ExploreMapCompareBlogSign in

Charter elementary school

Arete Charter Academy

Grass Valley, CA · Grades TK-12 · 207 students · Pleasant Ridge Union Elementary

Kids show up here — absenteeism is half the state rate. Test scores are still catching up.

42% of tested students are Proficient or Advanced in English and 35% in math. Explore the evidence alongside the opportunities your child would use.

SchoolScope archetype

Culture First

What this means for your family

Ask whether the low absenteeism and suspension numbers come from what the school does or from the community it serves — both can produce the same numbers, and only a visit tells you which.

How archetypes are assigned →

Math

35%

Grades 3 & 5 · Proficient or Advanced

English

42%

Grades 3 & 5 · Proficient or Advanced

Students

207

Total enrollment

Chronic absence

4%

Students absent 10% or more of school days

What are you trying to decide?

The overall score is a starting point.

Look at subject results, trends and student groups, then consider the opportunities your child would use.

View school performance →

Academic performance

What do the results tell us?

2025 results · Grades 3 & 5 · weighted by students tested within each subject.

Proficient or Advanced combines Levels 3 and 4, formerly Standard Met and Standard Exceeded. California changed the names for 2025–26; the cut scores did not. About the labels →

Share at Proficient or Advanced

0%25%50%75%100%2022: 26%2023: 26%2024: 31%2025: 35%2022: 33%2023: 27%2024: 33%2025: 42%201920222023202420250%25%50%75%100%2022: 26%2023: 26%2024: 31%2025: 35%2022: 33%2023: 27%2024: 33%2025: 42%20192022202320242025
● Math┄ English

Gaps in the lines mark years without annual results.

Exact annual results
YearMathEnglish
2019——
202226%33%
202326%27%
202431%33%
202535%42%

Each year describes that year’s tested students. Changes between years do not follow the same children over time. Cohort-growth evidence, when available, is labeled separately below.

Annual results and the full academic record
Is it getting better · CAASPP 2022 to 2025

Climbed from the 51st to the 70th percentile since 2022 — past roughly 1100 elementary schools.

Most rating sites would stop at “41% proficient” and call it done. Arete Charter Academy deserves a closer read. One in four of its students qualify for free or reduced lunch (California: 64%) — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

The headline number: +2.6pp separates this year's grade 3 from its grade 5. The state average rises 4.6pp over the same span. Following the school's returning cohort from 2023 G3 → 2025 G5 points the same way.

As a charter, Arete Charter Academy enrolls by application rather than address. That changes how you get in, but it doesn't change the score.

142 tested · 3 of 3 grades published · no cohort tracked

Arete Charter Academy scores 46 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 70th percentile of 5,721 California elementary schools (CDE CAASPP 2025).

Percentile among 5,721 elementary schools statewide
Year detailsYear2022 · 51st percentile · Scope Score 33 of 1002023 · 43rd percentile · Scope Score 30 of 1002024 · 43rd percentile · Scope Score 34 of 1002025 · 70th percentile · Scope Score 46 of 100
ELAGreen(Increased Significantly)MathYellow(Increased)
ShowHide the by-grade tables, year by year
ELA — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 3—26%17%32%35%
Grade 4—33%35%18%54%
Grade 5—40%38%35%47%
Grade 6—32%54%60%53%
Grade 733%37%40%59%24%
Grade 820%50%29%52%67%
Math — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 3—37%20%18%39%
Grade 4—28%31%29%38%
Grade 5—15%31%45%32%
Grade 6—21%25%53%32%
Grade 720%26%23%28%33%
Grade 80%25%13%27%33%
Where students land · CAASPP 2024–25

Two in five of students here meet the standard. One in ten clear it by a lot.

ELA46% met or exceeded
Exceeded 18%Met 28%Nearly Met 36%Not Met 18%
Math35% met or exceeded
Exceeded 14%Met 20%Nearly Met 30%Not Met 35%
Exceeded Met Nearly Met Not Met
California elementary schools · average21% exceeded · 43% met or exceeded
This school against the California average
2022–2025 trend · CDE CAASPP
Scope% Exceeded% Met+GrowthAbsenceSuspension
This school4616%41%—3.9%0.6%
CA average · Elementary School3921%43%—17.9%1.6%
This schoolCA avg
Scope4639
% Exceeded16%21%
% Met+41%43%
Growth——
Absence3.9%17.9%
Suspension0.6%1.6%
California’s growth results and student groups
State growth model · CDE growth model 2024–25

California's own growth model splits here — the 67th percentile in reading against the 45th in math, among elementary schools.

Context — never part of the Scope Score

California runs its own growth model — it follows individual children in grades 4 through 8 and compares each one against a prediction from their own prior scores. On that measure this school sits a little above the middle of California elementary schools in reading, and the 45th in math. We show it; we don't score it.

— pts vs expected is scale-score points above or below what California's model predicted for these same children from their own prior-year scores. It is not a percentage and not a percent of anything. A typical California elementary school lands at +2 in reading, and the middle half of them fall between −5 and +9 — the spread is wide, so read the rank, not the sign. CDE blends two consecutive years into each published figure, so adjacent years share input data and no year-over-year trend can honestly be drawn from them. It covers grades 4-8 only, and it is not part of the Scope Score — we assessed it and left it out: it tracks school demographics roughly three times as strongly as our own growth measure does, and one published year is not enough to test how stable it is.

California's growth model, ranked against the schools it scores
State model · readingmatched students, grades 4-8California growth model, reading: +6 scale-score points versus the state's expectation, 67th percentile of 7,519 reported schools.67th pctile · +6 pts
State model · mathmatched students, grades 4-8California growth model, math: −1 scale-score points versus the state's expectation, 45th percentile of 7,518 reported schools.45th pctile · −1 pts
this school| the tick is the middle of the California field

Students & opportunity

Who shares in the school’s results?

Who it works for · CAASPP 2024–25

How every group of students does here

At Arete Charter Academy in Grass Valley, 46.6% of white students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 50.8% district-wide and 61.8% statewide. Arete Charter Academy trails its district average for white students by 4.2 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: White students (34.0% Math proficient). Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 103 students tested.

Met or exceeded · reading and math combined
All students at this school: 40% met or exceeded
All StudentsAll Students: this school 40%, district —, state 43%40%
WhiteWhite: this school 40%, district 46%, state 56%40% · +0 vs school
FemaleFemale: this school 40%, district 45%, state 44%40% · +0 vs school
MaleMale: this school 43%, district 46%, state 42%43% · +3 vs school
Socioeconomically DisadvantagedSocioeconomically Disadvantaged: this school 54%, district 37%, state 32%54% · +14 vs school

5 of 10 student groups here are too small to report — a privacy protection, not a gap.

this school district, same group California, same group
ShowHide Student-group results by grade
Student-group results by grade

Results compare different grade groups in the same year, relative to the lowest tested grade. They do not track the same children over time. Groups with fewer than 10 tested students per grade are not shown.

ShowHide California's growth model by student group
The state's growth model, by student group

California follows these children individually and predicts each one's score from their own prior year. Each row is read against the same group at a typical California elementary school — not against zero, and not against this school's all-students figure, because the state's expectation already differs by group.

Reading
English Only83 studentsEnglish Only, reading: +7 scale-score points versus expectation, against +3 for the same group at a typical California elementary school, 83 students.+7 pts · +4 vs typical
White65 studentsWhite, reading: +6 scale-score points versus expectation, against +5 for the same group at a typical California elementary school, 65 students.+6 pts · +1 vs typical
Low-income students32 studentsLow-income students, reading: +2 scale-score points versus expectation, against 0 for the same group at a typical California elementary school, 32 students.+2 pts · +2 vs typical
Math
English Only83 studentsEnglish Only, math: −2 scale-score points versus expectation, against +1 for the same group at a typical California elementary school, 83 students.−2 pts · −3 vs typical
White65 studentsWhite, math: −2 scale-score points versus expectation, against +5 for the same group at a typical California elementary school, 65 students.−2 pts · −7 vs typical
Low-income students32 studentsLow-income students, math: −1 scale-score points versus expectation, against −1 for the same group at a typical California elementary school, 32 students.−1 pts · 0 vs typical
this school typical California elementary school, same group| the centre tick is 0 = as predicted

— A group not listed at all had fewer than 11 students with a growth score, so California published nothing for it here. That is a privacy protection, not a judgment about those students. — Context only. None of this enters the Scope Score.

The daily experience

What is it like to be a student here?

Students per teacher

Student–teacher ratio is a schoolwide staffing measure, not an average class size.

The people teaching · CDE staffing 2024–25

About 23 students for every teacher here.

Context — never part of the Scope Score

Students per teacher23 · district 23
Teaching staff9 teachers
Avg. experience9.2 years
Fully credentialed22%
PrincipalSarah Schwartz
ShowHide what the district pays
Teacher salary schedule$54,621 – $110,652
Principal salaryFrom $130,062
Superintendent salary$185,298

Pay is set by the district, not the school.

Attendance & discipline · 2024–25

Kids here show up more, and get suspended less, than the state average.

Chronic absenteeismChronic absenteeism: this school 3.9%, district 12.7%, state 17.9%3.9% · −14.0pp vs state
Suspension rateSuspension rate: this school 0.6%, district —, state 1.6%0.6% · −1.0pp vs state
This schoolDistrictCalifornia
ShowHide attendance by student group and by grade
Chronic absenteeism by grade band
Grades 4–61.3%
Grades 7–82.0%
TK/K0.0%

Resources & neighborhood

What sits behind the school experience?

Explore school spending and the district budget
What gets spent · FY 2024–25

It spends $15,081 per student, about the same as the California average.

Context — never part of the Scope Score

$192 per student arrives as federal Title funding — a measure of concentrated need, not school quality.

The district's current expense of education per student, from CDE's annual SACS filing — the freshest district spending figure the state publishes.

Per-pupil spendingPer-pupil spending: $15,081, CA average $14,491$15,081 · spent at this school
Federal share$192 per student
District current expense · FY 2024–25$14,397 per student
This schoolDistrictCalifornia
Where the district's dollars go · FY 2024–25 · CDE SACS
Instruction 65%Instruction support 11%Student services 9%Administration 7%Buildings & maintenance 8%

District-level, from the district's own SACS general-ledger filing — school-by-school breakdowns aren't published by the state.

ShowHide the district's spending year by year
district detail, 2016–2020 — the newest published
2020$10,714 per pupil
2019$10,411 per pupil
2018$11,061 per pupil
2017$10,500 per pupil
2016$10,092 per pupil

Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →

The neighborhood · ACS 2024

One in four of students here qualify for free or reduced lunch, versus three in five statewide.

Context — never part of the Scope Score

Worth knowing

At 207 students, this school is much smaller than the typical California elementary school (≈480).

Transitional kindergarten is offered here — confirmed by actual Census Day enrollment, not just the listed grade span.

On the state's science test (CAST), 47% met or exceeded the standard — science is tested in grades 5 and 8 and once in high school, and it never enters the Scope Score.

Hispanic or Latino13.0% · district 16.2% · CA 56.1%
White76.3% · district 70.0% · CA 19.9%
Asian1.0% · district 0.3% · CA 10.2%
Other9.7% · district 13.2% · CA 9.0%
Free or reduced lunch32.4% · CA 64%
Median income$98K · CA $85K
Median home value$551K · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+33% · CA 35%
ZIP population20,552
Median age54 years

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024) · ZIP-level

Culture & philosophy

What is the school’s approach?

School-stated approach · questions for your visit

Look beyond the brochure

A source-reviewed culture summary is not available for this profile yet. Ask how teaching, student support and family communication work day to day.

Read the school’s own website ↗

Family voices

What would you want another family to know about the daily experience here?

Ask a current family: “When your child needs help, how does the school respond?”

Educator voices

What should families understand about teaching, support and the school community?

Ask an educator: “How do you adapt a typical day for children with different needs?”

Bring these questions on a visit →

Compare nearby schools

What are the alternatives?

Compare schools serving the same grade stage. Private schools have no comparable state-test score.

2025 · elementary schools · combined reading and math measures. Percentiles compare schools within their enrollment group.

Private options →
SchoolTypePerformance bandAdvancedProficient or AdvancedDistanceSelect
Arete Charter AcademyCharterSolid16%41%School being viewed
Open the comparison tool →
More nearby public and private options
Your other options

Your other options

Private school options within 10 miles.

All schools in Grass Valley →

Private schools do not receive a Scope Score or statewide ranking on SchoolScope.

1 private school within 10 miles
Not scored
What should I check before applying?
District public
Confirm the attendance boundary and any permit options.
Charter
Check applications, priorities and deadlines with each school.
Private
Confirm admission requirements, tuition and financial aid.

Moving & enrollment

Which schools could serve my child?

Check enrollment with this charter school

Ask the school about applications, priorities and deadlines for your child’s grade.

School website →

Schools across the K–12 journey

Source: proximity. Schools are grouped by grade stage. Nearby schools are not confirmed feeder links or address assignments. Verify the current path and eligibility with the district.

Charter enrollment details

Plan your next step

What should I do next?

Worth a school visit

Ask how the school built its attendance culture — and what the academic plan looks like from here.

  • Ask how teachers track each child's growth over the year, not just where the class lands on test day.
  • Ask whether the tour can step into a working classroom — watch how the teacher handles a student who's stuck.
  • Ask to tour while school's in session, and notice how hallways and transitions feel — culture shows up between classes, not just in them.
  • Ask how the school communicates with families when a child starts to struggle.
  • Ask what a typical day looks like for a new student in the first few weeks.
Questions

Frequently asked questions

Is Arete Charter Academy a good elementary school?
Arete Charter Academy has a Scope Score of 46 out of 100, placing it in the 70th percentile of California elementary schools and ranked #1,711 statewide. 16.1% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 5.2 percentage points below the California average of 21.4%. The Scope Score weights 6 dimensions for elementary schools: exceeded standard (42%), met or exceeded (proficient) (23%), grade 3-to-5 growth (20%), chronic absenteeism (5%), suspension rate (5%), and ELPAC English Learner proficiency (5%). Data source: California Department of Education CAASPP 2025, analyzed by SchoolScope.
What are Arete Charter Academy's CAASPP test scores?
On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 41.0% of students at Arete Charter Academy met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 16.1% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 24.9% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 16.1% went beyond it. Most rating sites report only the combined "proficient" number. SchoolScope surfaces the exceeded-vs-met split because it shows how many students go beyond the standard rather than only meeting it. 156 student-subject combinations were assessed.
How does Arete Charter Academy rank in California?
Arete Charter Academy ranks #1,711 among California elementary schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 70th 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.
What is the attendance and school culture like at Arete Charter Academy?
3.9% of students at Arete Charter Academy are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), which is better than the California average of 17.9%. The suspension rate is 0.6%, 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 Arete Charter Academy compare to other schools in Grass Valley?
Arete Charter Academy scores 46/100 (70th 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 207 students. Use the schools in Grass Valley page or the map view to compare all elementary schools nearby.
How does Arete Charter Academy serve low-income and underrepresented students?
At Arete Charter Academy in Grass Valley, 46.6% of white students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 50.8% district-wide and 61.8% statewide. Arete Charter Academy trails its district average for white students by 4.2 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: White students (34.0% Math proficient). Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 103 students tested. SchoolScope shows disaggregated test scores by demographic subgroup so you can see how a school performs for your child's specific group — not just the school-wide average. Subgroup data is context, not part of the Scope Score: we don't penalize schools for who they serve. See our equity approach.

Use the published evidence to prepare questions, then verify fit and access with the school.

Behind the evidence

Inspect the full record

Public sources, visible methods and the underlying school record. Source years and limitations stay attached to the evidence.

How the Scope Score is calculated

On a narrow screen, scroll the table sideways to see the state comparison and weights.

What the score weighs · CAASPP 2024–25

Growth carries this score — its returning cohort's growth from grade 3 to grade 5. The test levels sit close to the state's.

What the score weighs
What we weighHereStateWeight
Exceeded standard16.1%21.4%42%
Met or exceeded41.0%42.7%23%
Chronic absenteeism3.9%17.9%5%
Suspension rate0.6%1.6%5%
Grade gap (G3→G5, different students)+2.6pp-2.9pp—

Source CAASPP 2025 · California Department of Education. Measures test performance, attendance, and climate — not arts, community, or your kid. How the score is built

A closer look at the evidence

Arete Charter Academy: reading the evidence

Arete Charter Academy's strongest numbers are the quiet ones: attendance and discipline. The academic picture is still developing — and culture is usually where that starts.

Subject proficiency describes tested students, while graduation describes a graduating cohort. These figures are not successive stages followed by the same students.

Ask whether the low absenteeism and suspension numbers come from what the school does or from the community it serves — both can produce the same numbers, and only a visit tells you which.

Explore the underlying data →
Every number: score factors, grades, student groups and downloads
Every number · For the data nerds

Every number on this page

Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and nearest schools.

Arete Charter Academy is ranked #1,711 statewide · #1 of 3 in Pleasant Ridge Union Elementary.

01Score factorsWeighted composite · 2024–25
Score factors
FactorSchoolStateWeight
Exceeded standard16.1%21.4%42%
Met or exceeded41.0%42.7%23%
Chronic absenteeism3.9%17.9%5%
Suspension rate0.6%1.6%5%
Grade gap (G3→G5, different students)+2.6pp-2.9ppnot scored
Exceeded standard
↓ vs CA 21.4% · index 45 · 50 = CA elementary-school midpoint
Met or exceeded
↓ vs CA 42.7% · index 49 · 50 = CA elementary-school midpoint
Chronic absenteeism
↑ vs CA 17.9% · index 73 · 50 = CA elementary-school midpoint · ▼ 1.7pp lower vs 2024
Suspension rate
↑ vs CA 1.6% · index 58 · 50 = CA elementary-school midpoint · ▲ 0.3pp higher vs 2024
Grade gap (G3→G5, different students)
↑ vs CA -2.9pp
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ShowHide table 02 — By grade & subgroup
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 33116%19%42%23%35%−8
Grade 41331%23%15%31%54%+9
Grade 53418%29%35%18%47%−1
Grade 61921%32%32%16%53%+7
Grade 7215%19%57%19%24%−24
Grade 82421%46%25%8%67%+20
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 3313%35%39%23%39%−7
Grade 41323%15%15%46%38%−3
Grade 5346%26%26%41%32%−3
Grade 61921%11%26%42%32%−3
Grade 72119%14%33%33%33%−0
Grade 82425%8%33%33%33%+1

We show the grade rows CDE publishes for this school. A missing grade or dash can mean the school does not serve that grade, that we hold no valid result for it, or that the tested group was too small to report. It does not mean zero.

Science (CAST)TestedEXCMETNEARNOT
Schoolwide5819%28%48%5%

CAST is tested in grades 5 and 8, then once in grade 10, 11, or 12. This row is the school's all-student aggregate. Not part of the Scope Score.

Subgroup · ELATestedMET+vs districtvs CA
White10346.6%−4−15
03Nearest elementary schoolssorted by Scope Score · Grade gap = grade 3 vs grade 5, this year, different students; Cohort growth = one school's returning cohort tracked across grades (mostly, not exactly, the same kids), in scale-score points — that's the measurement the Scope Score weights
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+Grade gapCohort growthSusp
Arete Charter Academy ←—4616.1%41.0%+2.6pp—0.6%
California average—3921.4%42.7%−2.9pp—1.6%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
ShowHide table 04 — More measures
YearScopePctileRankExcMet+AbsentSuspGrade gap
20223351#278112.6%29.9%7.5%0.3%-4.1pp
20233043#32759.7%28.6%7.8%0.3%+15.8pp
20243443#327313.3%29.5%5.7%0.3%+15.0pp
20254670#171116.1%41.0%3.9%0.6%+2.6pp
Grade gap = this year's grade 3 vs grade 5 result, two different sets of students, not a trend for any one child — it is not the measurement the Scope Score's growth dimension uses. See §01 above and /methodology#verdicts for the school's actual scored (cohort) growth.
What we can't show
  • — Scored here as an elementary school — other grade spans appear in the data appendix.
05Climate by student groupchronic absenteeism · 2019 vs 2025 — the two years CDE publishes at subgroup level
ShowHide table 05 — Climate by student group
Group20192025Δ
Female0.0%2.3%+2.3pp
Male0.0%0.0%+0.0pp
White0.0%1.6%+1.6pp
Students with Disabilities0.0%4.3%+4.3pp
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged0.0%3.3%+3.3pp
All Students0.0%1.2%+1.2pp
Hispanic/Latino—0.0%—
Two or More Races—0.0%—
06California growth model, by student group2025 · scale-score points vs the state's prediction · shown, never scored
ShowHide table 06 — California growth model, by student group
GroupReadingnCDE bandMathnCDE band
All Students+686Accelerated−186Average
English Only+783not categorised−283not categorised
White+665Accelerated−265Average
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged+232Average−132Average

Whole scale-score points above or below what CDE's model predicted for these same children from their own prior-year scores — not a percentage, not a percentile. Statewide a typical school lands near +1 with a spread of about 13 points either side, so read a figure against its group's own typical value, not against zero. “Not categorised” is CDE assigning no band — English Only, Recently Reclassified, and English Learners Only receive a value and no band, for every school in the state. It is not a missing number. Most figures blend two consecutive years, so adjacent published years share input data and no trend line can honestly be drawn across them. A group absent from this table had fewer than 11 students with a growth score and was never published. Grades 4-8 only. None of this enters the Scope Score — it is more strongly correlated with school demographics than our own growth measure, and one published year is not enough to test its reliability.

Embed this scorecard
<iframe
  src="https://schoolscope.co/embed/school/arete-charter-academy-6424"
  width="100%" height="210" loading="lazy"
  style="border:0;border-radius:12px"
  title="Arete Charter Academy — SchoolScope scorecard">
</iframe>

Free to embed with the credit link. Data updates automatically.

EXC = exceeded standard · MET+ = met or exceeded ("proficient") · Source: CA Dept. of Education · CAASPP 2024–25 · n=5,721 elementary schools · Vintages: climate subgroups 2019+2025 · district finance per its label · ACS 2022 · Data updated 2026-09-18

SchoolScope scores and verdicts are our interpretation of public California Department of Education data — independent analysis, not an official rating. How we analyze · Request a correction

Arete Charter Academy

Your school plan

0 of 4 steps checked

Your checklist stays in this browser. Checking a step records your progress; it does not confirm admission or enrollment.