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New Horizon School for the Performing Arts

Public, Charter Grades K-6

Summary

New Horizon School for the Performing Arts is a small public charter elementary school serving grades K-6 in Mesa, Arizona, with a student population of 147 as of the 2022-2023 school year. The school has a predominantly Hispanic student body (75.51%) and a high percentage of students (97.96%) qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a high level of economic disadvantage.

Despite its focus on the performing arts, New Horizon School for the Performing Arts has consistently underperformed academically, ranking in the bottom quarter of Arizona elementary schools over the past decade. The school's proficiency rates on standardized tests range from just 4% to 25% in English Language Arts and 8% to 20% in Mathematics, well below the state averages. This academic struggle is particularly pronounced among the school's Hispanic students, who score significantly lower than their peers statewide. In comparison, nearby schools like Gem Charter School have outperformed New Horizon School for the Performing Arts across all grade levels and subject areas.

The school's declining performance and significant racial and socioeconomic disparities suggest a need for substantial improvements in academic instruction, resource allocation, and targeted support for struggling student subgroups. While the school has shown some bright spots in its support for homeless and Native American students, the overall data indicates that New Horizon School for the Performing Arts is struggling to provide a high-quality education for its predominantly Hispanic and economically disadvantaged student population within the Mesa Unified District.

119

Students ?

11.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

98%

Free/discounted lunch ?

446 E Broadway Rd
Mesa, AZ 85204-2020

(480) 655-7444

District: New Horizon School for the Performing Arts

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

77.3%

White:

14.3%

African American:

5.9%

See top rated Arizona public schools

Compare New Horizon School for the Performing Arts to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 32nd percentile in 2010 → 6th in 2023

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 12 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Arizona average (13% vs 39% meeting standards)

!Ranking has slipped — down 26 percentile points since 2010

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2022-2023) ?

This school13%

District avg13%

Arizona avg39%

Not ranked this year

New Horizon School for the Performing Arts did not have enough recent test-score data to be ranked. Check the trend below for past years.

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	12.9	1165 of 1245	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	38.5	680 of 1226	44.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	17.6	943 of 1109	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	18.1	942 of 1106	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	17.7	927 of 1079	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	25.9	840 of 1079	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	32.5	869 of 1158	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	51.5	556 of 1141	51.3%	★★★☆☆
2011	34.1	732 of 1075	31.9%	★★☆☆☆
2010	34.3	745 of 1090	31.7%	★★☆☆☆
2009	48.8	557 of 1062	47.6%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	21.1	885 of 895	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	39.3	545 of 975	44.1%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	17.4	1054 of 1219	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	44.0	606 of 1219	50.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	41.4	558 of 1023	45.5%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	11.7	1150 of 1170	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	38.8	672 of 1198	43.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	28.3	675 of 911	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	64.8	49 of 423	88.4%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	17.3	1027 of 1116	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	24.5	666 of 820	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	11.6	1169 of 1216	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	36.8	701 of 1220	42.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	12.0	971 of 1032	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	74.9	147 of 1027	85.7%	★★★★☆

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	62.7	119 of 654	81.8%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	33.4	803 of 1201	33.1%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	20.7	872 of 1024	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	55.5	476 of 1161	59.0%	★★★☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Homeless (2021)88th percentile+44 vs school

Multi-racial (2021)86th percentile+41 vs school

Native American (2021)82nd percentile+37 vs school

English Language Learner (2021)44th percentile~ school

Special Education (2021)33rd percentile-11 vs school

White (2023)15th percentile+8 vs school

Female (2023)14th percentile+7 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2023)8th percentile~ school

Male (2023)4th percentile-3 vs school

Hispanic (2023)2nd percentile-5 vs school

African American (2021)1st percentile-43 vs school

By subject vs Arizona (2022-2023) ?

English Language Arts14%-27 vs state

Mathematics13%-24 vs state

Science8%-26 vs state

3.0

2 ratings · 2 written reviews

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What people are saying

by a parent
Friday, March 11, 2011

My child is about to graduate Kindergarten. When she started school she couldn't read and def could not write a sentence. She started the year only able to count to 18. As the year ends she is able to count to 112 and not only is she reading simple books but she is writing full stories. She is adding and Subtracting, counting by fives and tens. Not only is the education amazing, but the school performances they put out is beyond imagining. My daughter has extreme social anxiety, but She loves her teachers and is socializing with the other children, and she gets up on stage singing and dancing. Even though she has stage fright she looks forward to performing. Each and every one of those kids knows the dance steps and words to the songs. They for the most part look like they are enjoying the performance as much as we enjoy watching. It is like nothing you will ever see in a reg public elementary school. Close Quote

by a citizen
Sunday, February 20, 2011

This school is not living up to what it is trying to promote. The owners are just trying to get money in the school so they hire inferior staff and the whole school seems to be on Title One. If children that have been going to this school for the past few years suddenly have been put on Title one (which you usually are 1-2 yrs behind) that in itself show that the school is not teaching the children what they should be and it stems from the High, High rate of turnover in the staff. Maybe parents and prospective parents should take note and wonder why there is such a high turnover in the (qualified) teaching staff at New Horizons. (On average 3-4 teachers a year) and there are only 7 grades (k-6). Close Quote

Schools Near New Horizon School for the Performing Arts

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				AASA English Language Arts (2025)				AASA Mathematics (2025)				AzSCI Science (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2022)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	AASA English Language Arts 3rd Grade	AASA English Language Arts 4th Grade	AASA English Language Arts 5th Grade	AASA English Language Arts 6th Grade	AASA Mathematics 3rd Grade	AASA Mathematics 4th Grade	AASA Mathematics 5th Grade	AASA Mathematics 6th Grade	AzSCI Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures: Total	Personnel Spending from Federal Funds	Non-Personnel Spending from Federal Funds	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Personnel Spending from State and Local Funds	Non-Personnel from State and Local Funds	Sub-total Spending from State and Local Funds
New Horizon School for the Performing Arts	Public, Charter	K-6	446 E Broadway Rd	Mesa	85204	Maricopa County	New Horizon School for the Performing Arts	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 655-7444	119	10	11.9		17 (14.3%)	7 (5.9%)	92 (77.3%)	1 (0.8%)	2 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)											$00			$00
SLAM Arizona Inc.	Public, Charter	K-8	305 E Main Street	Mesa	85201	Maricopa County	SLAM Arizona Inc.	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(702) 431-6260	59				3 (5.1%)	16 (27.1%)	39 (66.1%)	1 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)
Franklin Accelerated Academy - Downtown Campus	Public	PK, KG-6	236 S Sirrine	Mesa	85210	Maricopa County	Mesa Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(480) 472-5400	373	18	20.7		145 (38.9%)	13 (3.5%)	173 (46.4%)	6 (1.6%)	8 (2.1%)	2 (0.5%)	26 (7.0%)	82.4	136^th of 909 public elementary schools	85.0%		85.6	120^th of 912 public elementary schools	86.8%	16	58.0	71.0	74.0	56.0	58.0	70.0	76.0	48.0	48.0	$7,582	$29	$19	$76	$7,360	$174	$7,534
Lowell Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	920 E Broadway Rd	Mesa	85204	Maricopa County	Mesa Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 472-1400	441	28	15.5		34 (7.7%)	16 (3.6%)	372 (84.4%)	1 (0.2%)	7 (1.6%)	3 (0.7%)	8 (1.8%)	11.2	853^rd of 909 public elementary schools	6.2%		17.4	750^th of 912 public elementary schools	17.8%	103	21.0	23.0	21.0	22.0	20.0					$10,021	$779	$218	$1,777	$8,735	$288	$9,023
Heritage Academy Pinnacle	Public, Charter	K-8	32 S Center St	Mesa	85210	Maricopa County	Heritage Academy Inc.	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(623) 537-3535	124	8	15.5		74 (59.7%)	3 (2.4%)	32 (25.8%)	2 (1.6%)	2 (1.6%)	1 (0.8%)	10 (8.1%)								(n/a)		74.0
Holmes Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	948 S Horne	Mesa	85204	Maricopa County	Mesa Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 472-5556	536	34	15.7		28 (5.2%)	14 (2.6%)	473 (88.2%)	2 (0.4%)	10 (1.9%)	1 (0.2%)	8 (1.5%)								(n/a)				21.0		27.0				$8,402	$561	$157	$1,278	$7,504	$180	$7,684
Lincoln Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	930 S Sirrine	Mesa	85210	Maricopa County	Mesa Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 472-6400	572	36	16.0		37 (6.5%)	14 (2.4%)	503 (87.9%)	5 (0.9%)	4 (0.7%)	3 (0.5%)	6 (1.0%)	14	805^th of 909 public elementary schools	11.4%		12.9	824^th of 912 public elementary schools	9.6%	19		20.0		28.0		20.0		22.0		$8,849	$800	$58	$1,659	$7,498	$493	$7,991
Mesa Arts Academy	Public, Charter	K-8	221 W 6th Ave	Mesa	85210	Maricopa County	The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 844-3965	227	8	28.3		25 (11.0%)	13 (5.7%)	176 (77.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	1 (0.4%)	11 (4.8%)								(n/a)											$00			$00
Burke Basic School	Public, Charter	K-6	131 E Southern Ave	Mesa	85210	Maricopa County	American Basic Schools LLC	Yes	(n/a)	No	No	(480) 964-4602	634	34	18.6		12 (1.9%)	22 (3.5%)	590 (93.1%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.5%)	17.6	739^th of 909 public elementary schools	18.7%		13.1	819^th of 912 public elementary schools	10.2%	80		42.0	21.0	28.0		14.0		17.0			$00			$00
Step Up School	Public, Charter	K-8	44 E 5th St	Mesa	85201	Maricopa County	STEP UP Schools Inc.	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(480) 344-2600	62	7	8.8		0 (0.0%)	13 (21.0%)	46 (74.2%)	1 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (3.2%)								(n/a)											$00			$00

Frequently Asked Questions about New Horizon School for the Performing Arts

What is the racial makeup of New Horizon School for the Performing Arts?

Students at New Horizon School for the Performing Arts are 77% Hispanic, 14% White, 6% African American, 2% American Indian.

What district is New Horizon School for the Performing Arts in?

New Horizon School for the Performing Arts

How many students attend New Horizon School for the Performing Arts?

In the 2024-25 school year, 119 students attended New Horizon School for the Performing Arts.

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Arizona Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.