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School Profile · Waterford

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

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

12420 Bentley Street, 95386 (opens in new tab)·Waterford Unified·Waterford·Grades TK-12·776 students·55% low-income·Charter·2024–25 CAASPP·(209) 874-1119·Website
Charter school — publicly funded, independently operated, open enrollment via lottery. Learn more
Scope Score
45
🤝 Culture First · Developing
ranked #2,555 statewide

Connecting Waters Charter scores 45 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 56th percentile of 5,744 California elementary schools (CDE CAASPP 2025).

Measures test performance, attendance, and climate — not arts, community, or your kid. How we score →

CDE CAASPP 2025

Most rating sites would stop at “33% proficient” and call it done. Connecting Waters Charter deserves a closer read. The school sits in Waterford, where more than half of students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

The headline number: 3.1% chronic absenteeism — versus 17.9% statewide. Attendance is the quietest strong signal a school can post.

As a charter, Connecting Waters Charter enrolls by application, not address — the score reads the same, the enrollment path doesn't.

The story this school is actually telling

The school, grade by grade

ELA · CAASPP 2024–25

Different students, same year — each bar is one grade's proficiency mix.

11%
13%
76%
Grade 3 · 24% proficient
19%
31%
50%
Grade 4 · 50% proficient
17%
17%
66%
Grade 5 · 34% proficient

The honest read: the share exceeding rises 6.8pp across grades; the floor rises 11.4pp. The state average rises 4.5pp over the same span. Kids here gain ground the longer they stay — the pattern you want to see. A school visit and conversation with teachers will tell you more than this number.

The 5 things our score weighs

Exceeded standard
12.4%
State 21.3%
8.9pp below state avg
Growth (G3→G5)
+1.0pp
State -2.9pp
Scores improve across grades
Met or exceeded
32.7%
State 42.7%
10.0pp below state avg
Chronic absenteeism
3.1%
State 17.9%
14.8pp below state avg
Suspension rate
0.2%
State 1.6%
1.5pp below state avg
Worth a school visit

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

Where the path goes

The path below follows attendance boundaries — scores shown for each next step.

K-12 Path

Connecting Waters Charter serves grades K-12 — students can complete their entire K-12 education here.

Planning ahead? 2 licensed preschools near this school →

Your other options

All schools in Waterford →

Private alternatives nearby

Private schools within ~10 miles. These schools do not participate in state testing and cannot be scored or ranked.

The community around it

Community Profile
Context — not part of the Scope Score

Student demographics

Hispanic35.0%
White43.9%
Asian8.0%
Black1.8%
Other11.2%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 54.6% (9pp below CA avg)
Resources & Access
Enrollment
776
424 below CA avg (~1,200)
Transitional Kindergarten
18 TK students
3% of a 697-student campus · CDE Census Day 2025-26
Student-Teacher Ratio
19:1
2 fewer students per teacher than CA avg
Per-Pupil Spending
$15,285
CA avg: $14,815 · District avg · NCES F-33
Teacher Salary Range
$63,148 – $119,244
District schedule · CA median ~$98K
At Connecting Waters Charter in Waterford, 40.8% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 31.7% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Connecting Waters Charter outperforms its district average for low-income students by 9.0 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (17.0% Math proficient); White students (41.9% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 7.4 percentage points for hispanic students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 233 students tested.
Equity Gaps
Math · Hispanic−9.1pp
14.8% vs 23.9% overall · n=132
3 more gaps by subject
ELA · Hispanic−7.4pp
35.7% vs 43.1% overall · n=132
ELA Exceeded · Hispanic−5.8pp
8.6% vs 14.4% overall · n=132
Math Exceeded · Hispanic−4.0pp
3.7% vs 7.7% overall · n=132

Subgroups with fewer than 15 students are excluded for privacy. Gaps of less than 3 percentage points are not shown.

Subgroup Proficiency
Low-Income235 tested
ELA 40.8%·Math 17.0%· +9.0pp vs district
White172 tested
ELA 41.9%·Math 21.5%· -2.9pp vs district
Hispanic146 tested
ELA 37.0%·Math 15.1%· +5.4pp vs district

Weighted average across tested grades. Subgroups with fewer than 15 students excluded. Data: CDE CAASPP 2024-25.

Subgroup Growth by Grade
Change in proficiency from lowest tested grade. Shows which groups are gaining ground.

Low-income student ELA proficiency rises by 19.9pp from grade 3 to grade 5 at this school. District average: -14.2pp.

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

Funding Breakdown
Instruction 66%Support 32%Other 2%

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

Neighborhood Context
Median Income
$73K
$12K below CA median
Median Home Value
$417K
$243K below CA median
Bachelor's+
11%
24pp below CA avg
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024) · ZIP-level
Whole Child
Teacher experience, college/career readiness, and more. Context only — never part of the Scope Score.
Teacher Experience
13.4 years avg experience
121 teachers · 7% first-year · 10% second-year
Teacher Credentials
56% 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 →

Frequently asked questions

Is Connecting Waters Charter a good elementary school?
Connecting Waters Charter has a Scope Score of 45 out of 100, placing it in the 56th percentile of California elementary schools and ranked #2,555 statewide. 12.4% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 8.9 percentage points below the California average of 21.3%. The Scope Score weights six dimensions for elementary schools: exceeded standard (43%), met or exceeded (22%), grade 3-to-5 growth (15%), chronic absenteeism (10%), ELPAC English Learner proficiency (5%), and suspension rate (5%). Data source: California Department of Education CAASPP 2025, analyzed by SchoolScope.
What are Connecting Waters Charter's CAASPP test scores?
On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 32.7% of students at Connecting Waters Charter met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 12.4% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 20.3% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 12.4% 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. 291 student-subject combinations were assessed.
How does Connecting Waters Charter rank in California?
Connecting Waters Charter ranks #2,555 among California elementary schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 56th 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 Connecting Waters Charter getting better or worse?
Based on 2025 CAASPP data, proficiency at Connecting Waters Charter increases by 1.0 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 Connecting Waters Charter?
3.1% of students at Connecting Waters Charter are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), which is better than the California average of 17.9%. The suspension rate is 0.2%, 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 Connecting Waters Charter compare to other schools in Waterford?
Connecting Waters Charter scores 45/100 (56th 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 776 students. Use the schools in Waterford page or the map view to compare all elementary schools nearby.
How does Connecting Waters Charter serve low-income and underrepresented students?
At Connecting Waters Charter in Waterford, 40.8% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 31.7% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Connecting Waters Charter outperforms its district average for low-income students by 9.0 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (17.0% Math proficient); White students (41.9% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 7.4 percentage points for hispanic students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 233 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.
How to get into a charter school in LA →
For the data nerds

Every number on this page

Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and peer comparisons.

01Score factorsWeighted composite · 2024–25
Exceeded standard · 38%
12.4%
↓ vs CA 21.3% · 41th pctile
Growth (G3→G5) · 27%
+1.0pp
↑ vs CA -2.9pp · 61th pctile
Met or exceeded · 20%
32.7%
↓ vs CA 42.7% · 42th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
3.1%
↑ vs CA 17.9% · 74th pctile
Suspension rate · 5%
0.2%
↑ vs CA 1.6% · 62th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 34711%13%38%38%23%−20
Grade 45219%31%15%35%50%+5
Grade 54617%17%28%37%35%−13
Grade 66215%29%31%26%44%−3
Grade 76013%40%22%25%53%+6
Grade 86910%33%23%33%43%−3
Grade 116916%36%20%28%52%+5
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 34813%21%15%52%33%−12
Grade 4526%25%33%37%31%−11
Grade 5469%15%11%65%24%−11
Grade 6636%14%33%46%21%−14
Grade 7603%20%23%53%23%−11
Grade 86910%13%19%58%23%−9
Grade 11697%6%17%70%13%−10
Science (CAST)TestedEXCMETNEARNOT
Grade 5/8/111845%20%57%18%

CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually. Not part of the Scope Score.

Subgroup · ELATestedMET+vs districtvs CA
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged23340.8%+9+3
White17241.9%−3−20
Hispanic/Latino14637.0%+5−2
03Peer comparison · nearest elementary schoolssorted by Scope Score
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+GrowthSusp
Connecting Waters Charter ←—4512.4%32.7%+1.00.2%
Hickman Elementary1.5 mi4819.7%55.3%−12.30.7%
Hickman Charter1.6 mi3912.6%30.5%+4.30.1%
California average—4521.3%42.7%−2.91.6%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Scope Score history
39%45%'19'22'23'24'25
2019 · 2022 · 2023 · 2024 · 2025 · no testing 2020–21 (COVID) · rank #3194 → #2711 → #1826 → #3410 → #2555
What we can't show
  • — Scored here as an elementary school — other grade spans appear in the data appendix.
Source: CA Dept. of Education · CAASPP 2024–25 · n=5,744 elementary schools · Data updated 2026-07-03methodology · data updates · CSV · report issue
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