Summary:
ZIP code 94705 has four Berkeley Unified schools: three elementary schools serving kindergarten through grade 5 and one middle school serving grades 6–8, with no high schools in this list. In 2025–26, the four-school averages were 73% proficient in English language arts (ELA), 67% in math, and 62% in science—about 24, 29, and 26 percentage points above their respective state results. The most important finding is that all four schools were above the state in all three reported subjects.
Willard Middle led all-grades ELA at 78%, just ahead of Emerson Elementary at 77%; Emerson led math at 70%, 2 points above Willard. John Muir Elementary topped science at 72%, 5 points above Willard. At the other end, Sylvia Mendez Elementary had the lowest result in each subject: 63% in ELA, 64% in math, and 52% in science. Even so, those results were 14, 26, and 16 points above state rates. SchoolDigger ranks Willard in the 94th percentile among middle schools; its elementary-school rankings place Emerson in the 91st percentile, Muir in the 90th, and Sylvia Mendez in the 82nd.
Science showed the clearest recent improvement: the four-school average rose 8 percentage points from 2024–25 to 2025–26, led by gains of 18 points at Muir and 14 at Sylvia Mendez. Average ELA and math changes were nearly flat, each rounding to 0 points, while state averages increased. Muir and Emerson trade grade-level leads: Emerson was ahead in fourth-grade ELA and math by 10 and 13 points, while Muir led in fifth-grade ELA, math, and science by 8, 6, and 13 points. For context, 2024–25 student–teacher ratios were 20.9 at Muir and 21.7 at Emerson; all four schools reported free/reduced lunch eligible figures for school year 2024–2025, ranging from 27% at Sylvia Mendez to 31% at Muir. These measures are context, not explanations for test results.
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