How does Branciforte Middle compare to other middle schools in Santa Cruz?

Branciforte Middle has a Scope Score of 60/100, ranked #622 among California middle schools. 21% of students exceed standard, with a total of 803 students tested across grades and subjects.

What percentage of students exceed standards at Branciforte Middle?

21.3% of students at Branciforte Middle exceed the state standard on CAASPP assessments, while 49.7% meet or exceed it. The gap between these two numbers reveals whether the school pushes students beyond basic proficiency.

Is Branciforte Middle improving or declining?

Based on CAASPP data, Branciforte Middle's proficiency rate decreases by 3.4 percentage points from Grade 6 to grade 8 growth. This pattern in test scores may reflect a variety of factors beyond the school itself.

What is the chronic absenteeism rate at Branciforte Middle?

17.0% of students at Branciforte Middle are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days). This metric reflects school culture and family engagement, and is weighted at 15% in the Scope Score.

Branciforte Middle

Middle School

Santa Cruz City HighSanta Cruz, Santa Cruz County95062

📍 315 Poplar Street 📞 (831) 429-3883 🌐 Website

Scope Score

out of 100

State Rank

of 1,714 California middle schools

🌱

Building Momentum

Every school has strengths the data doesn’t fully capture. Visit and see for yourself.

Resources alone aren't driving results yet — deeper challenges may be at play

Scope Scores are SchoolScope's analysis of public data from the California Dept. of Education (CAASPP, chronic absenteeism, suspension rates). They are not official CDE ratings and should not be the sole basis for school decisions. See methodology.

Score Factors

Helping

✓Exceeded standard: 21.3%

4.0pp above state avg (state avg 17.3%)

30% weight

✓Met or exceeded: 49.7%

10.2pp above state avg (state avg 39.5%)

20% weight

✓Chronic absenteeism: 17.0%

2.3pp below state avg (state avg 19.3%)

15% weight

✓Baseline proficiency: 49.7%

Above state baseline (state avg 39.5%)

10% weight

✓Suspension rate: 2.6%

1.5pp below state avg (state avg 4.1%)

10% weight

Holding Back

▼Growth (G6→G8): -3.4pp

Scores decline across grades (state avg +0.8pp)

15% weight

Unlike traditional school ratings, we show our work. Every factor, its weight, and how this school compares to the state average — so you can decide what matters most to your family. The middle school Scope Score is weighted across 6 dimensions. See full methodology →

5-year trend

↓ 8.0 points since 2019

Rank: #415 → #585 → #794 → #691 → #622Exceeded: 20% → 14% → 17% → 19% → 21%

2019 · 2022 · 2023 · 2024 · 2025 · No testing 2020–21 (COVID) · Scope Score based on CAASPP, absenteeism & suspension data

Key metrics

% Exceeded Standard

21.3%

Students scoring above proficient

% Met or Above

49.7%

Students meeting standard

Growth (G6→G8)

-3.4pp

Change in proficiency rate

Chronic Absenteeism

17.0%

Students missing 10%+ of days

Suspension Rate

2.6%

Students suspended at least once

Total Tested

803

Across all grades & subjects

Grade trajectory

How proficiency compares across grade levels this year (different students, same test year)

ELA Trajectory

Math Trajectory

ELA scores by grade

Grade	Tested	Exceeded	Met	Nearly Met	Not Met	Met+Above
6th	132	20.4%	45.5%	14.4%	19.7%	65.9%
7th	145	21.4%	40.0%	19.3%	19.3%	61.4%
8th	120	21.7%	30.0%	26.7%	21.7%	51.7%

Math scores by grade

Grade	Tested	Exceeded	Met	Nearly Met	Not Met	Met+Above
6th	138	17.4%	18.1%	28.3%	36.2%	35.5%
7th	147	20.4%	20.4%	31.3%	27.9%	40.8%
8th	121	26.4%	16.5%	27.3%	29.8%	43.0%

Science (CAST)

Level	%
Exceeded	16.4%
Met	24.6%
Nearly Met	50.8%
Not Met	8.2%
Met+	41.0%

122 students tested · CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually like ELA/Math. Not included in the Scope Score. · Data source: CDE CAST 2025

What other rankings don't show you

Most rating sites report "50% proficient" for Branciforte Middle and stop there. Here's what that number hides:

21.3% of students exceeded standard while 28.4% met it. That exceeded rate is 4.0 points above the state average of 17.3%. That's 2.7 points above the Santa Cruz City High district average of 18.6%. Nearby schools (within ~3 miles) average 21.6% exceeded — about the same. The gap between "met" and "exceeded" can reveal how much a school's curriculum challenges students beyond proficiency.

Proficiency drops by 3.4 percentage points from Grade 6 to grade 8 growth — a signal that the school may not be sustaining early gains.

California's Dashboard shows ELA performance increased significantly and Math increased significantly year-over-year. 33.9% of English learners reached Level 4 (Well Developed) on ELPAC.

Chronic absenteeism is 17.0%, better than the state average of 19.3%.

Why the exceeded vs. met split matters →