Grattan Elementary vs King (Thomas Starr) Elementary

King (Thomas Starr) Elementary edges out Grattan Elementary by 0.1 rating points — 9.3 versus 9.2 out of 10 — but the state rank gap tells a sharper story: King (Thomas Starr) Elementary sits at #91 of 9,533 California schools while Grattan Elementary ranks #135 of 9,533. Both schools are genuine top-tier performers in a large state, separated by just 2.9 miles in San Francisco, and both serve grades KG–05. The difference between them is real but narrow, making the choice hinge on family circumstances rather than quality.

Academically, King (Thomas Starr) Elementary holds a modest edge with an 8.9/10 academic score compared to Grattan Elementary's 8.7/10. Both schools post identical growth scores of 9.5/10, meaning students at each school are advancing at the same above-average pace relative to their starting points. The 0.2-point academic gap suggests King (Thomas Starr) Elementary's students are achieving at a slightly higher level on proficiency measures, though neither school trails by any meaningful margin.

The demographic and resource picture diverges more sharply. Grattan Elementary enrolls 384 students against King (Thomas Starr) Elementary's 335, and its student-teacher ratio of 20.2:1 is notably wider than King (Thomas Starr) Elementary's 16.8:1 — meaning King (Thomas Starr) Elementary averages roughly three fewer students per teacher, which typically translates to more individualized attention. Free and reduced-price lunch eligibility stands at 15% at Grattan Elementary versus 40% at King (Thomas Starr) Elementary, a 25-percentage-point difference that reflects substantially greater economic diversity at King (Thomas Starr) and a broader range of family backgrounds in the student body.

Both schools cover the same grade span — kindergarten through fifth grade — so families are not choosing between different academic endpoints. The core structural distinction is that King (Thomas Starr) Elementary pairs its slightly higher academic output with smaller class sizes and a more economically diverse enrollment, while Grattan Elementary draws from a less economically diverse population in a larger building.