Tom Bradley Global Awareness Magnet vs Charles H. Kim Elementary

Charles H. Kim Elementary holds a decisive edge in overall standing, rating 9.6 out of 10 against Tom Bradley Global Awareness Magnet's 9.2 — a gap that reflects their very different state positions. Charles H. Kim Elementary ranks #9 of 9,533 schools in California, placing it in the top 0.1 percent statewide, while Tom Bradley Global Awareness Magnet ranks #112 of 9,533 — itself a strong result, but in an entirely different tier. For parents weighing schools just 3.9 miles apart, that 103-spot difference in state rank is among the most concrete signals available.

The academic score delta drives most of that gap. Charles H. Kim Elementary scores 9.5 out of 10 in academics against Tom Bradley Global Awareness Magnet's 7.9 — a 1.6-point difference that represents a meaningful proficiency advantage. Tom Bradley, however, posts the stronger growth score: a perfect 10.0 out of 10 versus Charles H. Kim's 9.8. That near-perfect growth figure signals that Tom Bradley students are making exceptional year-over-year gains relative to peers, even if their absolute proficiency ceiling sits lower. Families who prioritize trajectory over starting-point scores will read those numbers differently than families anchored to grade-level mastery benchmarks.

Both schools serve nearly identical economic populations — Tom Bradley Global Awareness Magnet at 86 percent free or reduced-price lunch and Charles H. Kim Elementary at 88 percent — so neither school has a demographic advantage that would explain the academic gap. Charles H. Kim's larger enrollment of 472 students versus Tom Bradley's 138 gives it more operational scale, while Tom Bradley's smaller size contributes to a tighter student-teacher ratio of 19.7:1 compared to Charles H. Kim's 18.2:1, though the difference is modest. Both schools serve grades KG through 05, so grade-span is not a differentiating factor.

Tom Bradley's magnet designation is its most structurally distinct feature — the Global Awareness theme shapes curriculum around international perspectives in a way that a conventional neighborhood elementary cannot replicate. Charles H. Kim Elementary's appeal rests on certified academic outcomes: a #9 statewide rank is an objective result that few schools in California can match at any demographic profile.