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Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy

Public Grades 6-8

2353^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,761 California Middle Schools

Better than 15% of California middle schools

Summary

Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy is a 1-star middle school serving about 950 students in grades 6-8 within the Palmdale Elementary School District, which ranks in the bottom 15% of all districts in California.

The school's performance is mixed, with its English Language Arts scores matching the district average but its math and science proficiency falling significantly below it; only about 10% of students are proficient in math, a challenge shared by other magnet schools in the Palmdale Elementary district like Shadow Hills Engineering and Design Magnet Academy and David G. Millen Law and Government Magnet Academy. A major concern is a sharp rise in chronic absenteeism, with over a third of students missing significant school, a rate higher than both the district and state averages.

When compared to middle schools in neighboring districts, such as Joe Walker Middle in the Westside Union Elementary district or Fulton and Alsbury Academy of Arts and Engineering in the Lancaster Elementary district, Desert Willow's academic results are considerably lower, suggesting broader district factors may influence performance. The school's per-student spending has increased recently, but this investment has not yet led to superior outcomes compared to other schools with similar resources.

948

Students ?

21.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$25,741

Per pupil spending ?

89.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

36555 Sunny Ln.
Palmdale, CA 93550-1019

(661) 285-5866

District: Palmdale Elementary

Feeder schools for Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy:

Elementary:	Barrel Springs Elementary
	Buena Vista Elementary
	Cimarron Elementary

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

79.5%

African American:

13.2%

White:

3.8%

See top rated California middle schools

Compare Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 15th percentile in 2013 → 15th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (19% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (15th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (34% vs 19% California)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school19%

District avg23%

California avg41%

2,353^rd of 2,761

California public middle schools ?

Bottom 15%▼ down 4 pts since 2015

From bottom 19% (2015) to bottom 15% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 5Middle Schools in the Palmdale Elementary

1309^th of 1,543Palmdale Elementary 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	17.0	2353 of 2761	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	19.1	2295 of 2783	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.1	2202 of 2781	20.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	17.9	2309 of 2740	15.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	16.5	2331 of 2715	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	17.7	2082 of 2480	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	15.7	2196 of 2508	12.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	20.9	1988 of 2497	20.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	20.3	2013 of 2477	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	19.2	2029 of 2379	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	23.2	1837 of 2259	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	24.1	1796 of 2236	19.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	26.6	1676 of 2179	23.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	25.3	1594 of 2063	22.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	19.9	1681 of 2005	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	21.1	1617 of 1999	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	18.7	538 of 609	11.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	29.6	451 of 627	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	29.7	442 of 613	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	22.2	538 of 637	15.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	19.9	567 of 643	11.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.3	521 of 600	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	18.4	1499 of 1531	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	23.5	1281 of 1491	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	21.2	1273 of 1369	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	24.5	1438 of 1478	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	40.1	768 of 1521	49.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.8	1100 of 1540	28.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	27.6	1253 of 1442	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	28.4	1076 of 1364	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	17.0	2202 of 2533	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.1	2091 of 2551	18.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.6	1897 of 2531	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.4	2058 of 2509	18.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	16.4	2060 of 2380	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.3	1835 of 2262	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	21.4	1960 of 2395	18.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.8	1904 of 2388	20.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	28.4	1697 of 2374	28.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	25.4	1807 of 2359	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	24.7	1720 of 2213	22.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	26.5	1572 of 2072	24.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	21.2	2097 of 2542	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.0	2064 of 2579	20.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	26.6	1890 of 2531	25.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	23.3	1979 of 2458	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	21.2	1987 of 2369	16.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.8	1782 of 2230	20.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	16.8	2205 of 2534	13.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.9	2173 of 2552	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.0	2180 of 2538	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	16.0	2253 of 2527	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	16.4	2114 of 2407	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	14.6	2063 of 2273	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	24.7	1290 of 1566	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	25.3	1266 of 1552	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	28.2	1137 of 1531	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	36.5	973 of 1520	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	50.1	743 of 1537	51.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	42.1	876 of 1543	43.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	24.3	1195 of 1555	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	8.3	1505 of 1602	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	12.2	1357 of 1496	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)36th percentile+21 vs school

Hispanic (2025)18th percentile+3 vs school

Special Education (2025)18th percentile+3 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)18th percentile+3 vs school

Female (2025)13th percentile~ school

Male (2025)13th percentile~ school

African American (2025)12th percentile-3 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)3rd percentile-15 vs school

Disabled (2022)2nd percentile-14 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy31%-18 vs state

Science11%-22 vs state

Mathematics10%-27 vs state

★

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Schools Near Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy

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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 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 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
Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy	Public	6-8	36555 Sunny Ln.	Palmdale	93550	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 285-5866	948	44	21.5	89.7%	36 (3.8%)	125 (13.2%)	754 (79.5%)	9 (0.9%)	8 (0.8%)	1 (0.1%)	15 (1.6%)	17	2353^rd of 2761 public middle schools	14.8%		19.1	2295^th of 2783 public middle schools	17.5%	58		10.7	10.7		26.6	30.5	33.2	30.5		8.2	8.5	12.7	10.0	$25,741	$24,618	$1,123
Cactus Medical Health and Technology Magnet Academy	Public	6-8	3243 East Ave. R-8	Palmdale	93550	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 273-0847	822	40	20.7	89.3%	33 (4.0%)	119 (14.5%)	643 (78.2%)	8 (1.0%)	5 (0.6%)	1 (0.1%)	13 (1.6%)	15.2	2429^th of 2761 public middle schools	12.0%		15	2477^th of 2783 public middle schools	11.0%	48		7.5	7.5		22.7	34.7	25.1	27.8		7.7	13.9	8.8	10.3	$27,163	$26,118	$1,045
Space Aeronautics Gateway to Exploration Magnet Academy	Public	6-8	38060 20th St. East	Palmdale	93550	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 537-6101	747	38	19.4	90.2%	25 (3.3%)	130 (17.4%)	562 (75.2%)	5 (0.7%)	3 (0.4%)	4 (0.5%)	18 (2.4%)	15.6	2409^th of 2761 public middle schools	12.7%		10.9	2639^th of 2783 public middle schools	5.2%	230		8.8	8.8		22.1	26.1	31.0	26.5		16.1	8.3	12.3	12.4	$31,172	$29,844	$1,328
Shadow Hills Engineering and Design Magnet Academy	Public	6-8	37315 60th St. East	Palmdale	93552	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 533-7400	813	37	22.0	83.0%	20 (2.5%)	144 (17.7%)	618 (76.0%)	13 (1.6%)	5 (0.6%)	3 (0.4%)	10 (1.2%)	21.2	2177^th of 2761 public middle schools	21.2%		21.2	2210^th of 2783 public middle schools	20.6%	33		14.4	14.4		25.5	34.6	28.0	29.5		23.7	15.6	13.4	17.6	$27,343	$26,104	$1,239
David G. Millen Law and Government Magnet Academy	Public	6-8	39221 22nd St. West	Palmdale	93551	Los Angeles County	Palmdale Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 947-3075	952	42	22.7	75.3%	46 (4.8%)	187 (19.6%)	659 (69.2%)	24 (2.5%)	5 (0.5%)	5 (0.5%)	26 (2.7%)	15.4	2417^th of 2761 public middle schools	12.5%		17.1	2390^th of 2783 public middle schools	14.1%	27		12.8	12.8		23.0	25.4	27.2	25.4		12.1	13.7	10.3	11.9	$25,534	$24,300	$1,234
High Desert	Public	5-8	3620 Antelope Woods Rd.	Acton	93510	Los Angeles County	Acton-Agua Dulce Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 269-0310	307	14	21.6	71.3%	112 (36.5%)	6 (2.0%)	179 (58.3%)	4 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.0%)	25.1	1994^th of 2761 public middle schools	27.8%		26.8	1963^rd of 2783 public middle schools	29.5%	31	20.2	15.1	17.8	28.6	29.9	36.1	34.3	32.2	17.9	22.4	22.9	12.3	18.9	$10,596	$4,710	$5,886
Hillview Middle	Public	6-8	40525 Peonza Ln.	Palmdale	93551	Los Angeles County	Westside Union Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 722-9993	1,100	45	24.6	53.0%	214 (19.5%)	108 (9.8%)	648 (58.9%)	60 (5.5%)	5 (0.5%)	2 (0.2%)	62 (5.6%)	55.9	1009^th of 2761 public middle schools	63.5%		53.8	1046^th of 2783 public middle schools	62.4%	37		32.5	32.5		87.5	53.3	43.9	52.4		78.4	32.7	31.7	36.2	$19,669	$18,596	$1,073
New Vista Middle	Public	6-8	753 East Avenue K-2	Lancaster	93535	Los Angeles County	Lancaster Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 726-4271	835	46	18.1	91.3%	38 (4.6%)	312 (37.4%)	450 (53.9%)	8 (1.0%)	6 (0.7%)	1 (0.1%)	20 (2.4%)	7.6	2690^th of 2761 public middle schools	2.6%		9.1	2692^nd of 2783 public middle schools	3.3%	2		4.4	4.4		14.0	14.4	15.9	14.8		4.1	8.6	3.8	5.6	$8,509	$6,032	$2,477
Fulton and Alsbury Academy of Arts and Engineering	Public	6-8	831 East Ave. K-2	Lancaster	93535	Los Angeles County	Lancaster Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 899-7836	414	13	31.9	76.6%	42 (10.1%)	71 (17.1%)	272 (65.7%)	9 (2.2%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (4.1%)	64.9	790^th of 2761 public middle schools	71.4%		76.6	552^nd of 2783 public middle schools	80.2%	238		38.6	38.6		51.4	60.9	59.9	57.3		25.0	45.1	43.2	37.5	$3,768	$1,422	$2,346
Gifford C. Cole Middle	Public	7-8	3126 East Avenue I	Lancaster	93535	Los Angeles County	Eastside Union Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 946-1041	697	33	21.3	82.1%	31 (4.4%)	156 (22.4%)	471 (67.6%)	6 (0.9%)	1 (0.1%)	2 (0.3%)	30 (4.3%)	12.1	2546^th of 2761 public middle schools	7.8%		16.4	2421^st of 2783 public middle schools	13.0%	125		9.5	9.5			21.0	25.8	23.5			8.5	6.3	7.3	$22,954	$20,562	$2,392

Frequently Asked Questions about Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy

How many students attend Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy?

In the 2024-25 school year, 948 students attended Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy.

What is the racial makeup of Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy?

Students at Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy are 80% Hispanic, 13% African American, 4% White, 2% Two or more races.

Is Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy a good school?

Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy ranks in the bottom 14.8% of California middle schools.

What district is Desert Willow Fine Arts Sci and Technical Magnet Academy in?

Palmdale Elementary

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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.