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South Mountain High School

Q: Is South Mountain High School a good school?

South Mountain High School ranks in the bottom 2.6% of Arizona high schools.

Q: How many students attend South Mountain High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 2,207 students attended South Mountain High School.

Q: What is the racial makeup of South Mountain High School?

Students at South Mountain High School are 79% Hispanic, 15% African American, 3% White, 1% Two or more races, 1% American Indian.

Q: What schools feed into South Mountain High School?

South Mountain High School is fed by the following schools: Elementary : C O Greenfield School Elementary : Cloves C Campbell Senior Elementary School Elementary : Irene Lopez School Elementary : John F Kennedy Elementary School Elementary : Martin Luther King Early Childhood Center Elementary : Maxine O Bush Elementary School Elementary : Percy L Julian School Elementary : T G Barr School

Public Grades 9-12

264^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 271 Arizona High Schools

Better than 3% of Arizona high schools

Summary

South Mountain High School is a public high school in Phoenix, Arizona, serving 2,171 students in grades 9-12. The school is part of the Phoenix Union High School District, which is ranked 253 out of 289 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Academically, South Mountain High School consistently ranks in the bottom quartile of Arizona high schools, with only 6% of 11th-grade students proficient or better in Science, compared to 19% statewide and 9% in the district. The school's English Language Arts and Mathematics proficiency rates for 11th-grade students are also well below the state and district averages, ranging from 12-16% and 7-8% respectively, compared to 38-40% and 30% statewide. Additionally, the school's four-year graduation rate has ranged from 75.2% to 79.6% over the past few years, lower than the state and district averages, and its dropout rate has been consistently higher.

While South Mountain High School faces significant challenges, the presence of several nearby charter schools, such as ASU Preparatory Academy - Phoenix High School and AAEC - SMCC Campus, which have outperformed the school on various academic metrics, may present opportunities for collaboration and learning from best practices. Addressing the school's low performance and high dropout rates will require a comprehensive, data-driven approach that focuses on improving instructional quality, supporting student engagement and well-being, and leveraging community partnerships to provide additional resources and opportunities for the school's diverse student population.

2,207

Students ?

20.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$9,998

Per pupil spending ?

84.9%

Free/discounted lunch ?

5401 S 7th St
Phoenix, AZ 85040-3104

(602) 764-5000

District: Phoenix Union High School District

Feeder schools for South Mountain High School:

Elementary:	C O Greenfield School
	Cloves C Campbell Senior Elementary School
	Irene Lopez School
	John F Kennedy Elementary School
	More...
	Martin Luther King Early Childhood Center
	Maxine O Bush Elementary School
	Percy L Julian School
	T G Barr School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

78.7%

African American:

15.0%

White:

2.9%

See top rated Arizona high schools

Compare South Mountain High School to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 13th percentile in 2015 → 3rd in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Arizona average (10% vs 30% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (3rd percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 10 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school10%

District avg14%

Arizona avg30%

264^th of 271

Arizona public high schools ?

Bottom 3%▼ down 10 pts since 2015

From bottom 13% (2015) to bottom 3% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Arizona High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

12^th of 14High Schools in the Phoenix Union High School District

253^rd of 289Phoenix Union High School 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	10.4	264 of 271	2.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	9.3	266 of 270	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	20.2	373 of 469	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.7	387 of 464	16.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	28.9	331 of 509	35.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	9.6	281 of 285	1.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	18.6	327 of 420	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	18.5	327 of 416	21.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	21.1	298 of 406	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	19.8	227 of 261	13.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	36.0	262 of 394	33.5%	★★☆☆☆
2013	42.4	278 of 491	43.4%	★★☆☆☆
2012	48.7	247 of 471	47.6%	★★☆☆☆
2011	42.4	227 of 397	42.8%	★★☆☆☆
2010	46.8	224 of 403	44.4%	★★☆☆☆
2009	43.6	231 of 395	41.5%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	10.5	198 of 201	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	29.4	195 of 301	35.2%	★★☆☆☆
2021	32.2	186 of 306	39.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	14.0	28 of 33	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	18.7	108 of 122	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	19.3	21 of 24	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	41.7	53 of 258	79.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	49.7	24 of 312	92.3%	★★★★★

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2025	11.3	199 of 207	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	5.9	200 of 200	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.8	369 of 406	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	17.4	366 of 456	19.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	29.7	317 of 492	35.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	8.3	244 of 247	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	15.3	304 of 354	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Foster Care

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2022	30.5	48 of 116	58.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2025	11.1	174 of 176	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	9.6	168 of 170	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	22.0	312 of 379	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.1	360 of 441	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	34.6	284 of 479	40.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	12.1	182 of 183	0.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	21.5	246 of 311	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	73.6	14 of 60	76.7%	★★★★☆
2022	81.1	14 of 150	90.7%	★★★★★
2021	31.1	69 of 168	58.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	18.2	25 of 26	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2025	13.4	177 of 180	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	11.2	169 of 172	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	23.6	283 of 347	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.2	158 of 168	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	22.4	195 of 253	22.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2025	7.7	222 of 223	0.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	7.5	217 of 219	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	21.3	334 of 429	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.0	384 of 455	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	29.2	322 of 492	34.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	8.5	238 of 238	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	16.7	313 of 370	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Military Connected

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	19.8	64 of 102	37.3%	★★☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	26.3	157 of 199	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	16.2	229 of 282	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.1	248 of 374	33.7%	★★☆☆☆

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2022	44.2	96 of 255	62.4%	★★★☆☆
2021	53.0	67 of 256	73.8%	★★★★☆

Pacific Islander

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2021	27.2	41 of 94	56.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	20.9	164 of 172	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	32.4	192 of 380	49.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	36.7	204 of 422	51.7%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arizona percentile	Rating
2023	23.2	293 of 371	21.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	51.5	165 of 409	59.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	55.6	185 of 448	58.7%	★★★☆☆
2018	21.2	231 of 291	20.6%	★☆☆☆☆

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 (2023)77th percentile+56 vs school

Native American (2022)62nd percentile+46 vs school

Foster Care (2022)59th percentile+42 vs school

Pacific Islander (2021)56th percentile+21 vs school

Military Connected (2021)37th percentile~ school

Multi-racial (2023)21st percentile~ school

White (2023)21st percentile~ school

English Language Learner (2023)12th percentile-8 vs school

Special Education (2023)5th percentile-16 vs school

Female (2025)4th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)2nd percentile~ school

African American (2023)1st percentile-19 vs school

Hispanic (2025)1st percentile~ school

Male (2025)<1st percentile~ school

By subject vs Arizona (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts16%-24 vs state

Mathematics7%-23 vs state

Science6%-13 vs state

★

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Schools Near South Mountain High 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 7th Grade	AASA English Language Arts 8th Grade	AASA English Language Arts 11th Grade	AASA Mathematics 7th Grade	AASA Mathematics 8th Grade	AASA Mathematics 11th Grade	AzSCI Science 8th Grade	AzSCI Science 11th 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
South Mountain High School	Public	9-12	5401 S 7th St	Phoenix	85040	Maricopa County	Phoenix Union High School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(602) 764-5000	2,207	107	20.7		64 (2.9%)	332 (15.0%)	1,737 (78.7%)	10 (0.5%)	28 (1.3%)	5 (0.2%)	31 (1.4%)	10.4	264^th of 271 public high schools	2.6%		9.3	266^th of 270 public high schools	1.5%	2			16.0			7.0		6.0	$9,998	$803	$252	$1,858	$8,107	$836	$8,943
International Commerce High School - Phoenix	Public, Charter	9-12	432 E Southern	Phoenix	85040	Maricopa County	International Commerce Secondary Schools Inc.	Yes	(n/a)	No	No	(480) 317-5900	202	14	14.0		7 (3.5%)	16 (7.9%)	172 (85.1%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.0%)	1 (0.5%)	4 (2.0%)								(n/a)									$9,900	$1,202	$126	$2,530	$4,975	$3,598	$8,572
NFL YET College Prep Academy	Public, Charter	7-12	4848 S 2nd St	Phoenix	85040	Maricopa County	Espiritu Community Development Corp.	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(602) 243-7788	368	20	18.0		7 (1.9%)	12 (3.3%)	343 (93.2%)	4 (1.1%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)	40.0	38.0		37.0	38.0	25.0				$00			$00
ASU Preparatory Academy - South Phoenix High School	Public, Charter	7-12	4445 S 12th St	Phoenix	85040	Maricopa County	ASU Preparatory Academy	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(602) 842-1722	247	18	13.7		14 (5.7%)	19 (7.7%)	199 (80.6%)	5 (2.0%)	5 (2.0%)	1 (0.4%)	4 (1.6%)								(n/a)										$00			$00
Hope College and Career Readiness Academy	Public	9-12	6401 S 16th St	Phoenix	85042	Maricopa County	Maricopa County Regional School District	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(602) 875-5265	0	4	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)										$00			$00
Paideia Liberal Arts Academy	Public, Charter	7-12	1535 E Baseline Rd	Phoenix	85042	Maricopa County	The Paideia Academies Inc	Yes	(n/a)	No	No	(602) 343-3043	266	21	12.6		29 (10.9%)	41 (15.4%)	183 (68.8%)	2 (0.8%)	3 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (3.0%)								(n/a)	39.0	35.0					21.0			$00			$00
Kaizen Education Foundation dba Quest High School	Public, Charter	9-12	217 E Olympic Dr	Phoenix	85042	Maricopa County	Kaizen Education Foundation dba Tempe Accelerated	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(602) 243-8496	84	7	12.0		5 (6.0%)	11 (13.1%)	66 (78.6%)	1 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.2%)								(n/a)									$14,719	$2,946	$1,747	$7,638	$4,880	$5,146	$10,027
AAEC - SMCC Campus	Public, Charter	9-12	2002 E Baseline Rd	Phoenix	85042	Maricopa County	Arizona Agribusiness & Equine Center Inc.	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(602) 323-9890	426	20	21.3		16 (3.8%)	22 (5.2%)	379 (89.0%)	3 (0.7%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	48.4	119^th of 271 public high schools	56.1%		30.6	177^th of 270 public high schools	34.4%	58			63.0			23.0		21.0		$00			$00
South Pointe High School	Public, Charter	9-12	8325 S Central Ave	Phoenix	85042	Maricopa County	American Charter Schools Foundation d.b.a. South P	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(602) 243-0600	615	28	21.9		21 (3.4%)	132 (21.5%)	438 (71.2%)	3 (0.5%)	14 (2.3%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.1%)	7.4	270^th of 271 public high schools	0.4%		7.3	270^th of 270 public high schools	0.0%				9.0			10.0			$10,668	$1,556	$1,127	$4,240	$3,620	$4,365	$7,985
ASU Preparatory Academy- Phoenix High School	Public, Charter	9-12	735 E Fillmore St	Phoenix	85006	Maricopa County	ASU Preparatory Academy	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(602) 496-3100	360	28	12.8		20 (5.6%)	60 (16.7%)	254 (70.6%)	9 (2.5%)	10 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.9%)	27	187^th of 271 public high schools	31.0%		19.9	219^th of 270 public high schools	18.9%	32			27.0			22.0		20.0		$00			$00

Frequently Asked Questions about South Mountain High School

What district is South Mountain High School in?

Phoenix Union High School District

What is the racial makeup of South Mountain High School?

Students at South Mountain High School are 79% Hispanic, 15% African American, 3% White, 1% Two or more races, 1% American Indian.

Is South Mountain High School a good school?

South Mountain High School ranks in the bottom 2.6% of Arizona high schools.

How many students attend South Mountain High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 2,207 students attended South Mountain High School.

What schools feed into South Mountain High School?

South Mountain High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : C O Greenfield School
Elementary : Cloves C Campbell Senior Elementary School
Elementary : Irene Lopez School
Elementary : John F Kennedy Elementary School
Elementary : Martin Luther King Early Childhood Center
Elementary : Maxine O Bush Elementary School
Elementary : Percy L Julian School
Elementary : T G Barr 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.