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Carmel Unified


At a glance
86thof 1,543 California districts▲ 2
Better than 94% of California districts
4380 Carmel Valley Rd.
Carmel, CA 93923-7942
·(831) 624-1546·All California district rankings →
Statewide performance 2017–2025
2025: better than 94.4% of districts
9
Schools
2,152
Students
3
5-star schools
Top rankedCarmel River Elementary281st of 5,857 California elementary schools
Biggest riser
Carmel River Elementary up 191 spots statewide this year
Smallest classes
Carmel Middle 13.1 students per teacher
Summary:

The Carmel Unified school district, located in a coastal California community, consists of six high-performing public schools serving approximately 1,750 students from elementary through high school, with the district ranking in the top 6% statewide.

Among the standout schools, Carmel High is the district's academic flagship with a near-perfect 98.5% graduation rate and rankings in the top 4% of California high schools, while Carmel River Elementary leads the elementary schools with exceptional test scores in both English and math. The district also includes two notably small schools: Captain Cooper Elementary, a rural school with very low class sizes, and Carmel Valley High, an alternative high school.

Overall, the district excels academically, with all schools outperforming state averages, though there are some variations. Carmel Middle shows a slight dip in math scores compared to the elementary feeders, and science scores district-wide are an area for potential focus. While most schools have strong attendance, Carmel Valley High reports high chronic absenteeism. The data shows an interesting dynamic where the smallest schools have the highest per-student spending but more mixed outcomes, whereas larger schools like Tularcitos Elementary achieve excellent results with more typical resources.

Ranking:
Map legend
E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private




Districts nearby

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.





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