Best Public Schools in Zuni, NM

Zuni, New Mexico has four public schools — one elementary (PK–6), one middle (7–9), and two high schools (10–12) — all within Zuni Public Schools, with 1,052 students enrolled in total. Poverty is nearly universal here: three schools report 100% free/reduced lunch participation, and Zuni High reports 99.32%. Student/teacher ratios are low citywide, ranging from 7.4 at Twin Buttes Cyber Academy to 11.3 at Zuni High. The district overall ranks 83rd of 87 in New Mexico, at the 5th percentile with 0 stars — but that district-wide rating hides large differences among the individual schools.

Zuni Middle is the clearest positive standout, improving from the 3rd percentile in 2023–2024 to the 40th percentile in 2025–2026, and it is the only city school earning 2 stars. Its Language Arts score of 41.96 is close to the state's 43.34 (district: 32.95), though its math score of 16.31 trails the state's 25.54. Shiwi Ts’ana Elementary, the largest school with 447 students (about 42.5% of enrollment), shows a strong early signal that fades: 3rd grade Language Arts is 49.06 versus the state's 44.33, but 6th grade Language Arts drops to 16.67 against the state's 38.9.

The two high schools tell very different stories. Zuni High graduates 81.6% of students — above both the district's 78.2% and the state's 80.6% — yet ranks 126 of 132 at the 5th percentile with 0 stars, with 11th grade Language Arts at 13.04 versus the state's 36.78 and math proficiency under 10%. Twin Buttes Cyber Academy, the smallest school at 70 students, has the lowest graduation rate at 53.3% — roughly a 28-point gap with Zuni High — and its test scores are suppressed by the state, so its academic performance cannot be assessed. Math remains the biggest citywide weakness.