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Columbus Tustin Middle

Q: Is Columbus Tustin Middle a good school?

Columbus Tustin Middle ranks 1433 rd of 2761 California middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

1433^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,761 California Middle Schools

Better than 48% of California middle schools

Summary

Columbus Tustin Middle is a public school in the Tustin Unified school district serving about 580 students in grades 6-8, located in a community where a high percentage of families face economic challenges.

Academically, the school is currently performing below both the district and state averages in English, math, and science, and it has experienced a notable decline in its statewide ranking over the past year. A significant concern is the high rate of chronic student absenteeism, which is more than double the district average and likely impacts learning. When compared to other middle schools within Tustin Unified, such as the higher-performing Pioneer Middle and Hewes Middle, Columbus Tustin's results are lower, though it does perform better than some schools with similar demographics in neighboring districts like Santa Ana Unified and Orange Unified.

The school's effectiveness varies considerably for different groups of students, with some performing well while others, including military-connected students, have seen sharp recent declines. The recent drop in performance across multiple areas suggests the school may be facing new or intensified challenges that require attention. For parents, it's important to note that while the school serves a high-need population and faces hurdles like attendance, its performance within its own district indicates room for growth compared to peers like C. E. Utt Middle.

583

Students ?

23.6

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,917

Per pupil spending ?

85.6%

Free/discounted lunch ?

17952 Beneta Way
Tustin, CA 92780-2659

(714) 730-7352

District: Tustin Unified

Students who attend Columbus Tustin Middle usually attend:

High:

Foothill High

Feeder schools for Columbus Tustin Middle:

Elementary:	Guin Foss Elementary
	Helen Estock Elementary

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

81.0%

Asian:

7.5%

White:

5.8%

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Compare Columbus Tustin Middle to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 67th percentile in 2013 → 48th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (34% vs 41% meeting standards)

!Ranking has slipped — down 19 percentile points since 2013

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

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school34%

District avg56%

California avg41%

1,433^rd of 2,761

California public middle schools ?

Bottom 48%▼ down 20 pts since 2015

From top 32% (2015) to bottom 48% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 4Middle Schools in the Tustin Unified

420^th of 1,543Tustin Unified among California 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	California percentile	Rating
2025	41.9	1433 of 2761	48.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	56.2	985 of 2783	64.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	53.8	1060 of 2781	61.9%	★★★☆☆
2022	52.3	1103 of 2740	59.7%	★★★☆☆
2019	56.4	987 of 2715	63.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	48.0	1134 of 2480	54.3%	★★★☆☆
2017	53.7	1014 of 2508	59.6%	★★★☆☆
2016	58.8	897 of 2497	64.1%	★★★☆☆
2015	63.9	783 of 2477	68.4%	★★★☆☆
2013	63.1	795 of 2379	66.6%	★★★☆☆
2012	54.8	954 of 2259	57.8%	★★★☆☆
2011	50.3	1087 of 2236	51.4%	★★★☆☆
2010	50.8	1021 of 2179	53.1%	★★★☆☆
2009	51.2	941 of 2063	54.4%	★★★☆☆
2008	52.2	877 of 2005	56.3%	★★★☆☆
2007	51.1	879 of 1999	56.0%	★★★☆☆
2006	49.2	836 of 1804	53.7%	★★★☆☆
2005	41.0	979 of 1777	44.9%	★★☆☆☆
2004	47.2	835 of 1769	52.8%	★★★☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	41.4	487 of 739	34.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	53.6	407 of 743	45.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	74.3	174 of 715	75.7%	★★★★☆
2022	77.9	149 of 733	79.7%	★★★★☆
2019	87.5	20 of 745	97.3%	★★★★★
2018	86.3	26 of 700	96.3%	★★★★★

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	50.9	551 of 1531	64.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	31.9	976 of 1491	34.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	41.5	668 of 1369	51.2%	★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	54.6	360 of 1478	75.6%	★★★★☆
2023	45.7	555 of 1521	63.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	38.0	851 of 1540	44.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	50.7	416 of 1442	71.2%	★★★★☆
2018	36.5	722 of 1364	47.1%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	39.9	1380 of 2533	45.5%	★★☆☆☆
2024	51.4	1025 of 2551	59.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	53.1	979 of 2531	61.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	47.2	1138 of 2509	54.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	55.8	914 of 2380	61.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	45.4	1135 of 2262	49.8%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	40.3	1327 of 2395	44.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	57.1	804 of 2388	66.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	51.1	958 of 2374	59.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	49.2	1024 of 2359	56.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	51.9	889 of 2213	59.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	40.4	1174 of 2072	43.3%	★★☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	46.8	159 of 336	52.7%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	38.9	1446 of 2542	43.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	53.3	947 of 2579	63.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	51.6	970 of 2531	61.7%	★★★☆☆
2022	51.5	969 of 2458	60.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	51.8	967 of 2369	59.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	39.0	1292 of 2230	42.1%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	42.6	1300 of 2534	48.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	59.2	835 of 2552	67.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	53.3	971 of 2538	61.7%	★★★☆☆
2022	56.3	901 of 2527	64.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	54.4	928 of 2407	61.4%	★★★☆☆
2018	49.1	1015 of 2273	55.3%	★★★☆☆

Military Connected

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	25.8	144 of 194	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	42.2	107 of 192	44.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	33.6	125 of 197	36.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	16.7	168 of 193	13.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	41.9	758 of 1566	51.6%	★★★☆☆
2024	49.5	574 of 1552	63.0%	★★★☆☆
2023	36.6	862 of 1531	43.7%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	72.9	371 of 1520	75.6%	★★★★☆
2024	74.1	347 of 1537	77.4%	★★★★☆
2023	87.2	124 of 1543	92.0%	★★★★★
2022	86.0	134 of 1555	91.4%	★★★★★
2019	89.9	83 of 1602	94.8%	★★★★★
2018	80.6	252 of 1496	83.2%	★★★★☆

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 (2024)76th percentile+11 vs school

White (2025)76th percentile+27 vs school

Disabled (2022)64th percentile+4 vs school

Homeless (2022)53rd percentile-7 vs school

Special Education (2025)52nd percentile+3 vs school

Male (2025)49th percentile~ school

Female (2025)46th percentile-3 vs school

Hispanic (2025)45th percentile-4 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)43rd percentile-5 vs school

Asian (2025)34th percentile-14 vs school

Military Connected (2025)26th percentile-22 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy41%-8 vs state

Mathematics29%-8 vs state

Science27%-6 vs state

★

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Schools Near Columbus Tustin Middle

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				CAST Science (2025)		Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2025)				Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2025)				Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
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	CAST Science 8th Grade	CAST Science All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Columbus Tustin Middle	Public	6-8	17952 Beneta Way	Tustin	92780	Orange County	Tustin Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 730-7352	583	25	23.6	85.6%	34 (5.8%)	14 (2.4%)	472 (81.0%)	44 (7.5%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.5%)	16 (2.7%)	41.9	1433^rd of 2761 public middle schools	48.1%		56.2	985^th of 2783 public middle schools	64.6%	448	27.0	27.0	31.5	48.3	42.9	40.9	24.4	32.0	31.9	29.5	$16,917	$1,892	$15,025
C. E. Utt Middle	Public	6-8	13601 Browning Ave.	Tustin	92780	Orange County	Tustin Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 730-7573	554	25	22.4	82.1%	40 (7.2%)	8 (1.4%)	437 (78.9%)	51 (9.2%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)	15 (2.7%)	41.8	1441^st of 2761 public middle schools	47.8%		47.8	1221^st of 2783 public middle schools	56.1%	220	27.4	27.4	41.8	41.7	45.0	42.9	24.4	22.5	34.4	27.3	$17,604	$1,946	$15,658
Hewes Middle	Public	6-8	13232 Hewes Ave.	Santa Ana	92705	Orange County	Tustin Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 730-7348	929	37	25.2	40.4%	371 (39.9%)	10 (1.1%)	384 (41.3%)	74 (8.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	90 (9.7%)	78.7	502^nd of 2761 public middle schools	81.8%		76.8	551^st of 2783 public middle schools	80.2%	49	46.3	46.3	68.7	53.9	58.2	60.3	64.8	46.9	47.4	53.2	$14,099	$1,391	$12,708
Raymond A. Villa Fundamental Intermediate	Public	6-8	1441 East Chestnut Ave.	Santa Ana	92701	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 558-5100	936	46	20.4	95.3%	3 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	914 (97.6%)	15 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.4%)	20	2222^nd of 2761 public middle schools	19.5%		18.8	2308^th of 2783 public middle schools	17.1%	86	16.1	16.1	34.3	35.1	28.2	32.5	12.2	10.9	11.2	11.4	$23,520	$827	$22,693
Pioneer Middle	Public	6-8	2700 Pioneer Rd.	Tustin	92782	Orange County	Tustin Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 730-7534	971	37	26.3	39.4%	187 (19.3%)	21 (2.2%)	272 (28.0%)	377 (38.8%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.3%)	110 (11.3%)	90.4	268^th of 2761 public middle schools	90.3%		93.6	196^th of 2783 public middle schools	93.0%	72	58.8	58.8	65.1	71.9	74.3	70.6	55.6	62.1	68.3	62.1	$18,621	$1,278	$17,343
Julia C. Lathrop Intermediate	Public	6-8	1111 South Broadway	Santa Ana	92707	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 567-3300	584	33	17.5	96.7%	5 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	568 (97.3%)	7 (1.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	14.5	2462^nd of 2761 public middle schools	10.8%		13.3	2541^st of 2783 public middle schools	8.7%	79	15.1	15.1	15.7	23.0	24.4	22.0	6.5	12.4	12.0	10.9	$26,753	$1,161	$25,592
Willard Intermediate	Public	6-8	1342 North Ross	Santa Ana	92706	Orange County	Santa Ana Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 480-4800	390	27	14.3	97.2%	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	383 (98.2%)	4 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8.2	2672^nd of 2761 public middle schools	3.2%		10.4	2652^nd of 2783 public middle schools	4.7%	20	6.9	6.9	11.6	17.3	11.9	13.8	4.3	10.5	4.9	6.7	$28,724	$1,005	$27,719
Santiago Charter Middle	Public, Charter	7-8	515 North Rancho Santiago Blvd	Orange	92869	Orange County	Santiago Charter Middle District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 997-6366	1,137	46	24.7	65.9%	216 (19.0%)	32 (2.8%)	745 (65.5%)	63 (5.5%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (0.9%)	71 (6.2%)	57.4	967^th of 2761 public middle schools	65.0%		57.4	951^st of 2783 public middle schools	65.8%	16	32.6	32.6		59.8	47.3	52.9		36.0	33.0	34.3	$12,560	$661	$11,899
Sierra Vista Middle	Public	7-8	2 Liberty	Irvine	92620	Orange County	Irvine Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(949) 936-6600	1,282	49	26.1	14.7%	188 (14.7%)	16 (1.2%)	103 (8.0%)	859 (67.0%)	1 (0.1%)	4 (0.3%)	109 (8.5%)	97.8	55^th of 2761 public middle schools	98.0%		97.8	64^th of 2783 public middle schools	97.7%	9	71.1	71.1		82.7	81.2	82.0		81.5	78.7	80.1	$13,176	$394	$12,782
Portola Middle	Public	7-8	270 North Palm Dr.	Orange	92868	Orange County	Orange Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(714) 997-6361	422	20	20.9	91.5%	16 (3.8%)	1 (0.2%)	371 (87.9%)	25 (5.9%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.5%)	5 (1.2%)	36.6	1597^th of 2761 public middle schools	42.2%		22.5	2147^th of 2783 public middle schools	22.9%	550	23.9	23.9		41.4	36.3	39.1		25.6	27.2	26.3	$16,794	$1,356	$15,438

Frequently Asked Questions about Columbus Tustin Middle

Is Columbus Tustin Middle a good school?

Columbus Tustin Middle ranks 1433^rd of 2761 California middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What district is Columbus Tustin Middle in?

Tustin Unified

How many students attend Columbus Tustin Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 583 students attended Columbus Tustin Middle.

What high school do graduates of Columbus Tustin Middle attend?

Students who attend Columbus Tustin Middle usually go on to attend Foothill High

What is the racial makeup of Columbus Tustin Middle?

Students at Columbus Tustin Middle are 81% Hispanic, 8% Asian, 6% White, 3% Two or more races, 2% African American.

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