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Toro Canyon Middle

Public Grades 7-8

2562^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,761 California Middle Schools

Better than 7% of California middle schools

Summary

Toro Canyon Middle is a public school serving grades 7-8 with 989 students in Thermal, CA, within the Coachella Valley Unified district, and it faces significant academic challenges, ranking in the bottom 7% of all California schools.

The school's students struggle with very low proficiency in English and Math, and it has a critical chronic absenteeism rate of over 40%, which is more than double the state average. Interestingly, despite these challenges, Toro Canyon spends more per student—over $29,500—than any nearby school, including higher-performing ones like Palm Desert Charter Middle. Even within its own district, Cahuilla Desert Academy Junior High achieves better academic results with similar funding, suggesting resources alone aren't solving the core issues.

There are some bright spots: the school has shown relative effectiveness in supporting migrant students and English learners. However, the broader Coachella Valley Unified district lags behind neighboring Desert Sands Unified, indicating district-wide factors are at play. For improvement, the school likely needs to focus intensely on improving attendance and learning from the strategies that work for its most successful student groups.

989

Students ?

21.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$19,375

Per pupil spending ?

97.1%

Free/discounted lunch ?

86150 Avenue 66
Thermal, CA 92274

(760) 397-2244

District: Coachella Valley Unified

Students who attend Toro Canyon Middle usually attend:

High:

Desert Mirage High

Feeder schools for Toro Canyon Middle:

Elementary:	John Kelley Elementary
	Las Palmitas Elementary
	Mecca Elementary
	Oasis Elementary
	More...
	Saul Martinez Elementary

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

97.2%

American Indian:

1.0%

Two or more races:

0.8%

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At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 5th percentile in 2015 → 7th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (14% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (7th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (41% vs 19% California)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school14%

District avg22%

California avg41%

2,562^nd of 2,761

California public middle schools ?

Bottom 7%▲ up 2 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of California Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd 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	11.6	2562 of 2761	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.0	2550 of 2783	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.6	2513 of 2781	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	13.6	2511 of 2740	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	14.7	822 of 894	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	12.0	2485 of 2715	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	14.3	2197 of 2480	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	12.6	2304 of 2508	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	13.2	2252 of 2497	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	9.8	2349 of 2477	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	9.5	2234 of 2379	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	13.1	2057 of 2259	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	20.9	1884 of 2236	15.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	19.1	1875 of 2179	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	25.6	1587 of 2063	23.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	26.0	1539 of 2005	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	15.4	1762 of 1999	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	21.2	1450 of 1804	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	17.6	1512 of 1777	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	15.7	1554 of 1769	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	23.4	1324 of 1531	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	24.5	319 of 354	9.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	17.6	1470 of 1491	1.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	20.1	1314 of 1369	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	33.4	1046 of 1478	29.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	36.7	900 of 1521	40.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	30.6	1216 of 1540	21.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	31.3	307 of 363	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	25.5	1356 of 1442	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	27.9	1106 of 1364	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	14.0	2295 of 2533	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.1	2364 of 2551	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	15.1	2296 of 2531	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	13.8	2313 of 2509	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	13.6	696 of 738	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	11.3	2233 of 2380	6.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	13.3	2058 of 2262	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	15.0	2178 of 2395	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	16.6	2127 of 2388	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.9	2059 of 2374	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	17.7	2104 of 2359	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	15.5	2011 of 2213	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	19.1	1782 of 2072	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	17.0	452 of 477	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	14.8	2312 of 2542	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	16.4	2313 of 2579	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.6	2220 of 2531	12.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	17.7	2198 of 2458	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	23.0	615 of 721	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	15.4	2144 of 2369	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	19.0	1934 of 2230	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	9.8	2431 of 2534	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.2	2370 of 2552	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.6	2314 of 2538	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	14.2	2331 of 2527	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	16.4	693 of 763	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	12.2	2244 of 2407	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	15.1	2047 of 2273	9.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Migrant

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	35.7	56 of 95	41.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	67.0	22 of 94	76.6%	★★★★☆
2023	35.0	55 of 86	36.0%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	19.6	1472 of 1566	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	27.5	1190 of 1552	23.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	22.8	1354 of 1531	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Migrant (2025)41st percentile+34 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)29th percentile+21 vs school

Disabled (2022)14th percentile+5 vs school

Female (2025)9th percentile~ school

Hispanic (2025)9th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)9th percentile~ school

Special Education (2025)6th percentile~ school

Homeless (2025)5th percentile~ school

Male (2025)4th percentile-3 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy20%-29 vs state

Science10%-22 vs state

Mathematics10%-28 vs state

★

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Schools Near Toro Canyon 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 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
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	$19,375	$14,170	$5,205
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	$20,795	$15,546	$5,249
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	$22,232	$16,936	$5,296
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	$21,697	$19,828	$1,869
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	$22,165	$20,254	$1,911
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	$21,056	$18,964	$2,092
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	$23,402	$21,538	$1,864
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	$27,133	$24,602	$2,531
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	$24,883	$22,806	$2,077
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	$29,144	$28,914	$230

Frequently Asked Questions about Toro Canyon Middle

Is Toro Canyon Middle a good school?

Toro Canyon Middle ranks in the bottom 7.2% of California middle schools.

What is the racial makeup of Toro Canyon Middle?

Students at Toro Canyon Middle are 97% Hispanic, 1% American Indian.

What high school do graduates of Toro Canyon Middle attend?

Students who attend Toro Canyon Middle usually go on to attend Desert Mirage High

How many students attend Toro Canyon Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 989 students attended Toro Canyon Middle.

What district is Toro Canyon Middle in?

Coachella Valley Unified

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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.