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Santa Barbara Junior High

Q: Is Santa Barbara Junior High a good school?

Santa Barbara Junior High ranks 1758 th of 2761 California middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 7-8

1758^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,761 California Middle Schools

Better than 36% of California middle schools

Summary

Santa Barbara Junior High is a public middle school serving about 512 students in grades 7 and 8 within the Santa Barbara Unified school district, currently holding a 2-star state rating that reflects a significant, decade-long decline from its previous high performance.

The school faces notable challenges, with academic proficiency rates in English, math, and science all below state and district averages, and a chronic absenteeism rate of 28% that is much higher than neighboring schools. While the student body has a high level of economic need, the school also receives more funding per student and has a lower student-to-teacher ratio than higher-performing schools in the same district, such as La Colina Junior High (89th percentile) and Goleta Valley Junior High (77th percentile), suggesting resources may not be translating effectively into academic results.

Key takeaways for parents include the school's steady performance drop over ten years and a pronounced gap in how it serves different student groups. However, the school has shown relative success with its English Language Learner students, indicating some effective support systems are in place. Compared to a school with a similar demographic profile like La Cumbre Junior High (53rd percentile) or Carpinteria Middle in Carpinteria Unified, Santa Barbara Junior High's outcomes are lower, highlighting that the challenges may be specific to this school's context and approach.

512

Students ?

16.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

$25,617

Per pupil spending ?

79.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

721 East Cota St.
Santa Barbara, CA 93103-3184

(805) 963-7751

District: Santa Barbara Unified

Students who attend Santa Barbara Junior High usually attend:

High:

Santa Barbara Senior High

Feeder schools for Santa Barbara Junior High:

Elementary:	Cleveland Elementary
	Franklin Elementary
	Peabody Charter
	Roosevelt Elementary

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

83.0%

White:

12.7%

Two or more races:

2.9%

See top rated California middle schools

Compare Santa Barbara Junior High to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 73rd percentile in 2013 → 36th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (28% vs 41% meeting standards)

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

!Ranking has slipped — down 37 percentile points since 2013

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school28%

District avg44%

California avg41%

1,758^th of 2,761

California public middle schools ?

Bottom 36%▼ down 36 pts since 2015

From top 28% (2015) to bottom 36% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

4^th of 4Middle Schools in the Santa Barbara Unified

665^th of 1,543Santa Barbara 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	31.9	1758 of 2761	36.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	35.1	1623 of 2783	41.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	29.5	1826 of 2781	34.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	36.4	1571 of 2740	42.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	53.2	1075 of 2715	60.4%	★★★☆☆
2018	58.0	892 of 2480	64.0%	★★★☆☆
2017	53.4	1024 of 2508	59.2%	★★★☆☆
2016	67.1	709 of 2497	71.6%	★★★★☆
2015	67.6	697 of 2477	71.9%	★★★★☆
2013	68.0	652 of 2379	72.6%	★★★★☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	35.1	890 of 1531	41.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	36.9	813 of 1491	45.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	26.6	1064 of 1369	22.3%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	42.3	642 of 1478	56.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	40.1	771 of 1521	49.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	31.9	1148 of 1540	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	39.3	710 of 1442	50.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	34.6	794 of 1364	41.8%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	30.3	1691 of 2533	33.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	39.4	1358 of 2551	46.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	28.1	1733 of 2531	31.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	36.9	1439 of 2509	42.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	52.9	988 of 2380	58.5%	★★★☆☆
2018	59.9	789 of 2262	65.1%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	27.8	1726 of 2395	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	32.0	1571 of 2388	34.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	29.8	1652 of 2374	30.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	30.8	1599 of 2359	32.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	34.5	1410 of 2213	36.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	35.8	1302 of 2072	37.2%	★★☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	39.0	223 of 394	43.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	41.6	163 of 320	49.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	61.2	93 of 336	72.3%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	27.3	1872 of 2542	26.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	36.4	1519 of 2579	41.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	25.8	1931 of 2531	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	26.9	1820 of 2458	26.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	38.9	1359 of 2369	42.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	34.9	1420 of 2230	36.3%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	32.5	1600 of 2534	36.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	30.1	1675 of 2552	34.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	30.1	1646 of 2538	35.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	35.8	1465 of 2527	42.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	50.0	1029 of 2407	57.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	53.1	916 of 2273	59.7%	★★★☆☆

Military Connected

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	24.7	145 of 194	25.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.3	150 of 197	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	18.4	164 of 193	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2023	5.4	652 of 677	3.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	37.7	855 of 1566	45.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	44.6	672 of 1552	56.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	36.4	869 of 1531	43.2%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	71.1	403 of 1520	73.5%	★★★★☆
2024	73.2	365 of 1537	76.3%	★★★★☆
2023	35.8	978 of 1543	36.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	62.4	547 of 1555	64.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	86.8	135 of 1602	91.6%	★★★★★
2018	89.8	68 of 1496	95.5%	★★★★★

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)

White (2025)73rd percentile+37 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)57th percentile+15 vs school

Special Education (2025)45th percentile+9 vs school

Homeless (2024)43rd percentile~ school

Disabled (2022)42nd percentile~ school

Male (2025)37th percentile~ school

Female (2025)33rd percentile-3 vs school

Hispanic (2025)28th percentile-8 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)26th percentile-10 vs school

Military Connected (2025)25th percentile-11 vs school

Multi-racial (2023)4th percentile-31 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy31%-18 vs state

Mathematics27%-11 vs state

Science25%-8 vs state

★

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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)				CSA Spanish Overall (2025)			CSA Spanish Listening (2025)			CSA Spanish Writing (2025)			CSA Spanish Reading (2025)			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	CSA Spanish Overall 6th Grade	CSA Spanish Overall 7th Grade	CSA Spanish Overall All Grades	CSA Spanish Listening 6th Grade	CSA Spanish Listening 7th Grade	CSA Spanish Listening All Grades	CSA Spanish Writing 6th Grade	CSA Spanish Writing 7th Grade	CSA Spanish Writing All Grades	CSA Spanish Reading 6th Grade	CSA Spanish Reading 7th Grade	CSA Spanish Reading All Grades	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
Santa Barbara Junior High	Public	7-8	721 East Cota St.	Santa Barbara	93103	Santa Barbara County	Santa Barbara Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 963-7751	512	32	16.0	79.7%	65 (12.7%)	3 (0.6%)	425 (83.0%)	3 (0.6%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (2.9%)	31.9	1758^th of 2761 public middle schools	36.3%		35.1	1623^rd of 2783 public middle schools	41.7%	135													24.8	24.8		27.9	33.8	30.8		27.6	25.8	26.7	$25,617	$24,280	$1,337
Alta Vista	Public, Virtual	7-8	215 East Ortega St.	Santa Barbara	93101	Santa Barbara County	Santa Barbara Unified	No	(n/a)	Yes	(n/a)	(805) 966-0883	2	1	2.6		0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (100.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)
La Cumbre Junior High	Public	7-8	2255 Modoc Rd.	Santa Barbara	93101	Santa Barbara County	Santa Barbara Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 687-0761	426	24	17.5	84.5%	34 (8.0%)	1 (0.2%)	383 (89.9%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.2%)	45.9	1300^th of 2761 public middle schools	52.9%		33.1	1702^nd of 2783 public middle schools	38.8%	402													24.7	24.7		45.7	39.1	42.0		28.7	39.6	34.9	$27,690	$26,538	$1,152
La Colina Junior High	Public	7-8	4025 Foothill Rd.	Santa Barbara	93110	Santa Barbara County	Santa Barbara Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 967-4506	832	42	19.8	41.5%	408 (49.0%)	2 (0.2%)	333 (40.0%)	27 (3.2%)	5 (0.6%)	1 (0.1%)	55 (6.6%)	88.3	309^th of 2761 public middle schools	88.8%		87.7	329^th of 2783 public middle schools	88.2%	20													48.5	48.5		69.0	68.8	68.9		63.0	58.7	60.9	$20,246	$19,306	$940
Goleta Valley Junior High	Public	7-8	6100 Stow Canyon Rd.	Goleta	93117	Santa Barbara County	Santa Barbara Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 967-3486	731	38	19.2	45.6%	257 (35.2%)	7 (1.0%)	356 (48.7%)	49 (6.7%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	59 (8.1%)	72.1	637^th of 2761 public middle schools	76.9%		75.9	568^th of 2783 public middle schools	79.6%	69													41.4	41.4		60.8	49.3	54.8		56.0	42.3	48.9	$20,891	$20,128	$763
Carpinteria Middle	Public	6-8	5351 Carpinteria Ave.	Carpinteria	93013	Santa Barbara County	Carpinteria Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(805) 684-4544	437	26	16.8	72.3%	81 (18.5%)	4 (0.9%)	341 (78.0%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (1.8%)	46.5	1284^th of 2761 public middle schools	53.5%		54.6	1028^th of 2783 public middle schools	63.1%	256	2.6	0.0	1.3	5.3	15.8	10.5	7.9	13.2	10.5	0.0	0.0	0.0	21.3	21.3	48.9	45.4	35.6	43.9	36.0	39.4	24.8	34.1	$24,869	$22,982	$1,887

Frequently Asked Questions about Santa Barbara Junior High

What district is Santa Barbara Junior High in?

Santa Barbara Unified

What is the racial makeup of Santa Barbara Junior High?

Students at Santa Barbara Junior High are 83% Hispanic, 13% White, 3% Two or more races.

Is Santa Barbara Junior High a good school?

Santa Barbara Junior High ranks 1758^th of 2761 California middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Santa Barbara Junior High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 512 students attended Santa Barbara Junior High.

What high school do graduates of Santa Barbara Junior High attend?

Students who attend Santa Barbara Junior High usually go on to attend Santa Barbara Senior High

Rate Santa Barbara Junior High!

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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.