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DREAM Academy

Grades K-8Alternative School2024–25 data
Lakeside Union ElementaryLakeside, San Diego County92040
📍 11838 Valle Vista Rd📞 (619) 390-2600🌐 Website
Alternative school — serves students who benefit from a non-traditional educational setting. Scores are not directly comparable to comprehensive schools.
Developing
45/100
Developing — 60th percentile statewide
#2,096 of 5,230 CA elementary schools
↓ 8.0 pts since 2022
🚀 Growth Engine

A growth engine — students gain measurably more here than at peer schools. Additional funding is translating into measurable improvement

School Climate
92% of students attend consistently
Chronic absenteeism: 8.1% (state avg: 18.1%)
"Attend consistently" means missing ≤10% of school days (the chronic absenteeism threshold).
Minimal suspensions
0.5% suspension rate (state avg: 1.7%)
Share of students who received at least one suspension during the year.
Source: California Dept. of Education, 2024–25See breakdown by student group →

What the numbers actually mean

Most rating sites report "35% proficient" and stop there. We think that number deserves more context — here's what we found when we looked deeper:

11.0% of students exceeded standard? Level 4 on California's CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment — the state defines four levels: Not Met, Nearly Met, Met, and Exceeded. while 24.4% met it. That exceeded rate is 10.6 points below the state average of 21.6%. That's 3.7 points below the Lakeside Union Elementary district average of 14.7%. The gap between "met" and "exceeded" can reveal how much a school's curriculum challenges students beyond proficiency.

CDE CAASPP 2025
DREAM Academy
11%
24%
California average
22%
21%
ExceededMet onlyBelow

Students here improve by 32.1 percentage points from Grade 3 to grade 5 growth? Cross-sectional comparison (this year's 5th graders vs this year's 3rd graders), not longitudinal cohort tracking. Historical data for cohort tracking is not available for this school., suggesting the school is adding value beyond what students arrive with.

SchoolScope derived · Cross-sectional proficiency change across grades, not longitudinal cohort tracking

Chronic absenteeism? Missing 10%+ of enrolled school days. This is an official California Dashboard accountability indicator. is 8.1%, better than the state average of 18.1%.

CDE Attendance 2025

Data you won't find on other sites: School-level per-pupil spending (not just district averages) · Current-year 2025 data direct from CDE · The exceeded vs. met split that most rating sites collapse into one number

Why the exceeded vs. met split matters → · Scope Score is SchoolScope's analysis of CDE data — not an official CDE rating. How we built this score (and what it misses) →

No single score captures a school. This is a starting point — visit, ask questions, trust your instincts.

▸ What this score doesn't capture
  • — Teaching quality, classroom culture, and how teachers connect with students
  • — Arts, athletics, extracurriculars, and enrichment programs
  • — How well the school serves students with IEPs or gifted learners
  • — Parent community engagement and satisfaction
  • — Whether the curriculum aligns with your family's values

Most of our data is updated once per year and may reflect the prior school year.

Before you visit
Questions worth asking and signals worth checking
Who this school is great for
✓Families prioritizing upward trajectory — proficiency improves 32.1pp G3→G5
✓Families where consistent attendance and school culture matter — absenteeism is well below state average
✓Families who value a smaller school community — 77 students
✓Families looking for a low-discipline-incident environment
△Worth checking: Families wanting top-end academic rigor — more students meet the bar (24%) than exceed it (11%)
These reflect data patterns, not guarantees. Your child's experience will depend on their teacher, grade, and classroom — things no score captures.
Score Factors
Academic Performance
✓Growth (G3→G5): +32.1pp
Scores improve across grades (state avg -3.0pp)
15% weight

Growth measures what the school adds, not what families bring. When available, we track the same cohort across years for a stronger signal.

Limitation: Cohort tracking is school-level (not individual students) — transfers and demographic shifts can affect results. Falls back to cross-sectional comparison when historical data is unavailable.

SchoolScope derived
Holding back
▼Exceeded standard: 11.0%
10.6pp below state avg (state avg 21.6%)
43% weight

Exceeded rate gets the highest weight because it separates schools that clear the bar from those that raise it.

Limitation: Reflects tested students only — opt-out rates are not published by CDE.

CDE CAASPP 2025
▼Met or exceeded: 35.4%
7.5pp below state avg (state avg 42.9%)
22% weight

Overall proficiency provides the broadest measure of academic achievement.

Limitation: Combines ‘met’ and ‘exceeded’ — the gap between them matters more than either alone.

CDE CAASPP 2025
School Climate
✓Chronic absenteeism: 8.1%
10.0pp below state avg (state avg 18.1%)
10% weight

Absenteeism reflects school culture and family engagement — an official CA Dashboard accountability indicator.

Limitation: 10% threshold is the same for all schools regardless of demographics or geography.

CDE Attendance 2025
✓Suspension rate: 0.5%
1.2pp below state avg (state avg 1.7%)
5% weight

Low suspension rates correlate with positive school culture and restorative practices.

Limitation: Schools may differ in reporting practices — some underreport to improve metrics.

CDE Discipline 2025
We make judgment calls about what matters. We believe exceeded scores reveal more than proficiency alone, and that growth matters more than raw test results. Reasonable people could weight these differently — and that's fine. The factors above show exactly what we weighted and why, so you can decide where you agree and where you'd adjust. The elementary Scope Score uses 5 dimensions. How we built this score (and what it misses) →

The Scope Score emphasizes academic performance. It weights test proficiency, the exceeded-vs-met gap, and growth trajectory most heavily. If your family prioritizes arts, athletics, school culture, or teaching philosophy, this score captures some of that indirectly (through absenteeism and suspension) but not all of it. Different families should weight these dimensions differently — the score factors above let you see exactly what drives this number.

How to use this
  • –Use for long-term academic patterns, not this week's classroom experience
  • –Verify with a recent visit — scores can't capture a school mid-transformation
  • –Combine with local context — talk to parents, attend a school board meeting, trust your gut
Community Profile
Context — not part of the Scope Score

Student demographics

Hispanic31.2%
White50.6%
Asian1.3%
Black2.6%
Other14.3%
GenderFemale 46.8%Male 53.3%
Resources & Access
Enrollment
77
543 below CA avg (~620)
Free/Reduced Lunch
43%
21pp below CA avg (64%)
Student-Teacher Ratio
19:1
2 fewer students per teacher than CA avg
Per-Pupil Spending
$27,220
District avg: $13,499 · CA avg: $14,815 · School-level · CDE ESSA
Teacher Salary Range
$59,379 – $132,498
District schedule · CA median ~$98K
Subgroup Growth by Grade
Change in proficiency from lowest tested grade. Shows which groups are gaining ground.

Subgroups with fewer than 10 tested students per grade are not shown.

Funding Breakdown
Instruction 66%Support 31%Other 3%

Source: NCES F-33 (2019–2020) · Full district breakdown →

Neighborhood Context
Median Income
$96K
$11K above CA median
Median Home Value
$614K
$46K below CA median
Bachelor's+
24%
11pp below CA avg
Whole Child
Teacher experience, college/career readiness, and more. Context only — never part of the Scope Score.
Teacher Experience
22.6 years avg experience
8 teachers
Teacher Credentials
100% fully credentialed

Source: CDE SARC, 2024-25

Community Profile provides context about who attends this school and the resources available. These factors are never part of the Scope Score. Learn why →

3-year trend

5345'22'24'25
↓ 8.0 points since 2022
Rank: #2311 → #892 → #2096Exceeded: 9% → 24% → 11%
2022 · 2024 · 2025 · Scope Score based on CAASPP, absenteeism & suspension data

How DREAM Academy compares

DREAM Academy vs. California averages — 2025 CAASPP data
MetricThis schoolCA avg
Exceeded Standard11.0%21.6%
Met or Exceeded35.4%42.9%
Chronic Absenteeism8.1%18.1%
Suspension Rate0.5%1.7%
Growth (G3→G5)+32.1pp-3.0pp

Source: California Department of Education CAASPP 2025 · Analyzed by SchoolScope

Grade trajectory

How proficiency compares across grade levels this year (different students, same test year)

ELA Trajectory
7.1%54.5%G3G4G5
Math Trajectory
28.6%45.5%G3G4G5

ELA scores by grade

GradeTestedExceededMetNearly MetNot MetMet+Above
3rd147.1%0.0%28.6%64.3%7.1%
4th137.7%38.5%15.4%38.5%46.1%
5th1118.2%36.4%18.2%27.3%54.5%
6th2010.0%45.0%35.0%10.0%55.0%
7th120.0%41.7%33.3%25.0%41.7%
8th9—————

Math scores by grade

GradeTestedExceededMetNearly MetNot MetMet+Above
3rd147.1%21.4%21.4%50.0%28.6%
4th137.7%23.1%46.1%23.1%30.8%
5th1118.2%27.3%18.2%36.4%45.5%
6th1915.8%15.8%31.6%36.8%31.6%
7th1216.7%16.7%41.7%25.0%33.3%
8th9—————

Science scores by grade

GradeTestedExceededMetNearly MetNot MetMet+Above
5th2222.7%9.1%63.6%4.5%31.8%

22 students tested · CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually like ELA/Math. Not included in the Scope Score. · Data source: CDE CAST 2025

Schools nearby
Planning ahead? 10 licensed preschools near this school →

Frequently asked questions

Is DREAM Academy a good elementary school?
DREAM Academy has a Scope Score of 45 out of 100, placing it in the 60th percentile of California elementary schools and ranked #2,096 statewide. 11.0% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 10.6 percentage points below the California average of 21.6%. The Scope Score weights five dimensions: the exceeded-vs-met split (45%), proficiency (25%), grade-level growth (15%), chronic absenteeism (10%), and suspension rate (5%). Data source: California Department of Education CAASPP 2025, analyzed by SchoolScope.
What are DREAM Academy's CAASPP test scores?
On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 35.4% of students at DREAM Academy met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 11.0% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 24.4% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 11.0% pushed past it. Most rating sites report only the combined "proficient" number. SchoolScope surfaces the exceeded-vs-met split because it reveals whether a school's curriculum challenges students beyond minimum proficiency or paces toward it. 76 student-subject combinations were assessed.
How does DREAM Academy rank in California?
DREAM Academy ranks #2,096 among California elementary schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 60th percentile. This ranking is based on a weighted composite of 2025 CAASPP test performance (exceeded and met rates), grade-level growth (Grade 3 to grade 5 growth), chronic absenteeism, and suspension rate. Unlike single-number ratings, the Scope Score shows what drives the ranking so parents can decide what matters most to their family. See full methodology.
Is DREAM Academy getting better or worse?
Based on 2025 CAASPP data, proficiency at DREAM Academy increases by 32.1 percentage points from Grade 3 to grade 5 growth. This upward trajectory suggests the school is adding measurable value — students leave with higher proficiency rates than they entered with. Growth trajectory is weighted at 15% in the elementary Scope Score because it measures what the school does, not just who walks in the door.
What is the attendance and school culture like at DREAM Academy?
8.1% of students at DREAM Academy are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), which is better than the California average of 18.1%. The suspension rate is 0.5%, indicating a low-discipline-incident environment. SchoolScope includes these culture metrics in the Scope Score because they reflect day-to-day school experience in ways test scores alone cannot.
How does DREAM Academy compare to other schools in Lakeside?
DREAM Academy scores 45/100 (60th percentile) among California elementary schools. To compare with nearby schools, SchoolScope shows the same metrics side by side: exceeded rate, proficiency, growth trajectory, and school culture indicators. The school serves 77 students. Use the schools in Lakeside page or the map view to compare all elementary schools nearby.
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Data source: California Department of Education (2025 test year) · How we score · Explore all schools · Blog