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Desert Shadows Middle School

Q: Is Desert Shadows Middle School a good school?

Desert Shadows Middle School ranks 75 th of 552 Arizona middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 5-8

75^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 552 Arizona Middle Schools

Better than 86% of Arizona middle schools

Summary

Desert Shadows Middle School is a public middle school in Scottsdale, Arizona, serving 734 students in grades 6-8. It is part of the Paradise Valley Unified District, which is ranked 106 out of 289 districts in the state and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Desert Shadows Middle School consistently performs above the district and state averages in standardized test scores for English Language Arts and Mathematics. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, 63% of 7th-grade students were proficient or better in ELA, compared to 53% for the district and 42% for the state. In 8th-grade Math, 61% of students were proficient or better, compared to 43% for the district and 27% for the state. The school also performs particularly well for certain student subgroups, ranking 10th out of 192 Arizona middle schools for Asian students in ELA and 8th out of 606 schools for English Language Learner students in Math.

Over the past 10 years, Desert Shadows Middle School has consistently ranked in the top 20% of Arizona middle schools, with a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger. Its ranking has ranged from 74th to 135th out of the state's middle schools, and it has relatively low dropout rates, ranging from 2.2% to 6.1% over the past few years, which is lower than the state average. While Explorer Middle School and Sunrise Middle School within the same district also demonstrate strong academic performance, Desert Shadows Middle School stands out as a high-performing institution that provides a quality education to its diverse student population.

791

Students ?

20.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$6,111

Per pupil spending ?

6.9%

Free/discounted lunch ?

5858 E Sweetwater Ave
Scottsdale, AZ 85254-4376

(602) 449-6800

District: Paradise Valley Unified District

Students who attend Desert Shadows Middle School usually attend:

High:

Horizon High School

Feeder schools for Desert Shadows Middle School:

Elementary:	Desert Shadows Elementary School
	Desert Springs Preparatory Elementary School
	North Ranch Elementary School
	Sonoran Sky Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

White:

69.2%

Hispanic:

17.6%

Two or more races:

6.4%

See top rated Arizona middle schools

Compare Desert Shadows Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 80th percentile in 2015 → 86th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Arizona average (57% vs 33% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 14% of Arizona middle schools

✓Ranking is trending up — up 6 percentile points since 2015

Worth a look

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

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school57%

District avg45%

Arizona avg33%

75^th of 552

Arizona public middle schools ?

Top 14%▲ up 6 pts since 2015

From top 20% (2015) to top 14% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Arizona Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 6Middle Schools in the Paradise Valley Unified District

106^th of 289Paradise Valley Unified District among Arizona districts

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
2025	81.0	75 of 552	86.4%	★★★★☆
2024	74.4	115 of 550	79.1%	★★★★☆
2023	84.4	95 of 854	88.9%	★★★★☆
2022	77.6	102 of 605	83.1%	★★★★☆
2021	80.5	135 of 832	83.8%	★★★★☆
2019	83.2	84 of 605	86.1%	★★★★☆
2018	86.9	74 of 711	89.6%	★★★★☆
2017	83.3	92 of 695	86.8%	★★★★☆
2016	80.2	109 of 677	83.9%	★★★★☆
2015	77.7	102 of 521	80.4%	★★★★☆
2014	88.4	64 of 690	90.7%	★★★★★
2013	82.0	101 of 787	87.2%	★★★★☆
2012	84.8	69 of 772	91.1%	★★★★★
2011	88.6	50 of 685	92.7%	★★★★★
2010	89.1	44 of 692	93.6%	★★★★★
2009	91.2	24 of 663	96.4%	★★★★★

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	50.2	162 of 400	59.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	26.1	117 of 129	9.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	52.4	182 of 573	68.2%	★★★☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	61.4	78 of 247	68.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	91.6	10 of 192	94.8%	★★★★★
2021	70.1	81 of 404	80.0%	★★★★☆
2018	46.1	28 of 42	33.3%	★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	70.8	8 of 606	98.7%	★★★★★

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2025	74.7	68 of 395	82.8%	★★★★☆
2024	64.3	107 of 386	72.3%	★★★★☆
2023	86.6	73 of 806	90.9%	★★★★★
2022	74.9	79 of 494	84.0%	★★★★☆
2021	78.5	135 of 820	83.5%	★★★★☆
2019	79.8	71 of 466	84.8%	★★★★☆
2018	85.2	67 of 624	89.3%	★★★★☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2025	69.6	77 of 345	77.7%	★★★★☆
2024	69.8	70 of 329	78.7%	★★★★☆
2023	73.7	133 of 760	82.5%	★★★★☆
2022	73.9	79 of 392	79.8%	★★★★☆
2021	86.6	48 of 802	94.0%	★★★★★
2019	81.7	59 of 387	84.8%	★★★★☆
2018	87.0	42 of 543	92.3%	★★★★★

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2025	64.2	82 of 344	76.2%	★★★★☆
2024	57.9	101 of 320	68.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	69.4	141 of 717	80.3%	★★★★☆
2022	43.2	191 of 369	48.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	83.2	54 of 503	89.3%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2025	71.8	82 of 379	78.4%	★★★★☆
2024	69.7	84 of 370	77.3%	★★★★☆
2023	79.7	119 of 810	85.3%	★★★★☆
2022	73.3	85 of 476	82.1%	★★★★☆
2021	80.1	122 of 818	85.1%	★★★★☆
2019	78.0	79 of 435	81.8%	★★★★☆
2018	84.2	81 of 617	86.9%	★★★★☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2025	53.6	8 of 23	65.2%	★★★★☆
2023	89.0	12 of 384	96.9%	★★★★★
2022	75.8	30 of 211	85.8%	★★★★☆
2021	69.5	121 of 650	81.4%	★★★★☆
2019	51.9	7 of 14	50.0%	★★★☆☆
2018	88.0	4 of 43	90.7%	★★★★★

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	67.8	36 of 390	90.8%	★★★★★

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	44.3	149 of 363	59.0%	★★★☆☆
2021	85.1	18 of 789	97.7%	★★★★★
2018	89.1	8 of 178	95.5%	★★★★★

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2025	62.1	83 of 277	70.0%	★★★★☆
2024	52.2	127 of 288	55.9%	★★★☆☆
2023	71.6	132 of 675	80.4%	★★★★☆
2022	57.8	172 of 446	61.4%	★★★☆☆
2021	66.9	208 of 780	73.3%	★★★★☆
2019	66.9	96 of 337	71.5%	★★★★☆
2018	72.4	99 of 436	77.3%	★★★★☆

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)

English Language Learner (2021)99th percentile+15 vs school

Native American (2021)91st percentile+7 vs school

Female (2025)83rd percentile-4 vs school

Male (2025)78th percentile-8 vs school

Hispanic (2025)78th percentile-9 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)76th percentile-10 vs school

White (2025)70th percentile-16 vs school

Asian (2023)68th percentile-20 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)65th percentile-21 vs school

African American (2023)60th percentile-29 vs school

Special Education (2023)59th percentile-30 vs school

By subject vs Arizona (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts60%+20 vs state

Mathematics58%+32 vs state

Science45%+15 vs state

1.0

2 ratings · 1 written review

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What people are saying

by a parent
Wednesday, August 24, 2022

GRAVE safety & security issues. Not only bullying and threats of violence from other students, but parents of the students. Use the new AZ ESAs to go to private schools, where everything from safety to learnings is better. Close Quote

Schools Near Desert Shadows Middle School

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 6th Grade	AASA English Language Arts 7th Grade	AASA English Language Arts 8th Grade	AASA Mathematics 6th Grade	AASA Mathematics 7th Grade	AASA Mathematics 8th Grade	AzSCI Science 8th 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
Desert Shadows Middle School	Public	5-8	5858 E Sweetwater Ave	Scottsdale	85254	Maricopa County	Paradise Valley Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(602) 449-6800	791	39	20.1		547 (69.2%)	14 (1.8%)	139 (17.6%)	26 (3.3%)	13 (1.6%)	1 (0.1%)	51 (6.4%)	81	75^th of 552 public middle schools	86.4%		74.4	115^th of 550 public middle schools	79.1%	40		63.0	58.0		56.0	61.0	45.0	$6,111	$194	$100	$487	$5,382	$436	$5,818
Sunrise Middle School	Public	5-8	4960 E Acoma Dr	Scottsdale	85254	Maricopa County	Paradise Valley Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(602) 449-6100	390	25	15.7		192 (49.2%)	16 (4.1%)	133 (34.1%)	22 (5.6%)	3 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (6.2%)	65.3	155^th of 552 public middle schools	71.9%		72.5	125^th of 550 public middle schools	77.3%	30		53.0	53.0		41.0	42.0	43.0	$9,127	$870	$218	$1,959	$7,702	$337	$8,039
Cocopah Middle School	Public	6-8	6615 E Cholla St	Scottsdale	85254	Maricopa County	Scottsdale Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(480) 484-4400	861	44	19.5		654 (76.0%)	29 (3.4%)	104 (12.1%)	46 (5.3%)	4 (0.5%)	1 (0.1%)	23 (2.7%)	92	37^th of 552 public middle schools	93.3%		92.2	38^th of 550 public middle schools	93.1%	1	72.0	71.0	67.0	74.0	69.0	69.0	54.0	$6,404	$81	$437	$599	$5,468	$418	$5,886
Mission Montessori Academy's Middle Years Program	Public, Charter	4-8	4530 E Gold Dust Ave	Phoenix	85028	Maricopa County	The Farm at Mission Montessori Academy	Yes	(n/a)	No	No	(480) 699-4950	43	4	10.7		25 (58.1%)	1 (2.3%)	12 (27.9%)	1 (2.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (9.3%)								(n/a)	89.0		80.0						$00			$00
Greenway Middle School	Public	5-8	3002 E Nisbet Rd	Phoenix	85032	Maricopa County	Paradise Valley Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(602) 449-2400	646	38	17.0		62 (9.6%)	52 (8.0%)	497 (76.9%)	7 (1.1%)	15 (2.3%)	2 (0.3%)	11 (1.7%)	12.6	507^th of 552 public middle schools	8.2%		11.4	515^th of 550 public middle schools	6.4%	8		21.0	21.0		13.0	15.0	12.0	$8,288	$510	$191	$1,210	$7,055	$533	$7,588
Shea Middle School	Public	5-8	2728 E Shea Blvd	Phoenix	85028	Maricopa County	Paradise Valley Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(602) 449-3500	476	33	14.4		227 (47.7%)	20 (4.2%)	187 (39.3%)	6 (1.3%)	3 (0.6%)	2 (0.4%)	31 (6.5%)	38.5	279^th of 552 public middle schools	49.5%		31.1	331^st of 550 public middle schools	39.8%	52		40.0	39.0		29.0	21.0	35.0	$9,578	$632	$185	$1,449	$8,078	$683	$8,761
Desert Canyon Middle School	Public	6-8	10203 E McDowell Mtn Ranch Rd	Scottsdale	85255	Maricopa County	Scottsdale Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(480) 484-4600	423	28	15.1		296 (70.0%)	20 (4.7%)	51 (12.1%)	35 (8.3%)	4 (0.9%)	1 (0.2%)	16 (3.8%)	89.6	44^th of 552 public middle schools	92.0%		80.4	85^th of 550 public middle schools	84.5%	41	63.0	69.0	67.0	63.0	68.0	62.0	59.0	$7,889	$356	$1,085	$1,798	$6,505		$6,447
Explorer Middle School	Public	5-8	22401 N 40th St	Phoenix	85050	Maricopa County	Paradise Valley Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(602) 449-4200	607	31	19.5		473 (77.9%)	8 (1.3%)	78 (12.9%)	19 (3.1%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (4.4%)	81.6	74^th of 552 public middle schools	86.6%		81.9	76^th of 550 public middle schools	86.2%	2		65.0	57.0		60.0	59.0	45.0	$6,002	$187	$138	$512	$5,487	$190	$5,677
Mohave Middle School	Public	6-8	8490 E Jackrabbit Rd	Scottsdale	85250	Maricopa County	Scottsdale Unified District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(480) 484-5200	753	55	13.8		378 (50.2%)	34 (4.5%)	254 (33.7%)	30 (4.0%)	38 (5.0%)	1 (0.1%)	18 (2.4%)	57.6	195^th of 552 public middle schools	64.7%		53.5	217^th of 550 public middle schools	60.5%	22	52.0	53.0	50.0	43.0	36.0	30.0	38.0	$6,460	$191	$516	$898	$5,515	$237	$5,752
Mountain Sky Middle School	Public	7-8	16225 N 7th Ave	Phoenix	85023	Maricopa County	Washington Elementary School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(602) 896-6100	672	32	21.1		235 (35.0%)	58 (8.6%)	320 (47.6%)	10 (1.5%)	17 (2.5%)	2 (0.3%)	30 (4.5%)	36.6	293^rd of 552 public middle schools	46.9%		27.9	353^rd of 550 public middle schools	35.8%	60		42.0	38.0		24.0	26.0	30.0	$6,668	$408	$103	$919	$5,323	$834	$6,157

Frequently Asked Questions about Desert Shadows Middle School

What district is Desert Shadows Middle School in?

Paradise Valley Unified District

What is the racial makeup of Desert Shadows Middle School?

Students at Desert Shadows Middle School are 69% White, 18% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races, 3% Asian, 2% African American, 2% American Indian.

What high school do graduates of Desert Shadows Middle School attend?

Students who attend Desert Shadows Middle School usually go on to attend Horizon High School

Is Desert Shadows Middle School a good school?

Desert Shadows Middle School ranks 75^th of 552 Arizona middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Desert Shadows Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 791 students attended Desert Shadows Middle School.

Rate Desert Shadows Middle School!

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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.