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Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High

Q: Is Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High a good school?

Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High ranks 1889 th of 2761 California middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 7-8

1889^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,761 California Middle Schools

Better than 32% of California middle schools

Summary

Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High is a public middle school serving about 670 students in grades 7-8 in Coachella, California, operating within the Coachella Valley Unified district, and it stands out as a school on an upward trajectory within a challenging local context.

While the school's academic proficiency rates are below state averages, it is a clear leader within its own district, consistently outperforming nearby schools like Toro Canyon Middle and Bobby Duke Middle, especially in science and math. The school shows particular strength in supporting specific student groups, with its programs for English learners, students in special education, and homeless students earning 3-star ratings from the state. Furthermore, it has made significant progress, improving its statewide ranking and reducing chronic absenteeism, which remains a challenge but is now the lowest among its district peers.

An interesting point for parents is that Cahuilla Desert Academy operates with much higher per-student spending than many schools in neighboring districts like Desert Sands Unified. For comparison, Palm Desert Charter Middle spends less but achieves a higher ranking, highlighting how district-level factors can influence outcomes. Despite this, Cahuilla Desert Academy's improving effectiveness and relative success within its district make it a notable option for families in the area.

668

Students ?

20.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$29,527

Per pupil spending ?

83.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

82-489 Avenue 52
Coachella, CA 92236-9718

(760) 398-0097

District: Coachella Valley Unified

Students who attend Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High usually attend:

High:

Coachella Valley High

Feeder schools for Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High:

Elementary:	Coral Mountain Academy
	Mountain Vista Elementary
	Westside Elementary

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

98.5%

Two or more races:

0.6%

African American:

0.4%

See top rated California middle schools

Compare Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 29th percentile in 2015 → 32nd in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (26% vs 41% meeting standards)

!High chronic absenteeism (32% vs 19% California)

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

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school26%

District avg22%

California avg41%

1,889^th of 2,761

California public middle schools ?

Bottom 32%▲ up 3 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of California Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 3Middle Schools in the Coachella Valley Unified

1305^th of 1,543Coachella Valley 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	28.2	1889 of 2761	31.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	25.1	2031 of 2783	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	25.5	2010 of 2781	27.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	24.8	2006 of 2740	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.7	657 of 894	26.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	25.0	1992 of 2715	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	21.1	1962 of 2480	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	18.6	2081 of 2508	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	23.6	1886 of 2497	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	26.8	1757 of 2477	29.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	44.7	1301 of 2379	45.3%	★★☆☆☆
2012	51.6	1060 of 2259	53.1%	★★★☆☆
2011	48.4	1137 of 2236	49.2%	★★☆☆☆
2010	44.4	1190 of 2179	45.4%	★★☆☆☆
2009	45.9	1063 of 2063	48.5%	★★☆☆☆
2008	30.2	1428 of 2005	28.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	28.6	1432 of 1999	28.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	28.9	1272 of 1804	29.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	17.0	1528 of 1777	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	14.6	1581 of 1769	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	17.6	1514 of 1531	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	29.0	269 of 354	24.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	25.6	1175 of 1491	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	28.5	995 of 1369	27.3%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	42.9	627 of 1478	57.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	37.4	869 of 1521	42.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	41.3	710 of 1540	53.9%	★★★☆☆
2021	34.1	263 of 363	27.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	30.8	1065 of 1442	26.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	40.4	606 of 1364	55.6%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	26.5	1812 of 2533	28.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	19.8	2103 of 2551	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.9	1927 of 2531	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	24.6	1854 of 2509	26.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.2	544 of 738	26.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	23.8	1830 of 2380	23.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.2	1837 of 2262	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	39.4	1359 of 2395	43.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	34.4	1489 of 2388	37.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	35.6	1425 of 2374	40.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	35.3	1454 of 2359	38.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	34.1	1422 of 2213	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2018	29.3	1487 of 2072	28.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	49.9	198 of 477	58.5%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	37.5	1494 of 2542	41.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	29.6	1792 of 2579	30.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	28.5	1808 of 2531	28.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	31.6	1638 of 2458	33.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	39.6	422 of 721	41.5%	★★☆☆☆
2019	31.9	1603 of 2369	32.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	25.4	1740 of 2230	22.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	29.4	1707 of 2534	32.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	29.7	1692 of 2552	33.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	27.4	1760 of 2538	30.7%	★★☆☆☆
2022	25.4	1826 of 2527	27.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	27.3	542 of 763	29.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	24.6	1818 of 2407	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.8	1831 of 2273	19.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Migrant

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2023	26.7	70 of 86	18.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	44.0	705 of 1566	55.0%	★★★☆☆
2024	40.4	768 of 1552	50.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	30.1	1075 of 1531	29.8%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Homeless (2025)58th percentile+27 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)58th percentile+31 vs school

Special Education (2025)55th percentile+23 vs school

Hispanic (2025)43rd percentile+12 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)41st percentile+10 vs school

Male (2025)33rd percentile~ school

Female (2025)28th percentile-3 vs school

Migrant (2023)19th percentile-9 vs school

Disabled (2022)1st percentile-26 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy34%-15 vs state

Mathematics23%-14 vs state

Science18%-15 vs state

★

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Schools Near Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High

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
Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High	Public	7-8	82-489 Avenue 52	Coachella	92236	Riverside County	Coachella Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 398-0097	668	33	20.1	83.8%	2 (0.3%)	3 (0.4%)	658 (98.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.6%)	28.2	1889^th of 2761 public middle schools	31.6%		25.1	2031^st of 2783 public middle schools	27.0%	142	17.9	17.9		37.9	29.8	33.5		22.6	23.0	22.8	$29,527	$1,299	$28,228
Bobby Duke Middle	Public	7-8	85-358 Bagdad Ave.	Coachella	92236	Riverside County	Coachella Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 398-0139	648	31	20.9	96.0%	4 (0.6%)	3 (0.5%)	636 (98.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (0.8%)	16.7	2368^th of 2761 public middle schools	14.2%		20.5	2241^st of 2783 public middle schools	19.5%	127	10.9	10.9		30.8	29.6	30.2		11.6	8.7	10.1	$28,850	$1,276	$27,574
Thomas Jefferson Middle	Public	6-8	83-089 Highway 111	Indio	92201	Riverside County	Desert Sands Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 863-3660	591	22	26.9	92.0%	13 (2.2%)	4 (0.7%)	538 (91.0%)	6 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (5.1%)	7.7	2689^th of 2761 public middle schools	2.6%		12	2590^th of 2783 public middle schools	6.9%	99	7.8	7.8	9.8	18.1	17.4	15.2	6.1	4.0	1.4	3.6	$19,887	$3,181	$16,706
La Quinta Middle	Public	6-8	78-900 Avenue 50	La Quinta	92253	Riverside County	Desert Sands Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 777-4220	709	30	23.4	85.3%	79 (11.1%)	12 (1.7%)	554 (78.1%)	13 (1.8%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	49 (6.9%)	30.2	1824^th of 2761 public middle schools	33.9%		30.7	1783^rd of 2783 public middle schools	35.9%	41	18.5	18.5	38.1	34.9	35.3	36.1	30.7	19.7	19.0	22.8	$19,441	$2,974	$16,467
Indio Middle	Public	6-8	81-195 Miles Ave.	Indio	92201	Riverside County	Desert Sands Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 775-3800	768	34	22.3	92.7%	30 (3.9%)	14 (1.8%)	697 (90.8%)	3 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (3.0%)	9.7	2625^th of 2761 public middle schools	4.9%		12.3	2570^th of 2783 public middle schools	7.7%	55	11.6	11.6	14.1	21.9	16.7	17.6	6.2	6.4	6.2	6.3	$18,518	$3,214	$15,304
John Glenn Middle School of International Studies	Public	6-8	79-655 Miles Ave.	Indio	92201	Riverside County	Desert Sands Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 200-3700	1,099	45	24.4	67.1%	175 (15.9%)	18 (1.6%)	829 (75.4%)	29 (2.6%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	47 (4.3%)	52	1133^rd of 2761 public middle schools	59.0%		50.8	1147^th of 2783 public middle schools	58.8%	14	23.4	23.4	44.4	42.3	45.7	44.1	35.8	42.2	43.2	40.2	$19,909	$3,029	$16,880
Colonel Mitchell Paige Middle	Public	6-8	43-495 Palm Royale Dr.	La Quinta	92253	Riverside County	Desert Sands Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 238-9710	439	21	20.7	84.1%	80 (18.2%)	13 (3.0%)	305 (69.5%)	18 (4.1%)	4 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (4.3%)	20.5	2200^th of 2761 public middle schools	20.3%		20.6	2236^th of 2783 public middle schools	19.7%	36	21.2	21.2	31.7	23.4	32.5	29.9	9.0	13.9	12.8	11.8	$22,908	$3,615	$19,293
Desert Ridge Academy	Public	6-8	79-767 Avenue 39	Indio	92203	Riverside County	Desert Sands Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 393-5500	962	41	23.6	81.5%	81 (8.4%)	13 (1.4%)	815 (84.7%)	16 (1.7%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.3%)	32 (3.3%)	26.3	1945^th of 2761 public middle schools	29.6%		19.6	2278^th of 2783 public middle schools	18.1%	333	21.1	21.1	37.1	36.5	30.5	34.5	24.5	18.5	10.5	17.4	$19,602	$3,156	$16,446
Toro Canyon Middle	Public	7-8	86150 Avenue 66	Thermal	92274	Riverside County	Coachella Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 397-2244	989	46	21.5	97.1%	7 (0.7%)	1 (0.1%)	961 (97.2%)	2 (0.2%)	10 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (0.8%)	11.6	2562^nd of 2761 public middle schools	7.2%		13	2550^th of 2783 public middle schools	8.4%	12	10.4	10.4		21.6	18.1	19.9		8.8	10.2	9.5	$29,501	$1,275	$28,226
Palm Desert Charter Middle	Public, Charter	6-8	74-200 Rutledge Way	Palm Desert	92260	Riverside County	Desert Sands Unified	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 862-4320	1,298	47	27.6	61.4%	444 (34.2%)	20 (1.5%)	669 (51.5%)	78 (6.0%)	3 (0.2%)	2 (0.2%)	82 (6.3%)	64.2	802^nd of 2761 public middle schools	71.0%		68.2	719^th of 2783 public middle schools	74.2%	83	32.1	32.1	61.5	64.5	48.3	57.9	43.2	41.7	32.1	38.8	$13,492	$411	$13,081

Frequently Asked Questions about Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High

Is Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High a good school?

Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High ranks 1889^th of 2761 California middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What high school do graduates of Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High attend?

Students who attend Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High usually go on to attend Coachella Valley High

How many students attend Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 668 students attended Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High.

What district is Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High in?

Coachella Valley Unified

What is the racial makeup of Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High?

Students at Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High are 99% Hispanic.

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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.