Beta You're viewing our redesigned school page. Prefer the classic layout?

New rankings! California test scores for the 2025-26 school year were just released — SchoolDigger posted updated rankings this week.

Be the first to know when we post new rankings!

Petaluma Junior High

Q: Is Petaluma Junior High a good school?

Petaluma Junior High ranks 1193 rd of 2703 California middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 7-8

1193^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,703 California Middle Schools

Better than 56% of California middle schools

Summary

Petaluma Junior High serves 454 students in grades 7–8 in Petaluma, California, within the Petaluma Joint Union High district. Its clearest academic concern is the drop in results from 7th to 8th grade, especially in math: 7th-grade proficiency was 56% in ELA and 41% in math, compared with 44% and 27% in 8th grade.

ELA is the school’s strongest subject relative to the state, while science is its weakest. In 2025–2026, ELA proficiency was 50%, about 1 point above California’s 49%, but 7 points below the district. Math was 34%, 5 points below the state and 6 below the district; science was 28%, 8 points below both. Among nearby grades 7–8 schools, the school ranked third of four in each subject. Their average science proficiency was 45%, 17 points above the school’s result. The grade-level pattern is also concerning: 7th grade was above state rates in ELA and math, while 8th grade was below the state in ELA, math and science. In the broader nearby-school comparison, it ranked fifth of 11 in 7th-grade ELA and math, but sixth in 8th-grade ELA and seventh in 8th-grade math and science.

Results have not kept pace with state improvement. From 2022–2023 to 2025–2026, ELA fell 2 points, math rose 1 point, and science fell 3 points; the science gap to the state widened by 9 points. SchoolDigger placed the school at the 56th percentile with 3 stars in 2025–2026, down from the 70th percentile in 2021–2022, though it is near the middle of nearby schools. Chronic absenteeism improved from 22% to 15% over the same period and was below the state and district in 2025–2026. The 2024–2025 student-teacher ratio was 19.1, and 45% of students were reported as free/reduced lunch eligible that year. SchoolDigger’s statewide ranking for Low Socio Economic Status Students was 30th percentile in 2025–2026, compared with 56th overall, down from the subgroup’s 46th percentile in 2023–2024.

454

Students ?

19.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$27,985

Per pupil spending ?

44.7%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

All students in California receive free school meals.

700 Bantam Way
Petaluma, CA 94952-1709

(707) 778-4724

District: Petaluma Joint Union High

Students who attend Petaluma Junior High usually attend:

High:

Petaluma High

Feeder schools for Petaluma Junior High:

Elementary:	Cinnabar Charter
	Dunham Charter
	Grant Elementary
	Laguna Elementary
	More...
	Liberty Primary
	McDowell Elementary
	McKinley Elementary
	McNear Elementary
	Penngrove Elementary
	Two Rock Elementary
	Valley Vista Elementary
	Wilson Elementary

Racial breakdown:

White:

55.9%

Hispanic:

35.0%

Two or more races:

4.8%

See top rated California middle schools

Compare Petaluma Junior High to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 84th percentile in 2016 → 56th in 2026

Strengths

✓Above the California median (56th percentile)

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 28 percentile points since 2016

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

!Near the bottom of Petaluma Joint Union High's ranking

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school39%

District avg45%

California avg42%

1,193^rd of 2,703

California public middle schools ?

Top 44%▼ down 28 pts since 2016

From top 16% (2016) to top 44% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of California Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 4Middle Schools in the Petaluma Joint Union High

386^th of 968Petaluma Joint Union High 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
2026	49.2	1193 of 2703	55.9%	★★★☆☆
2025	53.8	1080 of 2761	60.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	47.9	1217 of 2783	56.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	60.3	892 of 2781	67.9%	★★★☆☆
2022	62.8	835 of 2740	69.5%	★★★☆☆
2021	62.1	299 of 894	66.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	62.5	852 of 2715	68.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	63.0	779 of 2480	68.6%	★★★☆☆
2017	75.5	562 of 2508	77.6%	★★★★☆
2016	81.7	409 of 2497	83.6%	★★★★☆
2015	83.2	368 of 2477	85.1%	★★★★☆
2013	70.2	590 of 2379	75.2%	★★★★☆
2012	65.5	689 of 2259	69.5%	★★★☆☆
2011	77.7	345 of 2236	84.6%	★★★★☆
2010	74.8	431 of 2179	80.2%	★★★★☆
2009	71.0	489 of 2063	76.3%	★★★★☆
2008	72.7	436 of 2005	78.3%	★★★★☆
2007	73.3	416 of 1999	79.2%	★★★★☆
2006	74.5	387 of 1804	78.5%	★★★★☆
2005	69.0	462 of 1777	74.0%	★★★★☆
2004	69.2	443 of 1769	75.0%	★★★★☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	51.3	543 of 1531	64.5%	★★★☆☆
2021	43.9	150 of 354	57.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	54.8	475 of 1491	68.1%	★★★☆☆
2018	49.4	499 of 1369	63.6%	★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	33.6	1029 of 1478	30.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	28.7	1288 of 1521	15.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	28.6	327 of 363	9.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	45.9	524 of 1442	63.7%	★★★☆☆
2018	41.8	578 of 1364	57.6%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	48.8	1112 of 2483	55.2%	★★★☆☆
2025	54.9	951 of 2533	62.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	49.4	1079 of 2551	57.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	51.0	1031 of 2531	59.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	59.1	834 of 2509	66.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	68.5	199 of 738	73.0%	★★★★☆
2019	64.9	731 of 2380	69.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	61.9	745 of 2262	67.1%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	33.4	1500 of 2325	35.5%	★★☆☆☆
2025	35.7	1451 of 2395	39.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	38.5	1354 of 2388	43.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	39.1	1294 of 2374	45.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	46.9	1078 of 2359	54.3%	★★★☆☆
2019	45.7	1072 of 2213	51.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	52.0	851 of 2072	58.9%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	29.8	1740 of 2493	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2025	35.9	1550 of 2542	39.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	39.5	1395 of 2579	45.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	55.3	872 of 2531	65.5%	★★★☆☆
2022	56.1	837 of 2458	65.9%	★★★☆☆
2021	50.3	295 of 721	59.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	46.7	1116 of 2369	52.9%	★★★☆☆
2018	40.9	1232 of 2230	44.8%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	48.2	1118 of 2478	54.9%	★★★☆☆
2025	50.7	1067 of 2534	57.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	44.9	1214 of 2552	52.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	66.6	681 of 2538	73.2%	★★★★☆
2022	65.0	716 of 2527	71.7%	★★★★☆
2021	54.7	310 of 763	59.4%	★★★☆☆
2019	58.2	842 of 2407	65.0%	★★★☆☆
2018	61.5	747 of 2273	67.1%	★★★☆☆

Military Connected

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	67.9	57 of 193	70.5%	★★★★☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	37.2	465 of 726	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	83.5	83 of 677	87.7%	★★★★☆
2022	47.3	358 of 665	46.2%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	43.2	750 of 1586	52.7%	★★★☆☆
2025	39.6	811 of 1566	48.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	40.9	752 of 1552	51.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	44.5	670 of 1531	56.2%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2026	37.2	923 of 1482	37.7%	★★☆☆☆
2025	47.9	779 of 1520	48.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	34.8	985 of 1537	35.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	48.3	768 of 1543	50.2%	★★★☆☆
2022	52.2	728 of 1555	53.2%	★★★☆☆
2019	52.1	751 of 1602	53.1%	★★★☆☆
2018	51.8	714 of 1496	52.3%	★★★☆☆

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)

Military Connected (2022)70th percentile~ school

Disabled (2022)65th percentile-5 vs school

Female (2026)55th percentile~ school

Male (2026)55th percentile~ school

Special Education (2026)53rd percentile-3 vs school

White (2026)38th percentile-18 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)36th percentile-25 vs school

Hispanic (2026)35th percentile-20 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)30th percentile-26 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)30th percentile-26 vs school

By subject vs California (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy50%~ state avg

Mathematics34%-5 vs state

Science28%-8 vs state

★

No ratings yet

Be the first to rate Petaluma Junior High and help other families decide.

Rate Petaluma Junior High

Have first-hand experience? A quick rating - and a sentence or two about what stands out (teachers, academics, safety, communication) - helps other families know what to expect.

Takes about a minute. We email you a link to verify your review - your address is never shown publicly.

Tap a star to rate

Reviews

No written reviews yet. If you know this school, be the first to share what stands out.

Schools Near Petaluma Junior High

Load more schools when map is moved

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 (2026)				Ranking (2025)				CSA Spanish Overall (2026)				CSA Spanish Listening (2026)				CSA Spanish Writing (2026)				CSA Spanish Reading (2026)				CAST Science (2026)		Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2026)				Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2026)				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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CSA Spanish Overall 6th Grade	CSA Spanish Overall 7th Grade	CSA Spanish Overall 8th Grade	CSA Spanish Overall All Grades	CSA Spanish Listening 6th Grade	CSA Spanish Listening 7th Grade	CSA Spanish Listening 8th Grade	CSA Spanish Listening All Grades	CSA Spanish Writing 6th Grade	CSA Spanish Writing 7th Grade	CSA Spanish Writing 8th Grade	CSA Spanish Writing All Grades	CSA Spanish Reading 6th Grade	CSA Spanish Reading 7th Grade	CSA Spanish Reading 8th 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
Petaluma Junior High	Public	7-8	700 Bantam Way	Petaluma	94952	Sonoma County	Petaluma Joint Union High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(707) 778-4724	454	24	19.1	44.7%	254 (55.9%)	1 (0.2%)	159 (35.0%)	10 (2.2%)	4 (0.9%)	2 (0.4%)	22 (4.8%)	49.2	1193^rd of 2703 public middle schools	55.9%		53.8	1080^th of 2761 public middle schools	60.9%	113																	28.3	28.3		55.7	43.9	49.9		40.7	26.5	33.7	$27,985	$27,460	$525
Petaluma Accelerated Charter	Public, Charter	7-8	110 Ellis St.	Petaluma	94952	Sonoma County	Petaluma Joint Union High	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(707) 778-4750	115	5	25.3	27.8%	61 (53.0%)	1 (0.9%)	34 (29.6%)	10 (8.7%)	1 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (7.0%)	98.8	21^st of 2703 public middle schools	99.2%		98.5	27^th of 2761 public middle schools	99.0%	6																	78.0	78.0		96.1	83.1	89.1		86.3	84.8	85.5	$29,091	$28,590	$501
Dual Language Immersion Academy Charter	Public, Charter	7-8	421 South Mcdowell Blvd.	Petaluma	94954	Sonoma County	Petaluma Joint Union High	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(707) 778-4621	31	1	32.2	61.3%	2 (6.5%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (90.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (3.2%)	21.6	2119^th of 2703 public middle schools	21.6%					(n/a)		3.6	0.0	2.0		28.6	33.3	30.6		14.3	4.8	10.2		0.0	9.5	4.1	23.8	23.8		17.9	47.6	30.6		3.6	19.1	10.2	$10,673	$10,172	$501
Kenilworth Junior High	Public	7-8	800 Riesling Rd.	Petaluma	94954	Sonoma County	Petaluma Joint Union High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(707) 778-4710	812	39	20.7	45.2%	395 (48.6%)	9 (1.1%)	338 (41.6%)	19 (2.3%)	3 (0.4%)	2 (0.2%)	46 (5.7%)	60	922^nd of 2703 public middle schools	65.9%		58.6	937^th of 2761 public middle schools	66.1%	15																	33.6	33.6		57.7	46.7	51.9		47.7	39.1	43.2	$23,101	$22,396	$705
Technology Middle	Public	6-8	7165 Burton Ave.	Rohnert Park	94928	Sonoma County	Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(707) 792-4800	409	24	16.9	65.0%	91 (22.2%)	11 (2.7%)	259 (63.3%)	18 (4.4%)	2 (0.5%)	4 (1.0%)	23 (5.6%)	18.9	2233^rd of 2703 public middle schools	17.4%		11.7	2561^st of 2761 public middle schools	7.2%	328																	16.7	16.7	26.6	33.6	38.1	32.2	11.6	13.5	14.2	13.0	$24,334	$23,136	$1,198
Lawrence E. Jones Middle	Public	6-8	5154 Snyder Ln.	Rohnert Park	94928	Sonoma County	Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(707) 588-5600	775	37	21.0	38.3%	335 (43.2%)	14 (1.8%)	300 (38.7%)	44 (5.7%)	3 (0.4%)	7 (0.9%)	72 (9.3%)	49.3	1187^th of 2703 public middle schools	56.1%		47.4	1252^nd of 2761 public middle schools	54.7%	65																	27.4	27.4	47.9	49.6	46.0	47.9	36.0	34.0	34.6	34.8	$20,252	$19,718	$534
Sinaloa Middle	Public	6-8	2045 Vineyard Rd.	Novato	94947	Marin County	Novato Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(415) 897-2111	693	34	20.4	42.1%	343 (49.5%)	13 (1.9%)	239 (34.5%)	40 (5.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	56 (8.1%)	75.3	554^th of 2703 public middle schools	79.5%		74.7	589^th of 2761 public middle schools	78.7%	35																	46.5	46.5	53.5	65.1	61.3	59.7	50.2	48.1	49.8	49.4	$21,878	$20,824	$1,054
Altimira Middle	Public	6-8	17805 Arnold Dr.	Sonoma	95476	Sonoma County	Sonoma Valley Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(707) 935-6020	324	20	16.1	42.3%	48 (14.8%)	0 (0.0%)	270 (83.3%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.2%)	19.1	2225^th of 2703 public middle schools	17.7%		17.9	2320^th of 2761 public middle schools	16.0%	95	2.6	18.2	10.3	10.0	10.5	30.3	18.0	19.1	0.0	21.2	5.1	8.2	0.0	18.8	10.3	9.3	20.9	20.9	26.3	26.7	26.2	26.4	11.7	17.7	22.6	17.6	$24,117	$22,544	$1,573
San Jose Middle	Public	6-8	1000 Sunset Pkwy.	Novato	94949	Marin County	Novato Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(415) 883-7831	559	26	21.2	55.8%	157 (28.1%)	16 (2.9%)	311 (55.6%)	36 (6.4%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	36 (6.4%)	47.3	1249^th of 2703 public middle schools	53.8%		54.4	1060^th of 2761 public middle schools	61.6%	189	9.1	0.0	14.3	7.9	9.1	7.7	21.4	13.2	27.3	15.4	14.3	18.4	0.0	0.0	14.3	5.3	33.5	33.5	40.5	48.0	43.4	43.7	36.2	38.7	28.7	34.5	$22,055	$20,900	$1,155
Hillcrest Middle	Public, Charter	6-8	725 Bloomfield Rd.	Sebastopol	95472	Sonoma County	Gravenstein Union Elementary	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(707) 823-7653	297	18	16.8	30.0%	180 (60.6%)	1 (0.3%)	74 (24.9%)	13 (4.4%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.7%)	26 (8.8%)	84	385^th of 2703 public middle schools	85.8%		90.7	260^th of 2761 public middle schools	90.6%	125																	44.4	44.4	69.3	71.4	60.7	67.5	55.7	63.4	53.9	58.1	$31,215	$30,972	$243

Frequently Asked Questions about Petaluma Junior High

How many students attend Petaluma Junior High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 454 students attended Petaluma Junior High.

What high school do graduates of Petaluma Junior High attend?

Students who attend Petaluma Junior High usually go on to attend Petaluma High

What district is Petaluma Junior High in?

Petaluma Joint Union High

What is the racial makeup of Petaluma Junior High?

Students at Petaluma Junior High are 56% White, 35% Hispanic, 5% Two or more races, 2% Asian.

Is Petaluma Junior High a good school?

Petaluma Junior High ranks 1193^rd of 2703 California middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Rate Petaluma Junior High!

Other helpful SchoolDigger resources...

Compare to nearby schools

CACalifornia Middle School Rankings

CACalifornia District Rankings

Schools in Petaluma, CA

Sign up for updates!

Be the first to know when there is an update for Petaluma Junior High!

Latest California data All new data »

2025–26 attendance data, dropout rates & graduation ratesNewOct 15, 2026

2025–26 CAST, CSA Spanish & Smarter Balanced Assessments scoresNewOct 15, 2026

2024–25 school spending dataJul 1, 2026

2024–25 attendance dataMar 13, 2026

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.