Middle Schools in Madera Unified

Three middle schools in Madera Unified serve grades 7–8. In 2025–26, the schools’ average proficiency rates were 27% in English language arts (ELA), 13% in math and 17% in science, compared with California rates of 49%, 38% and 36%, respectively. All three schools scored below the state in all three subjects; the average gaps were 22 percentage points in ELA, 25 in math and 19 in science, making math the area’s largest relative weakness.

Thomas Jefferson Middle led the group in every all-grade subject, with 37% in ELA, 14% in math and 20% in science. Martin Luther King Junior Middle had the lowest results in each: 17% in ELA, 11% in math and 15% in science. Jack G. Desmond Middle was between them, at 28% in ELA, 14% in math and 16% in science. The widest school-to-school difference was in ELA: Thomas was 20 percentage points above MLK and 9 points above Desmond. Thomas and Desmond were nearly tied in all-grade math, just 0.1 point apart.

Recent results show mixed progress: the three-school averages fell 3 points in ELA from 2024–25 to 2025–26, while rising 1 point each in math and science. The state improved in all three subjects, so the average school-to-state gaps widened by 3 points in ELA, 1 in math and 2 in science. Thomas improved across all three subjects; MLK’s science rose while its ELA and math fell, and Desmond’s math rose slightly as its ELA and science declined. SchoolDigger’s statewide rankings also shifted: Thomas moved from the 27th to the 25th percentile, MLK from the 11th to the 6th, and Desmond from the 29th to the 14th. Other reported measures vary too: student–teacher ratios ranged from 17.6 at MLK to 18.9 at Thomas, and free/reduced lunch eligible shares in 2024–25 ranged from 88% at Thomas to 97% at MLK. Chronic absenteeism in 2025–26 was 22% at Thomas, 26% at MLK and 30% at Desmond; these measures describe differences among the schools, not causes of test results.