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Valley Center Middle

Public Grades 6-8

2450^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,761 California Middle Schools

Better than 11% of California middle schools

Summary

Valley Center Middle is a public middle school serving about 766 students in grades 6-8 in the Valley Center-Pauma Unified school district, which is ranked in the bottom 20% of all districts in California.

The school faces significant academic challenges, with student proficiency in English, math, and science falling well below state averages, and its statewide ranking has declined over the past decade to the 11th percentile. A major concern is a chronic absenteeism rate of 28%, which is much higher than the state average and likely impacts learning. While the school spends over $16,000 per student, which is more than some higher-performing nearby schools, it has a higher student-teacher ratio and worse outcomes. The school shows particular difficulty in supporting students from low-income families and English learners, though it shows relative strength with its Native American students.

Comparisons with nearby schools are revealing. For instance, High Technical Middle North County and Woodland Park Middle achieve much higher test scores with similar or lower spending. Other schools like Del Dios Academy and Mission Middle serve a higher percentage of economically disadvantaged students yet perform better academically, suggesting the challenges at Valley Center Middle may involve factors beyond demographics, such as attendance and instructional practices.

766

Students ?

22.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$32,619

Per pupil spending ?

65.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

28102 North Lake Wohlford Rd.
Valley Center, CA 92082-6740

(760) 751-4295

District: Valley Center-Pauma Unified

Students who attend Valley Center Middle usually attend:

High:

Valley Center High

Feeder schools for Valley Center Middle:

Elementary:	Lilac
	Valley Center Elementary
	Valley Center Primary

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

64.8%

White:

19.2%

American Indian:

7.6%

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At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 45th percentile in 2015 → 11th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (17% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (11th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (28% vs 19% California)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school17%

District avg23%

California avg41%

2,450^th of 2,761

California public middle schools ?

Bottom 11%▼ down 34 pts since 2015

From bottom 45% (2015) to bottom 11% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1237^th of 1,543Valley Center-Pauma 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	14.8	2450 of 2761	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	16.9	2402 of 2783	13.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.3	2239 of 2781	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	21.7	2145 of 2740	21.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	20.3	742 of 894	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	25.8	1967 of 2715	27.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	29.4	1679 of 2480	32.3%	★★☆☆☆
2017	27.0	1760 of 2508	29.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	27.4	1742 of 2497	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2015	39.1	1361 of 2477	45.1%	★★☆☆☆
2013	67.1	680 of 2379	71.4%	★★★★☆
2012	68.1	625 of 2259	72.3%	★★★★☆
2011	67.6	620 of 2236	72.3%	★★★★☆
2010	68.1	595 of 2179	72.7%	★★★★☆
2009	60.3	739 of 2063	64.2%	★★★☆☆
2008	65.7	575 of 2005	71.3%	★★★★☆
2007	67.1	541 of 1999	72.9%	★★★★☆
2006	76.7	344 of 1804	80.9%	★★★★☆
2005	72.0	409 of 1777	77.0%	★★★★☆
2004	72.5	383 of 1769	78.3%	★★★★☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	30.1	1055 of 1531	31.1%	★★☆☆☆
2021	28.4	280 of 354	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	25.9	1169 of 1491	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	28.2	1006 of 1369	26.5%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	24.2	1448 of 1478	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	28.3	1334 of 1521	12.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	30.3	1233 of 1540	19.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	40.4	183 of 363	49.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	30.6	1081 of 1442	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	35.6	763 of 1364	44.1%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	12.2	2359 of 2533	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.7	2341 of 2551	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	19.3	2110 of 2531	16.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	22.9	1933 of 2509	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	22.3	590 of 738	20.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	25.5	1774 of 2380	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	30.9	1535 of 2262	32.1%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	12.7	2232 of 2395	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	14.7	2182 of 2388	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.8	2188 of 2374	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	18.1	2087 of 2359	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	22.3	1811 of 2213	18.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	26.8	1568 of 2072	24.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	17.9	445 of 477	6.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	12.4	2382 of 2542	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	15.6	2334 of 2579	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	15.6	2325 of 2531	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	16.8	2228 of 2458	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	22.6	617 of 721	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	16.6	2124 of 2369	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.3	1795 of 2230	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	17.5	2173 of 2534	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.8	2053 of 2552	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.7	2003 of 2538	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	21.2	1998 of 2527	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	20.2	642 of 763	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	25.2	1787 of 2407	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	27.3	1620 of 2273	28.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Migrant

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	16.8	88 of 95	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	4.9	702 of 726	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	6.3	669 of 701	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	14.3	571 of 665	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	12.6	420 of 462	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	26.6	8 of 12	33.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	25.6	9 of 10	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	29.9	12 of 16	25.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	19.3	14 of 15	6.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	32.1	14 of 19	26.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	30.0	16 of 18	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	21.1	1415 of 1566	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	21.9	1392 of 1552	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	31.1	1038 of 1531	32.2%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	18.6	1260 of 1520	17.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.2	1247 of 1537	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	34.2	1010 of 1543	34.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	30.8	1087 of 1555	30.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	36.9	1009 of 1602	37.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	36.5	973 of 1496	35.0%	★★☆☆☆

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)

Native American (2025)33rd percentile+22 vs school

Disabled (2022)31st percentile+9 vs school

White (2025)17th percentile+6 vs school

Male (2025)14th percentile+3 vs school

Special Education (2025)10th percentile~ school

Migrant (2025)7th percentile-4 vs school

Female (2025)7th percentile-4 vs school

Hispanic (2025)7th percentile-4 vs school

Homeless (2025)7th percentile-5 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)6th percentile-5 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)3rd percentile-8 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)2nd percentile-12 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy23%-26 vs state

Science18%-15 vs state

Mathematics10%-27 vs state

★

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Schools Near Valley Center Middle

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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 (2025)
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 5th Grade	CAST Science 8th Grade	CAST Science All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 5th Grade	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 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 5th Grade	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
Valley Center Middle	Public	6-8	28102 North Lake Wohlford Rd.	Valley Center	92082	San Diego County	Valley Center-Pauma Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 751-4295	766	35	22.1	65.8%	147 (19.2%)	3 (0.4%)	496 (64.8%)	9 (1.2%)	58 (7.6%)	0 (0.0%)	53 (6.9%)	14.8	2450^th of 2761 public middle schools	11.3%		16.9	2402^nd of 2783 public middle schools	13.7%	48		18.0	18.0			23.1	19.0	25.4	22.6			10.0	7.9	12.5	10.2	$32,619	$31,352	$1,267
Quantum Academy	Public	4-8	420 North Falconer Rd.	Escondido	92027	San Diego County	Escondido Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 432-2220	289	13	22.0	54.3%	76 (26.3%)	9 (3.1%)	163 (56.4%)	10 (3.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (10.4%)	57.7	961^st of 2761 public middle schools	65.2%		70	686^th of 2783 public middle schools	75.4%	275	48.4	29.3	39.2	53.1	58.1	45.2	59.7	50.0	53.1	46.9	38.7	32.3	49.1	32.8	39.6	$17,270	$16,032	$1,238
Hidden Valley Middle	Public	6-8	2700 Reed Rd.	Escondido	92027	San Diego County	Escondido Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 432-2457	733	39	18.9	94.3%	23 (3.1%)	5 (0.7%)	655 (89.4%)	22 (3.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (3.8%)	22.9	2104^th of 2761 public middle schools	23.8%		29.1	1852^nd of 2783 public middle schools	33.5%	252		16.8	16.8			23.7	37.8	31.6	31.4			13.6	21.2	15.9	17.2	$23,851	$22,244	$1,607
Rincon Middle	Public	6-8	925 Lehner Ave.	Escondido	92026	San Diego County	Escondido Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 432-2491	772	41	18.8	83.0%	85 (11.0%)	7 (0.9%)	605 (78.4%)	26 (3.4%)	1 (0.1%)	2 (0.3%)	46 (6.0%)	38.2	1540^th of 2761 public middle schools	44.2%		40.3	1450^th of 2783 public middle schools	47.9%	90		31.3	31.3			29.6	38.3	46.9	38.6			20.2	25.4	28.7	24.9	$24,833	$23,348	$1,485
Mission Middle	Public	6-8	939 East Mission Ave.	Escondido	92026	San Diego County	Escondido Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 432-2452	855	43	19.9	95.9%	14 (1.6%)	5 (0.6%)	808 (94.5%)	11 (1.3%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (1.9%)	22.9	2106^th of 2761 public middle schools	23.7%		26.9	1956^th of 2783 public middle schools	29.7%	150		14.6	14.6			25.6	37.2	31.7	31.5			15.0	19.6	19.5	18.1	$22,867	$21,240	$1,627
Woodland Park Middle	Public	6-8	1270 Rock Springs Rd.	San Marcos	92069	San Diego County	San Marcos Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 290-2455	1,184	52	22.8	42.3%	358 (30.2%)	12 (1.0%)	618 (52.2%)	79 (6.7%)	2 (0.2%)	5 (0.4%)	110 (9.3%)	60.6	889^th of 2761 public middle schools	67.8%		62.5	831^st of 2783 public middle schools	70.1%	58		29.4	29.4			55.6	56.8	48.6	53.6			41.7	40.2	34.8	38.9	$22,477	$21,560	$917
Del Dios Academy of Arts and Sciences	Public	6-8	1400 West Ninth Ave.	Escondido	92029	San Diego County	Escondido Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 432-2439	788	45	17.6	91.1%	49 (6.2%)	6 (0.8%)	685 (86.9%)	19 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (3.7%)	25.3	1987^th of 2761 public middle schools	28.0%		23.5	2106^th of 2783 public middle schools	24.3%	119		17.3	17.3			29.2	30.4	30.9	30.2			23.0	23.7	20.1	22.3	$24,214	$22,696	$1,518
Bear Valley Middle	Public	6-8	3003 Bear Valley Pkwy.	Escondido	92025	San Diego County	Escondido Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 432-4060	923	51	17.9	68.4%	228 (24.7%)	8 (0.9%)	585 (63.4%)	39 (4.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	63 (6.8%)	49	1208^th of 2761 public middle schools	56.2%		42.5	1383^rd of 2783 public middle schools	50.3%	175		21.4	21.4			47.8	51.0	45.5	48.1			34.2	32.2	33.3	33.2	$24,985	$23,746	$1,239
Norman L. Sullivan Middle	Public	6-8	7350 West Lilac Rd.	Bonsall	92003	San Diego County	Bonsall Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 631-5209	529	24	22.3	54.6%	219 (41.4%)	8 (1.5%)	209 (39.5%)	22 (4.2%)	24 (4.5%)	3 (0.6%)	44 (8.3%)	62.2	847^th of 2761 public middle schools	69.3%		59.7	895^th of 2783 public middle schools	67.8%	48		47.9	47.9			40.9	62.5	51.8	53.1			30.2	42.4	32.5	35.8	$22,217	$21,476	$741
San Marcos Middle	Public	6-8	650 West Mission Rd.	San Marcos	92069	San Diego County	San Marcos Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 290-2500	968	40	24.1	58.7%	144 (14.9%)	13 (1.3%)	699 (72.2%)	66 (6.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	46 (4.8%)	46.1	1292^nd of 2761 public middle schools	53.2%		43.2	1366^th of 2783 public middle schools	50.9%	74		23.0	23.0			44.9	46.1	44.6	45.2			36.8	31.1	28.9	32.2	$23,704	$22,782	$922

Frequently Asked Questions about Valley Center Middle

How many students attend Valley Center Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 766 students attended Valley Center Middle.

What is the racial makeup of Valley Center Middle?

Students at Valley Center Middle are 65% Hispanic, 19% White, 8% American Indian, 7% Two or more races, 1% Asian.

What district is Valley Center Middle in?

Valley Center-Pauma Unified

What high school do graduates of Valley Center Middle attend?

Students who attend Valley Center Middle usually go on to attend Valley Center High

Is Valley Center Middle a good school?

Valley Center Middle ranks in the bottom 11.3% of California middle schools.

Rate Valley Center Middle!

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Latest California data All new data »

2024–25 school spending dataJul 1, 2026

2024–25 attendance dataMar 13, 2026

2024–25 CSA Spanish test scoresDec 22, 2025

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesNov 14, 2025

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.