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Best Middle Schools in Zip Code 88001

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At a glance

Schools

4,848

Students

5-star school

Top rankedMesilla Valley Leadership Academy16^th of 191 New Mexico middle schools

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Biggest riser

Vista Middle up 15 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

Lynn Middle 9.8 students per teacher

SchoolDigger ratings

5★

4★

3★

2★

1★

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Summary:

ZIP code 88001 covers Las Cruces, New Mexico, and is served by eight middle schools, all within Las Cruces Public Schools and all teaching grades 6–8. Together they enroll 4,848 students, from 94 at Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy to 933 at Camino Real Middle, with a median of about 657. The district ranks 49th of 87 in New Mexico (44th percentile, 2 stars), and every school reports free/reduced lunch eligibility near 100%.

Two schools clearly lead. Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy ranks 16th of 191 statewide (92nd percentile, 5 stars), with 81.82% language arts, 48.00% math, and 84.38% 8th-grade science — far above district and state averages — though its enrollment of only 94 students means percentages can swing widely. Camino Real Middle shows similar strength at scale: 933 students, ranked 32nd of 191 (83rd percentile, 4 stars), with 61.72% language arts, 38.28% math, and 57.24% science. Vista Middle (86th of 191, 3 stars) stands out in language arts at 51.74%, and Sierra Middle (101st, 2 stars) is slightly above district in math at 26.64%.

The remaining four — Mesa Middle, Picacho Middle, Zia Middle, and Lynn Middle — fall below district and state in most measures. Lynn posts the lowest language arts (30.69%) and math (12.50%); Picacho is next lowest (32.31% and 13.54%); Zia has 31.26% language arts with better math (20.54%); and Mesa ranks 144th of 191 (25th percentile, 1 star) with 15.94% math. Math is the shared weak point: every school scores lower in math than language arts, and 8th-grade math is especially low — only Camino Real (34.01%), Sierra (23.04%), and MVLA (43.75%) beat district and state, while Lynn sits at 7.05% and Mesa at 8.74%. Class size and poverty rates do not explain these gaps: Mesa and MVLA share a 15.6 student-teacher ratio, and Lynn has the lowest ratio (9.8) yet remains among the lowest performers.

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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 (2026)				Ranking (2025)				NM-ASR Science (2026)	NM-MSSA English Language Arts (2026)				NM-MSSA Mathematics (2026)				Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
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	Directly certified (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	NM-ASR Science 8th Grade	NM-MSSA English Language Arts 6th Grade	NM-MSSA English Language Arts 7th Grade	NM-MSSA English Language Arts 8th Grade	NM-MSSA English Language Arts All Grades	NM-MSSA Mathematics 6th Grade	NM-MSSA Mathematics 7th Grade	NM-MSSA Mathematics 8th Grade	NM-MSSA Mathematics All Grades	Total
Vista Middle	Public	6-8	4465 Elks Dr	Las Cruces	88001	Doña Ana County	Las Cruces Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-9465	574	56	10.2	44.4%	54 (9.4%)	7 (1.2%)	495 (86.2%)	1 (0.2%)	6 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (1.9%)	47.9	86^th of 191 public middle schools	55.0%		39.7	101^st of 192 public middle schools	47.4%	15	31.1	47.5	56.9	51.6	52.0	33.7	28.2	12.5	24.7	$8,507
Lynn Middle	Public	6-8	950 South Walnut St	Las Cruces	88001	Doña Ana County	Las Cruces Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-9445	507	52	9.8	62.9%	75 (14.8%)	12 (2.4%)	399 (78.7%)	5 (1.0%)	4 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (2.4%)	19.4	161^st of 191 public middle schools	15.7%		16.6	167^th of 192 public middle schools	13.0%	6	28.1	30.6	32.8	30.2	31.2	12.5	19.2	7.2	12.7	$8,523
Zia Middle	Public	6-8	1300 West University Ave	Las Cruces	88001	Doña Ana County	Las Cruces Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-9475	616	60	10.2	48.9%	98 (15.9%)	12 (1.9%)	494 (80.2%)	2 (0.3%)	4 (0.6%)	1 (0.2%)	5 (0.8%)	23.9	146^th of 191 public middle schools	23.6%		32.3	120^th of 192 public middle schools	37.5%	26	26.2	26.3	35.6	33.0	31.4	24.2	22.2	16.1	20.7	$8,805
Sierra Middle	Public	6-8	1700 E Spruce Ave	Las Cruces	88001	Doña Ana County	Las Cruces Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-9640	698	66	10.6	48.0%	96 (13.8%)	15 (2.1%)	574 (82.2%)	4 (0.6%)	3 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	5 (0.7%)	40.2	101^st of 191 public middle schools	47.1%		44.6	88^th of 192 public middle schools	54.2%	13	36.0	38.7	42.0	42.7	41.0	30.6	25.8	23.4	26.9	$8,018
Picacho Middle	Public	6-8	1040 North Motel Blvd	Las Cruces	88001	Doña Ana County	Las Cruces Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-9455	698	61	11.4	46.4%	102 (14.6%)	9 (1.3%)	577 (82.7%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (0.9%)	20.3	157^th of 191 public middle schools	17.8%		28.1	135^th of 192 public middle schools	29.7%	22	25.3	21.6	31.9	42.8	32.7	18.0	13.2	9.8	13.4	$9,072
Camino Real Middle	Public	6-8	2961 Roadrunner Pkwy	Las Cruces	88001	Doña Ana County	Las Cruces Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-6030	933	84	11.1	30.7%	225 (24.1%)	17 (1.8%)	652 (69.9%)	16 (1.7%)	6 (0.6%)	2 (0.2%)	15 (1.6%)	77.4	32^nd of 191 public middle schools	83.2%		69.5	47^th of 192 public middle schools	75.5%	15	58.1	61.2	68.3	58.1	62.4	48.3	35.3	34.7	38.7	$7,720
Mesa Middle	Public	6-8	7225 Jornada Rd North	Las Cruces	88001	Doña Ana County	Las Cruces Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-9510	728	47	15.6	40.0%	90 (12.4%)	13 (1.8%)	595 (81.7%)	7 (1.0%)	7 (1.0%)	1 (0.1%)	15 (2.1%)	25.1	144^th of 191 public middle schools	24.6%		31.2	124^th of 192 public middle schools	35.4%	20	29.0	32.7	40.9	36.8	37.0	24.1	14.7	8.8	16.2	$8,992
Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy	Public	6-8	950 South Walnut St	Las Cruces	88001	Doña Ana County	Las Cruces Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-6059	94	6	15.6	17.0%	42 (44.7%)	1 (1.1%)	48 (51.1%)	1 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (2.1%)	91.8	16^th of 191 public middle schools	91.6%		83.7	27^th of 192 public middle schools	85.9%	11	84.4	80.7	80.6	84.4	81.8	50.0	50.0	43.8	48.0	$10,283

Cities Near Zip Code 88001

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Las Cruces	0.8 mi	49	41^st
Mesilla	4.13 mi	1
Mesquite	10.9 mi	1
San Miguel	11.81 mi	1	16^th
La Mesa	13.55 mi	1

See the top NM New Mexico cities

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the New Mexico Public Education Department.

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.