Nearby schools
- Judkins Middle2.5 mi · 431
- Bellevue-Santa Fe Charter3.1 mi · 163
- Grover Heights Elementary3.9 mi · 290
- Grover Beach Elementary4.4 mi · 368
- Ocean View Elementary5.1 mi · 547
- Los Ranchos Elementary5.3 mi · 521
Frequently asked questions
About Shell Beach ElementaryHow large is Shell Beach Elementary?
Shell Beach Elementary enrolls approximately 330 students in grades KG-06.
What grades does Shell Beach Elementary serve?
Shell Beach Elementary serves grades KG-06.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Shell Beach Elementary?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Shell Beach Elementary is approximately 20.6:1 (16 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at Shell Beach Elementary?
At Shell Beach Elementary, the student body is approximately 56% White, 26% Hispanic, 0% Black, 3% Asian, 15% Two or more.
What district is Shell Beach Elementary in?
Shell Beach Elementary is part of Lucia Mar Unified.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.