Malabar Street Elementary vs Morris K. Hamasaki Elementary

Malabar Street Elementary and Morris K. Hamasaki Elementary sit 2.0 miles apart in Los Angeles, but their state rankings tell a sharper story: Malabar Street ranks #287 of 9,533 California schools, while Morris K. Hamasaki ranks #42 of 9,533 — placing it in the top 0.5% statewide. That translates to an overall rating gap of 8.9 vs. 9.4 out of 10 in favor of Morris K. Hamasaki, a difference that, while modest in absolute terms, reflects a meaningful positional advantage when benchmarked against nearly every elementary school in the state.

On academics, Morris K. Hamasaki Elementary scores 9.0 out of 10 versus Malabar Street Elementary's 7.7 — a 1.3-point gap that represents the clearest performance difference between the two schools. Growth scores are close but both strong: Malabar Street Elementary posts a 9.5 and Morris K. Hamasaki Elementary a 9.9, meaning both schools are moving students forward at exceptional rates relative to their peers. That Malabar Street's growth score outpaces many schools with higher academic baselines signals effective instruction despite a very high-poverty student body.

Both schools serve predominantly low-income populations, with free or reduced lunch rates of 97% at Malabar Street Elementary and 94% at Morris K. Hamasaki Elementary — an essentially equivalent share. Enrollment is 420 at Malabar Street versus 340 at Morris K. Hamasaki. The student-teacher ratio runs slightly tighter at Malabar Street (19.1:1) compared to Morris K. Hamasaki (20.0:1), though neither school offers a meaningfully smaller classroom experience than the other.

One structural distinction separates the schools: Malabar Street Elementary serves grades KG through 6, while Morris K. Hamasaki Elementary tops out at grade 5. Families with a child entering 6th grade have only one option here — Malabar Street — without an additional school transition. For families with younger children whose elementary years fall entirely within KG–5, both campuses are fully viable, and the choice shifts back to the academic and growth score comparison above.