Summary:
ZIP code 94540 has three middle schools serving grades 7–8, with 1,716 students in all—an average of 572 per school—and enrollment ranging from 465 to 669. In 2025–2026, average proficiency across the schools was 37% in English language arts (ELA), 26% in math and 26% in science, compared with 49%, 38% and 36% statewide. That puts the area averages about 12 percentage points below the state in ELA and math and 10 points below in science. The most important finding is that all three schools are below state proficiency, while results vary substantially from one school to another.
Martin Luther King Junior Middle is the clear local leader, with 45% proficiency in ELA, 31% in math and 30% in science; it is about 4, 7 and 6 points below the state in those subjects. Winton Middle is lowest in all three, at 29%, 20% and 21%—about 20, 19 and 15 points below the state. The gap between those two schools is about 16 points in ELA, 12 in math and 9 in science. Bret Harte Middle ranks second in each subject, with 36% in ELA, 28% in math and 27% in science.
Results improved overall from 2024–2025, especially in math: the three-school average rose about 1 point in ELA, 5 in math and 2 in science. Math gains were strongest at Bret Harte, up about 8 points; Winton’s ELA result fell about 1 point while its math and science results rose about 2 points each. Martin Luther King’s grade 7 ELA and math results are notably stronger than its grade 8 results, by about 9 and 10 points. SchoolDigger’s percentile for Martin Luther King rose from 48 to 51, while Bret Harte’s moved from 42 to 38 and Winton’s from 20 to 22. As context, all three report free/reduced lunch eligible for 2024–2025: 77% at Bret Harte, 83% at Martin Luther King and 86% at Winton; this measure does not explain the score differences. Student-teacher ratios range from 21.9 at Bret Harte to 23.6 at Winton.
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